Nonstop flight route between Ellensburg, Washington, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from ELN to SYA:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- ELN Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about ELN
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to ELN
- List of Nearest Airports to ELN
- Map of Furthest Airports from ELN
- List of Furthest Airports from ELN
- 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 Bowers Field (ELN), Ellensburg, Washington, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,835 miles (or 4,562 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 Bowers Field 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 Bowers Field 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: | ELN / KELN |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Ellensburg, Washington, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°1'59"N by 120°31'50"W |
Area Served: | Ellensburg, Washington |
Operator/Owner: | Kittitas County |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 1764 feet (538 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from ELN |
More Information: | ELN Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SYA / PASY |
Airport Names: |
|
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 Bowers Field (ELN):
- Bowers Field is named in honor of Ensign Keith Bowers, the first man from Kittitas County killed in World War II.
- In addition to being known as "Bowers Field", another name for ELN is "(former Ellensburg Army Airfield)".
- The closest airport to Bowers Field (ELN) is Vagabond Army Heliport (closed to fixed-wing aircraft) (FCT), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) S of ELN.
- The furthest airport from Bowers Field (ELN) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,769 miles (17,331 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Bowers Field (ELN) has 2 runways.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- 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.
- The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
- 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.
- On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
- The mission of Eleventh Air Force was to take advantage of the new airfields on Shemya and Attu, and carry out offensive operations against the enemy forces in the Kuriles.
- 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.
- Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
- In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
- 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.
- Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
- In August 1988, at least one Aries rocket was launched, relating to the Queen Match program, for anti-ballistic missile testing.