Nonstop flight route between McCarthy, Alaska, United States and Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McCarthy Airport (MXY), McCarthy, Alaska, United States and Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,260 miles (or 5,246 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 McCarthy Airport and Shearwater Heliport, 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 McCarthy Airport and Shearwater Heliport. 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 McCarthy Airport (MXY):

• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 48 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 65 enplanements in 2009, and 54 in 2010.
• In addition to being known as "McCarthy Airport", another name for MXY is "15Z".
• McCarthy Airport is a state owned, public use airport located one nautical mile northeast of the central business district of McCarthy, in the Valdez-Cordova Census Area of the U.S.
• McCarthy Airport (MXY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from McCarthy Airport (MXY) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,473 miles (16,855 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The closest airport to McCarthy Airport (MXY) is May Creek Airport (MYK), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) SE of MXY.

Facts about Shearwater Heliport (YAW):

• Shearwater Heliport's primary mission remains as a heliport in support of the Royal Canadian Navy's Maritime Forces Atlantic warships with shipborne helicopters operated by 12 Wing, a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
• The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
• Organizers of the "Nova Scotia International Air Show" continued to make use the Shearwater airfield for both ground displays and the air show component until 2002.
• The furthest airport from Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Albany Airport (ALH), which is located 11,763 miles (18,931 kilometers) away in Albany, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Shearwater Heliport's relatively low elevation of 144 feet, planes can take off or land at Shearwater Heliport 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 "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".
• The February 1, 1968 unification of the three service branches into the Canadian Forces saw HMCS Shearwater change its name to Canadian Forces Base Shearwater.
• By the 1980s this air show came to be named the "Shearwater International Air Show" and was a popular event for military aviation enthusiasts in Eastern Canada and the Northeastern United States as the location of CFB Shearwater, coupled with the popularity of the Halifax area among military aircrew, resulted in heavy international participation from the RCAF, as well as the USAF, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, Royal Air Force and numerous other NATO air forces in Europe.