Nonstop flight route between Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Salgado Filho International Airport (POA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,678 miles (or 15,576 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 Salgado Filho 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 Salgado Filho 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 Salgado Filho International Airport (POA):

• In 2012 the airport was ranked 9th in terms of transported passengers in Brazil, placing it amongst the busiest airports in the country.
• Because of Salgado Filho International Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Salgado Filho 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.
• In 1932, needing a facility to use its aircraft with landing-gear which were replacing its seaplanes, Varig started using São João Airport as its operational base.
• The bus line T5 link Terminal 1 - International Airport to the city of Porto Alegre.
• However, in order to cope with the increasing passenger traffic at the airport, on September 8, 2010 a decision was made to renovate Terminal 2 and bring it back into passenger use.
• The furthest airport from Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) is Yakushima Airport (KUM), which is nearly antipodal to Salgado Filho International Airport (meaning Salgado Filho International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Yakushima Airport), and is located 12,324 miles (19,834 kilometers) away in Yakushima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan.
• The closest airport to Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) is Diomício Freitas/Forquilhinha Airport (CCM), which is located 137 miles (221 kilometers) NE of POA.
• In addition to being known as "Salgado Filho International Airport", another name for POA is "Aeroporto Internacional Salgado Filho".
• Terminals 1 and 2 have taxi services.
• Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In August 1988, at least one Aries rocket was launched, relating to the Queen Match program, for anti-ballistic missile testing.
• Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
• 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.
• 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.
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• 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.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• The news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm, the biggest topic was "When do we go home?".