Nonstop flight route between Van, Turkey and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from VAN to SYA:
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- About this route
- VAN Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about VAN
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to VAN
- List of Nearest Airports to VAN
- Map of Furthest Airports from VAN
- List of Furthest Airports from VAN
- 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 Van Ferit Melen Airport (VAN), Van, Turkey and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,481 miles (or 8,821 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 Van Ferit Melen 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 Van Ferit Melen 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: | VAN / LTCI |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Van, Turkey |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°28'5"N by 43°19'55"E |
Area Served: | Van |
Operator/Owner: | Turkish Government Airport Management |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 5480 feet (1,670 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from VAN |
More Information: | VAN 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 Van Ferit Melen Airport (VAN):
- Because of Van Ferit Melen Airport's high elevation of 5,480 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at VAN. Combined with a high temperature, this could make VAN a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- In addition to being known as "Van Ferit Melen Airport", another name for VAN is "Ferit Melen Havaalanı".
- The furthest airport from Van Ferit Melen Airport (VAN) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,369 miles (18,296 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
- Van Ferit Melen Airport (VAN) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Van Ferit Melen Airport (VAN) is Agri Airport (AJI), which is located 84 miles (134 kilometers) N of VAN.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Eareckson Air Station is located on the western tip of Alaska's Aleutian islands near the larger island of Attu, and is located approximately 1500 miles southwest of Anchorage.
- Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
- It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome.
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
- The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".