Nonstop flight route between Bolaang, Indonesia and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bolaang Airport (BJG), Bolaang, Indonesia and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,762 miles (or 7,664 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 Bolaang 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 Bolaang 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 Bolaang Airport (BJG):

• The furthest airport from Bolaang Airport (BJG) is Porto de Trombetas Airport (TMT), which is nearly antipodal to Bolaang Airport (meaning Bolaang Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Porto de Trombetas Airport), and is located 12,239 miles (19,697 kilometers) away in Porto Trombetas, Oriximiná, Pará, Brazil.
• The closest airport to Bolaang Airport (BJG) is Syukuran Aminuddin Amir Airport (LUW), which is located 46 miles (74 kilometers) E of BJG.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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 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 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.
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• After the disastrous attack, the focus of Eleventh Air Force was shifted to a defensive posture in the event of retaliatory attacks from the Japanese.
• 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.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.