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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hays Regional Airport (HYS), Hays, Kansas, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,022 miles (or 6,472 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 Hays Regional 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 Hays Regional 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 Hays Regional Airport (HYS):

• Hays Regional Airport (HYS) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Hays Regional Airport (HYS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,760 miles (17,316 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Hays Regional Airport (HYS) is Great Bend Municipal Airport (GBD), which is located 41 miles (66 kilometers) SSE of HYS.
• Hays Regional Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located three nautical miles southeast of the central business district of Hays, a city in Ellis County, Kansas, United States.
• As per the Federal Aviation Administration, this airport had 8,540 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 7,518 in 2009, and 9,026 in 2010.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• 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 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• 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.
• Additional aircraft and personnel reductions occurred in 1945 and almost all air bases other than Alexi Point, Shemya and Davis in the Aleutians were reduced to caretaker status.
• In July 1973, Raytheon won a contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• 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.