Nonstop flight route between Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Cancún International Airport (CUN), Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,433 miles (or 8,744 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 Cancún 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 Cancún 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 Cancún International Airport (CUN):

• The terminals together comprise 47 boarding gates, 22 in Terminal 2, and 14 in Terminal 3.
• Because of Cancún International Airport's relatively low elevation of 20 feet, planes can take off or land at Cancún International 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.
• Cancún International Airport (CUN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Cancún International Airport (CUN) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,778 miles (18,955 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Asur announced an expansion of terminal 2 which will be completed by 2013, and terminal 3 will also be expanded after the completion of terminal 2.
• The closest airport to Cancún International Airport (CUN) is Cozumel International Airport (CZM), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) S of CUN.
• In addition to being known as "Cancún International Airport", another name for CUN is "Aeropuerto Internacional de Cancún".
• The airport has three terminals, two of which are currently in use, with Terminal 1 scheduled for remodeling.

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.
• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
• 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.