Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SYA to AFA:
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- About this route
- SYA Airport Information
- AFA Airport Information
- Facts about SYA
- Facts about AFA
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to AFA
- List of Nearest Airports to AFA
- Map of Furthest Airports from AFA
- List of Furthest Airports from AFA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and San Rafael Airport (AFA), San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,188 miles (or 14,787 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 Eareckson Air Station and San Rafael Airport, 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 Eareckson Air Station and San Rafael Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure 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 |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | AFA / SAMR |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°35'17"S by 68°24'12"W |
Area Served: | San Rafael, Mendoza Province, Argentina |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 2470 feet (753 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from AFA |
More Information: | AFA Maps & Info |
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
- 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.
- After the disastrous attack, the focus of Eleventh Air Force was shifted to a defensive posture in the event of retaliatory attacks from the Japanese.
- On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- Jurisdiction of Shemya AFB was transferred from the Aerospace Defense Command to the Strategic Air Command when the former was inactivated on 1 October 1979.
- 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.
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
Facts about San Rafael Airport (AFA):
- San Rafael Airport (AFA) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from San Rafael Airport (AFA) is Luoyang Beijiao Airport (LYA), which is nearly antipodal to San Rafael Airport (meaning San Rafael Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Luoyang Beijiao Airport), and is located 12,391 miles (19,941 kilometers) away in Luoyang, Henan, China.
- In addition to being known as "San Rafael Airport", another name for AFA is "Aeropuerto San Rafael "Santiago Germano"".
- The closest airport to San Rafael Airport (AFA) is Comodoro D. Ricardo Salomón Airport (LGS), which is located 91 miles (147 kilometers) SW of AFA.