Nonstop flight route between Bitam, Gabon and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bitam Airport (BMM), Bitam, Gabon and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,519 miles (or 13,710 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 Bitam 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 Bitam 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 Bitam Airport (BMM):

• The furthest airport from Bitam Airport (BMM) is Canton Island Airport (CIS), which is nearly antipodal to Bitam Airport (meaning Bitam Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Canton Island Airport), and is located 12,211 miles (19,651 kilometers) away in Canton Island, Kiribati.
• Bitam Airport (BMM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Bitam Airport (BMM) is Ebolowa Airport (EBW), which is located 59 miles (96 kilometers) NNW of BMM.

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.
• 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 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 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.
• 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 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 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 news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm, the biggest topic was "When do we go home?".
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.