Nonstop flight route between Missoula, Montana, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Missoula International Airport (MSO), Missoula, Montana, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,091 miles (or 4,974 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 Missoula International 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 Missoula International 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 Missoula International Airport (MSO):

• Missoula International Airport handled 594,057 passengers last year.
• Missoula International Airport (MSO) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Missoula International Airport (MSO) is Glacier Park International Airport (FCA), which is located 97 miles (156 kilometers) N of MSO.
• In addition to being known as "Missoula International Airport", another name for MSO is "Johnson-Bell Field".
• The furthest airport from Missoula International Airport (MSO) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,601 miles (17,061 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The airport is building a new 150-foot tall control tower, replacing one that opened in 1961.
• Missoula's first landing strip was laid out in 1923 south of the university.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• 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 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 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.
• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• After the disastrous attack, the focus of Eleventh Air Force was shifted to a defensive posture in the event of retaliatory attacks from the Japanese.
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya, a small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu.
• 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.