Nonstop flight route between Fort Hood / Killeen, Texas, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hood Army Airfield (HLR), Fort Hood / Killeen, Texas, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,468 miles (or 7,190 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 Hood Army Airfield 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 Hood Army Airfield 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 Hood Army Airfield (HLR):

• The closest airport to Hood Army Airfield (HLR) is Skylark Field (ILE), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SSE of HLR.
• The furthest airport from Hood Army Airfield (HLR) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,022 miles (17,738 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Because of Hood Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 924 feet, planes can take off or land at Hood Army Airfield 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):

• 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 Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• 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.
• On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
• With the successful completion of the Aleutian Campaign in August 1943, Eleventh Air Force came within striking distance of the Japanese Kurile Islands, the northernmost being 750 miles to the south-southwest of Shemya.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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 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.
• In August 1988, at least one Aries rocket was launched, relating to the Queen Match program, for anti-ballistic missile testing.