Nonstop flight route between Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV), Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,161 miles (or 6,696 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 Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base 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 Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base 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 Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV):

• In addition to being known as "Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base", another name for FLV is "Sherman AAF".
• After World War II operations at Sherman sank again to a small scale.
• The closest airport to Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV) is Kansas City International Airport (MCI), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) ESE of FLV.
• From its beginning, the primary and almost exclusive function of Sherman Army Airfield at Fort Leavenworth was to provide flying facilities for the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth.
• During much of World War II Sherman had the peculiar distinction of being directly under Headquarters, Army Air Forces.
• The furthest airport from Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,739 miles (17,283 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
• The 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7, which was used for navigator training.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.