Nonstop flight route between Taroa Island, Maloelap Atoll, Marshall Islands and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Maloelap Airport (MAV), Taroa Island, Maloelap Atoll, Marshall Islands and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,045 miles (or 4,900 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 Maloelap 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 Maloelap 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 Maloelap Airport (MAV):

• Because of Maloelap Airport's relatively low elevation of 4 feet, planes can take off or land at Maloelap 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 Maloelap Airport (MAV) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is nearly antipodal to Maloelap Airport (meaning Maloelap Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from RAF Ascension), and is located 12,049 miles (19,391 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
• The closest airport to Maloelap Airport (MAV) is Kaben Airport (KBT), which is located 29 miles (47 kilometers) WNW of MAV.
• In addition to being known as "Maloelap Airport", other names for MAV include "Taroa Airfield" and "3N1".
• Maloelap Airport (MAV) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
• 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.
• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• On 1 July 1994, the 11th Air Control Wing was inactivated and the 673d ABG was reassigned to Eleventh Air Force.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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 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.