Nonstop flight route between Wahiawa, Hawaii, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wheeler AAF (HHI), Wahiawa, Hawaii, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,614 miles (or 4,206 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 Wheeler AAF 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 Wheeler AAF 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 Wheeler AAF (HHI):

• Wheeler AFB-cum-Wheeler AAF is delineated for statistical purposes as a census-designated place.
• Wheeler Field was the site of several major historic aviation events prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, including the first transpacific flight from California in 1927.
• Because of Wheeler AAF's relatively low elevation of 843 feet, planes can take off or land at Wheeler AAF 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 closest airport to Wheeler AAF (HHI) is Dillingham Airfield (HDH), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) WNW of HHI.
• The furthest airport from Wheeler AAF (HHI) is Ghanzi Airport (GNZ), which is nearly antipodal to Wheeler AAF (meaning Wheeler AAF is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ghanzi Airport), and is located 12,413 miles (19,976 kilometers) away in Ghanzi, Botswana.
• Casualties at Wheeler totaled 33 killed and 75 wounded.
• Wheeler AAF (HHI) currently has only 1 runway.
• Today, Wheeler Army Airfield comprises approximately 1,389 acres of land returned to the Department of the Army on 1 November 1991.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• By the end of 1944, several hundred American airmen had been interned by the Russians after their crippled aircraft landed on Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
• 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 closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• After the disastrous attack, the focus of Eleventh Air Force was shifted to a defensive posture in the event of retaliatory attacks from the Japanese.