Nonstop flight route between Reykjavík, Iceland and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Reykjavík Airport (RKV), Reykjavík, Iceland and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,318 miles (or 6,949 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 Reykjavík 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 Reykjavík 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 Reykjavík Airport (RKV):

• Icelandair Group and Icelandair have a head office at the airport.Air Iceland and Isavia also have their head offices on the airport property.
• The furthest airport from Reykjavík Airport (RKV) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,187 miles (18,003 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Reykjavík Airport (RKV) is Keflavík International Airport (KEF), which is located 22 miles (36 kilometers) WSW of RKV.
• Reykjavík Airport handled 430,316 passengers last year.
• Reykjavík Airport (RKV) has 3 runways.
• Because of Reykjavík Airport's relatively low elevation of 45 feet, planes can take off or land at Reykjavík 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.
• The current airport was built by the British army during World War II on the south coast of Reykjavík peninsula, then a small town.
• In addition to being known as "Reykjavík Airport", other names for RKV include "Reykjavík Domestic Airport" and "Reykjavíkurflugvöllur".

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
• In 1966 the Air Defense Command 9th Air Division assumed jurisdiction of the base.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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.
• By the end of 1944, several hundred American airmen had been interned by the Russians after their crippled aircraft landed on Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.