Nonstop flight route between Walla Walla, Washington, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Walla Walla Regional AirportWalla Walla Army Air Base (ALW), Walla Walla, Washington, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,960 miles (or 4,763 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 Walla Walla Regional AirportWalla Walla Army Air Base 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 Walla Walla Regional AirportWalla Walla Army Air Base 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 Walla Walla Regional AirportWalla Walla Army Air Base (ALW):

• Walla Walla Regional AirportWalla Walla Army Air Base (ALW) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Walla Walla Regional AirportWalla Walla Army Air Base (ALW) is Eastern Oregon Regional Airport (PDT), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) SW of ALW.
• Late in 1943, Walla Walla Army Airfield lay idle when the Second Air Force withdrew its B-17 Flying Fortress training operation.
• The former office and supply buildings surrounding the airport proper have become a haven for smaller industrial/manufacturing businesses, including, as of June 2007, fifteen full-line wineries that source their fruit from the Walla Walla and Columbia Valley appellations.
• West Coast then merged with Bonanza Air Lines and Pacific Air Lines to form Air West which was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest.
• The furthest airport from Walla Walla Regional AirportWalla Walla Army Air Base (ALW) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,768 miles (17,330 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• In 1947 the United States Air Force declared the Walla Walla Airfield surplus and on December 1, 1947 the City and County took over operations.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• With the successful completion of the Aleutian Campaign in August 1943, Eleventh Air Force came within striking distance of the Japanese Kurile Islands, the northernmost being 750 miles to the south-southwest of Shemya.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• The station was also used by SAC Cobra Ball and other related projects which monitored missile-associated signals and tracks missiles during boost and re-entry phases to provide reconnaissance for treaty verification and theater ballistic missile proliferation.