Nonstop flight route between Nanyuki, Kenya and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Nanyuki Airfield (NYK), Nanyuki, Kenya and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,042 miles (or 12,942 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 Nanyuki 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 Nanyuki 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 Nanyuki Airfield (NYK):

• Nanyuki Airfield is an airport in Laikipia County, Kenya.
• The closest airport to Nanyuki Airfield (NYK) is Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), which is located 87 miles (140 kilometers) S of NYK.
• In addition to being known as "Nanyuki Airfield", another name for NYK is "Nanyuki Airport".
• The furthest airport from Nanyuki Airfield (NYK) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,705 miles (18,838 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• The new civil airfield for Nanyuki was allocated along the Nanyuki – Naro Moru road about 10 kilometres, out of Nanyuki town, and was named Nanyuki Civil Airfield.
• Nanyuki Airfield (NYK) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Nanyuki Airfield's high elevation of 6,250 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at NYK. Combined with a high temperature, this could make NYK a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• At 1,905 metres above sea level, the airport has a single asphalt runway which measures 1,200 metres in length.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station is a United States Air Force military airport located on the island of Shemya, in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands.
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• In August 1988, at least one Aries rocket was launched, relating to the Queen Match program, for anti-ballistic missile testing.
• The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles.
• 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.
• 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.