Nonstop flight route between Northway, Alaska, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from ORT to SYA:
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- About this route
- ORT Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about ORT
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to ORT
- List of Nearest Airports to ORT
- Map of Furthest Airports from ORT
- List of Furthest Airports from ORT
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Northway Airport (ORT), Northway, Alaska, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,722 miles (or 2,771 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 relatively short distance between Northway Airport and Eareckson Air Station, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ORT / PAOR |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Northway, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 62°57'39"N by 141°55'41"W |
Area Served: | Northway, Alaska |
Operator/Owner: | Alaska DOT&PF - Northern Region |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 1715 feet (523 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from ORT |
More Information: | ORT Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SYA / PASY |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Shemya, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 52°42'43"N by 174°6'48"E |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 97 feet (30 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SYA |
More Information: | SYA Maps & Info |
Facts about Northway Airport (ORT):
- Northway Airport (ORT) currently has only 1 runway.
- In addition to being known as "Northway Airport", another name for ORT is "(former Northway Airfield)".
- The furthest airport from Northway Airport (ORT) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,363 miles (16,678 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
- Northway Airport covers an area of 1,150 acres at an elevation of 1,715 feet above mean sea level.
- The closest airport to Northway Airport (ORT) is Tok Airport (TKJ), which is located 41 miles (66 kilometers) NW of ORT.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (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 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.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- 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 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.
- It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome.
- 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.
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.