Nonstop flight route between Bissau, Guinea-Bissau and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB), Bissau, Guinea-Bissau and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,935 miles (or 12,771 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 large distance between Osvaldo Vieira 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 Osvaldo Vieira 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 Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB):

• The airport had to be closed on June 7, 1998 due to intense fighting in and around Bissau.
• Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB) is Bubaque Airport (BQE), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) SSW of OXB.
• Because of Osvaldo Vieira International Airport's relatively low elevation of 129 feet, planes can take off or land at Osvaldo Vieira International Airport 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.
• Currently, Senegal Airlines has a daily flight to Dakar, which continues to Praia twice a week.
• The furthest airport from Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB) is Kirakira Airport (IRA), which is nearly antipodal to Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (meaning Osvaldo Vieira International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kirakira Airport), and is located 12,243 miles (19,703 kilometers) away in Kirakira, Makira Island, Solomon Islands.

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.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• By August, Eleventh Air Force B-24s were carrying out successful and accurate attacks on the Japanese military installations and the B-25s were successful in driving the Japanese fishing and much of the shipping out of the North Pacific.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• Jurisdiction of Shemya AFB was transferred from the Aerospace Defense Command to the Strategic Air Command when the former was inactivated on 1 October 1979.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7, which was used for navigator training.
• 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.