Nonstop flight route between Kushiro, Hokkaidō, Japan and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kushiro Airport (KUH), Kushiro, Hokkaidō, Japan and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,524 miles (or 2,453 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 relatively short distance between Kushiro Airport and Eareckson Air Station, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Kushiro Airport (KUH):

• Kushiro Airport (KUH) currently has only 1 runway.
• Kushiro Airport is an airport located 9 NM west northwest of Kushiro, Hokkaidō, Japan.
• A number of car hire companies have desks in the arrivals, all have off site parking, although this is no more than 2 minutes travel in the shuttle bus.
• In addition to being known as "Kushiro Airport", other names for KUH include "釧路空港" and "Kushiro Kūkō".
• The closest airport to Kushiro Airport (KUH) is Nakashibetsu Airport (SHB), which is located 53 miles (86 kilometers) NE of KUH.
• Because of Kushiro Airport's relatively low elevation of 311 feet, planes can take off or land at Kushiro 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.
• The furthest airport from Kushiro Airport (KUH) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,268 miles (18,133 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.

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 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 "  ".
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• The news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm, the biggest topic was "When do we go home?".
• 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.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
• 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.