Nonstop flight route between Alexander Bay, South Africa and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from ALJ to SYA:
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- About this route
- ALJ Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about ALJ
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to ALJ
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- Map of Furthest Airports from ALJ
- List of Furthest Airports from ALJ
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Alexander Bay Airport (ALJ), Alexander Bay, South Africa and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,415 miles (or 16,761 kilometers).
A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Alexander Bay Airport and Eareckson Air Station, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.
Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Alexander Bay Airport and Eareckson Air Station. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ALJ / FAAB |
Airport Name: | Alexander Bay Airport |
Location: | Alexander Bay, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 28°34'23"S by 16°32'3"E |
Area Served: | Alexander Bay, South Africa |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 98 feet (30 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from ALJ |
More Information: | ALJ Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SYA / PASY |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Shemya, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 52°42'43"N by 174°6'48"E |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 97 feet (30 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SYA |
More Information: | SYA Maps & Info |
Facts about Alexander Bay Airport (ALJ):
- The closest airport to Alexander Bay Airport (ALJ) is Kleinsee Airport (KLZ), which is located 84 miles (135 kilometers) SSE of ALJ.
- The furthest airport from Alexander Bay Airport (ALJ) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is located 11,931 miles (19,200 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
- Because of Alexander Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 98 feet, planes can take off or land at Alexander Bay Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
- Alexander Bay Airport (ALJ) has 3 runways.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya, a small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu.
- Because of Eareckson Air Station's relatively low elevation of 97 feet, planes can take off or land at Eareckson Air Station at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
- In August, after the Soviet Union declared war against the Japanese Empire, B-24s were dispatched on reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering missions to observe the Russian activity in the Kuriles.
- Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
- By the end of 1944, several hundred American airmen had been interned by the Russians after their crippled aircraft landed on Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
- The closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
- On 1 July 1994, the 11th Air Control Wing was inactivated and the 673d ABG was reassigned to Eleventh Air Force.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- The furthest airport from Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,668 miles (17,168 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
- A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.