Nonstop flight route between Louisville, Kentucky, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from LOU to SYA:
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- About this route
- LOU Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about LOU
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to LOU
- List of Nearest Airports to LOU
- Map of Furthest Airports from LOU
- List of Furthest Airports from LOU
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Bowman Field (LOU), Louisville, Kentucky, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,555 miles (or 7,331 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 Bowman Field 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 Bowman Field and Eareckson Air Station. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LOU / KLOU |
Airport Name: | Bowman Field |
Location: | Louisville, Kentucky, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°13'41"N by 85°39'48"W |
Area Served: | Louisville, Kentucky |
Operator/Owner: | Louisville Regional Airport Authority (LRAA) |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 546 feet (166 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from LOU |
More Information: | LOU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SYA / PASY |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Shemya, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 52°42'43"N by 174°6'48"E |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 97 feet (30 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SYA |
More Information: | SYA Maps & Info |
Facts about Bowman Field (LOU):
- Because of Bowman Field's relatively low elevation of 546 feet, planes can take off or land at Bowman Field 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 Bowman Field (LOU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,243 miles (18,093 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Bowman Field was used in the James Bond film Goldfinger as the base for Pussy Galore's Flying Circus.
- The first business ventures began with the aerial photography business in 1921, and the 465th Pursuit Squadron began operations at Bowman Field in 1922.
- Bowman found an outlet for his enthusiasm after meeting and forming a brief partnership with Louisvillian Robert H.
- Bowman Field (LOU) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Bowman Field (LOU) is Louisville International Airport (SDF), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) SW of LOU.
- Today Bowman Field is home to hundreds of privately owned aircraft as well as several commercial operations, including Central American Airways, which opened its doors in 1946, Falcon Aviation, Aero Club of Louisville, Inc., and Louisville Executive Aviation.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- 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.
- With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
- By August, Eleventh Air Force B-24s were carrying out successful and accurate attacks on the Japanese military installations and the B-25s were successful in driving the Japanese fishing and much of the shipping out of the North Pacific.
- 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 Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
- 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.
- 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.
- There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
- 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.
- On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
- Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
- In 1966 the Air Defense Command 9th Air Division assumed jurisdiction of the base.
- A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.