Nonstop flight route between Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Vancouver Harbour Water Airport (CXH), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,652 miles (or 4,268 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 Vancouver Harbour Water 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 Vancouver Harbour Water 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 Vancouver Harbour Water Airport (CXH):

• In addition to being known as "Vancouver Harbour Water Airport", another name for CXH is "Vancouver Coal Harbour Seaplane Base".
• The closest airport to Vancouver Harbour Water Airport (CXH) is Vancouver International Airport (YVR), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) SSW of CXH.
• The furthest airport from Vancouver Harbour Water Airport (CXH) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,677 miles (17,184 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Vancouver Harbour Water Airport or Vancouver Coal Harbour Seaplane Base is located at Coal Harbour in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
• In 2007, the link to Victoria Inner Harbour Airport was, according to the Official Airline Guide, Canada's busiest air route by the number of weekly flights.
• Because of Vancouver Harbour Water Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Vancouver Harbour Water 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.

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.
• 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.
• 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.
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• 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.
• 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 "  ".
• On 1 July 1994, the 11th Air Control Wing was inactivated and the 673d ABG was reassigned to Eleventh Air Force.
• Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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.