Nonstop flight route between Amarillo, Texas, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA), Amarillo, Texas, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,104 miles (or 6,605 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 Rick Husband Amarillo International 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 Rick Husband Amarillo International 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 Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA):

• The terminal building underwent a $52.2 million renovation that was designed by the firms Reynolds, Smith & Hills and Shiver Megert and Associates and completed in 2011.
• Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport is a public airport six miles east of downtown Amarillo, in Potter and Randall Counties, Texas, United States.
• The furthest airport from Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,034 miles (17,757 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA) is Tradewind Airport (TDW), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) WSW of AMA.
• Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA) has 2 runways.
• In 2003 the airport terminal building was rededicated to NASA astronaut Rick Husband, the commander of mission STS-107 of the Space Shuttle Columbia and an Amarillo native.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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 base host squadron was re-designated the 5073rd Air Base Squadron on October 1962, and upgraded to a group on 15 October 1974 in recognition of the number and complexities of the tenant units it supported.
• In August, after the Soviet Union declared war against the Japanese Empire, B-24s were dispatched on reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering missions to observe the Russian activity in the Kuriles.