Nonstop flight route between Lewoleba, Indonesia and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wonopito Airport (LWE), Lewoleba, Indonesia and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,217 miles (or 8,396 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 Wonopito 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 Wonopito 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 Wonopito Airport (LWE):

• In addition to being known as "Wonopito Airport", another name for LWE is "Bandar Udara Wai Oti".
• The closest airport to Wonopito Airport (LWE) is Frans Seda Airport (MOF), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) SSE of LWE.
• Because of Wonopito Airport's relatively low elevation of 16 feet, planes can take off or land at Wonopito 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.
• Wonopito Airport (LWE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Wonopito Airport (LWE) is Ogle Airport (OGL), which is nearly antipodal to Wonopito Airport (meaning Wonopito Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ogle Airport), and is located 12,308 miles (19,808 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Guyana.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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 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 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.
• Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• On 1 July 1994, the 11th Air Control Wing was inactivated and the 673d ABG was reassigned to Eleventh Air Force.
• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.