Nonstop flight route between Ilulissat, Greenland and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ilulissat Airport (JAV), Ilulissat, Greenland and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,707 miles (or 5,967 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 Ilulissat 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 Ilulissat 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 Ilulissat Airport (JAV):

• Cougar Helicopters Sikorsky S-92 landing at Ilulissat Airport
• Air Iceland de Havilland Canada Dash-8 106
• Ilulissat Airport handled 41,965 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Ilulissat Airport (JAV) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 10,495 miles (16,891 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• The closest airport to Ilulissat Airport (JAV) is Qasigiannguit Heliport (JCH), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) S of JAV.
• In addition to being known as "Ilulissat Airport", other names for JAV include "Mittarfik Ilulissat" and "Ilulissat Lufthavn".
• Because of Ilulissat Airport's relatively low elevation of 95 feet, planes can take off or land at Ilulissat Airport 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.
• Ilulissat Airport (JAV) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (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 closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• 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 "  ".
• On 1 April 1995, Eareckson AS was converted to contractor operations and maintenance, providing all support on the island.