Nonstop flight route between Asau, Samoa and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Asau Airport (AAU), Asau, Samoa and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,643 miles (or 7,472 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 Asau 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 Asau 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Asau Airport (AAU):

• The closest airport to Asau Airport (AAU) is Maota (Salelologa) Airport (MXS), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) ESE of AAU.
• In 2003, a cyclone swept past Samoa and most of the South Pacific.
• Only Twin Otter and Britten-Norman Islander planes can land and take off this small airport, generally because the runway and tarmac cannot handle any other larger and heavier aircraft.
• The furthest airport from Asau Airport (AAU) is Maradi Airport (MFQ), which is nearly antipodal to Asau Airport (meaning Asau Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Maradi Airport), and is located 12,419 miles (19,987 kilometers) away in Maradi, Niger.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• The aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• By August, Eleventh Air Force B-24s were carrying out successful and accurate attacks on the Japanese military installations and the B-25s were successful in driving the Japanese fishing and much of the shipping out of the North Pacific.