Nonstop flight route between Iringa, Tanzania and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Iringa / Nduli Airport (IRI), Iringa, Tanzania and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,547 miles (or 13,755 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 Iringa / Nduli 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 Iringa / Nduli 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 Iringa / Nduli Airport (IRI):

• The furthest airport from Iringa / Nduli Airport (IRI) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,453 miles (18,432 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• In addition to being known as "Iringa / Nduli Airport", another name for IRI is "Uwanja wa Ndege wa Iringa / Nduli  (Swahili)".
• The closest airport to Iringa / Nduli Airport (IRI) is Msalato International Airport– Proposed airport – (DOD), which is located 109 miles (175 kilometers) N of IRI.
• Iringa / Nduli Airport (IRI) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Iringa / Nduli Airport's high elevation of 4,678 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at IRI. Combined with a high temperature, this could make IRI a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• 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 closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of 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.
• The base host squadron was re-designated the 5073rd Air Base Squadron on October 1962, and upgraded to a group on 15 October 1974 in recognition of the number and complexities of the tenant units it supported.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• 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.