Nonstop flight route between Peoria, Illinois, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA), Peoria, Illinois, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,287 miles (or 6,898 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 General Wayne A. Downing Peoria 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 General Wayne A. Downing Peoria 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 General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA):

• The airport is co-located with the Peoria Air National Guard Base, which is home to the 182d Airlift Wing of the Illinois Air National Guard.
• The furthest airport from General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,003 miles (17,707 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) is Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) ESE of PIA.
• General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) has 2 runways.
• General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport handled 592,101 passengers last year.
• Because of General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport's relatively low elevation of 661 feet, planes can take off or land at General Wayne A. Downing Peoria 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.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• 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 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• With the successful completion of the Aleutian Campaign in August 1943, Eleventh Air Force came within striking distance of the Japanese Kurile Islands, the northernmost being 750 miles to the south-southwest of Shemya.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.