Nonstop flight route between Riverton, Wyoming, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
![Get maps and more information about Riverton Regional Airport Get airport maps and more information about Riverton Regional Airport](images/takeoff-icon.gif)
Arrival Airport:
![Get maps and more information about Eareckson Air Station Get airport maps and more information about Eareckson Air Station](images/landing-icon.gif)
Distance from RIW to SYA:
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- About this route
- RIW Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about RIW
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to RIW
- List of Nearest Airports to RIW
- Map of Furthest Airports from RIW
- List of Furthest Airports from RIW
- 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 Riverton Regional Airport (RIW), Riverton, Wyoming, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,471 miles (or 5,586 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 Riverton Regional 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 Riverton Regional 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:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RIW / KRIW |
Airport Name: | Riverton Regional Airport |
Location: | Riverton, Wyoming, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 43°3'51"N by 108°27'34"W |
Area Served: | Riverton, Wyoming |
Operator/Owner: | City of Riverton |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 5528 feet (1,685 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from RIW |
More Information: | RIW 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 Riverton Regional Airport (RIW):
- The furthest airport from Riverton Regional Airport (RIW) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,758 miles (17,313 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Because of Riverton Regional Airport's high elevation of 5,528 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at RIW. Combined with a high temperature, this could make RIW a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- Riverton Regional Airport (RIW) has 2 runways.
- As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 17,035 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 14,186 enplanements in 2009, and 14,361 in 2010.
- The closest airport to Riverton Regional Airport (RIW) is Hunt Field (LND), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) SW of RIW.
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 " ".
- 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 aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
- The 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7, which was used for navigator training.
- 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.
- 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 (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.