Nonstop flight route between Bantry, County Cork, Ireland and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bantry Aerodrome (BYT), Bantry, County Cork, Ireland and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,222 miles (or 8,404 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 Bantry Aerodrome 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 Bantry Aerodrome 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 Bantry Aerodrome (BYT):

• Bantry Aerodrome (BYT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Bantry Aerodrome (BYT) is Kerry Airport (KIR), which is located 35 miles (57 kilometers) N of BYT.
• The furthest airport from Bantry Aerodrome (BYT) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is nearly antipodal to Bantry Aerodrome (meaning Bantry Aerodrome is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ryan's Creek Aerodrome), and is located 12,090 miles (19,457 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Because of Bantry Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Bantry Aerodrome 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.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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 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 limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• 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.
• Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
• 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.
• On 27 January 1992 the 5073rd Air Base Group located at Shemya AFB was re-designated as the Pacific Air Forces Eleventh Air Force 673d Air Base Group.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.