Nonstop flight route between Midland, Texas, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Midland International AirportMidland Army Airfield (MAF), Midland, Texas, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,248 miles (or 6,836 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 Midland International AirportMidland Army Airfield 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 Midland International AirportMidland Army Airfield 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 Midland International AirportMidland Army Airfield (MAF):

• The closest airport to Midland International AirportMidland Army Airfield (MAF) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) NE of MAF.
• Midland International AirportMidland Army Airfield (MAF) has 4 runways.
• Midland Army Air Field was home to the Army Air Forces Bombardier School, one of a dozen bombardier-training schools.
• By the 1990s several of the new-entrant carriers had pulled out and most of the remaining airlines had downgraded to regional jets.
• The furthest airport from Midland International AirportMidland Army Airfield (MAF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,209 miles (18,038 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Midland-Odessa Regional Airport opened its new passenger terminal in the early 1960s.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (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.
• 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 limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• The station was also used by SAC Cobra Ball and other related projects which monitored missile-associated signals and tracks missiles during boost and re-entry phases to provide reconnaissance for treaty verification and theater ballistic missile proliferation.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.