Nonstop flight route between Athens/Albany, Ohio, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport (ATO), Athens/Albany, Ohio, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,623 miles (or 7,440 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 Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush 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 Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush 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 Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport (ATO):

• The airport offers fuel services, pilot snooze room, flight training, and mechanics on site.
• Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport (ATO) currently has only 1 runway.
• Athens County's first airport was located just a few miles east of Athens on U.S.
• Because of Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport's relatively low elevation of 766 feet, planes can take off or land at Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport 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 Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport (ATO) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,410 miles (18,363 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The university finally chose a location just west of Albany and the airport was constructed in the early 1970s and opened around 1972.
• In addition to being known as "Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport", other names for ATO include "Snyder Field" and "UNI".
• The closest airport to Ohio University Airport Gordon K. Bush Airport (ATO) is Greater Portsmouth Regional Airport (PMH), which is located 42 miles (67 kilometers) SW of ATO.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
• 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.