Nonstop flight route between Montluçon, France and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU), Montluçon, France and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,583 miles (or 8,986 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 Montluçon - Guéret 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 Montluçon - Guéret 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 Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU):

• Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Montluçon - Guéret Airport (meaning Montluçon - Guéret Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,260 miles (19,731 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Montluçon - Guéret Airport", another name for MCU is "Aéroport de Montluçon - Guéret".
• The closest airport to Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU) is Clermont-Ferrand Auvergne Airport (CFE), which is located 49 miles (79 kilometers) SE of MCU.

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 closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• In August, after the Soviet Union declared war against the Japanese Empire, B-24s were dispatched on reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering missions to observe the Russian activity in the Kuriles.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Additional aircraft and personnel reductions occurred in 1945 and almost all air bases other than Alexi Point, Shemya and Davis in the Aleutians were reduced to caretaker status.
• 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 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 also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.