Nonstop flight route between Santiago, Cuba and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Antonio Maceo Airport (SCU), Santiago, Cuba and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,915 miles (or 9,520 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 Antonio Maceo 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 Antonio Maceo 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 Antonio Maceo Airport (SCU):

• Antonio Maceo Airport (SCU) has 2 runways.
• Because of Antonio Maceo Airport's relatively low elevation of 249 feet, planes can take off or land at Antonio Maceo 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 closest airport to Antonio Maceo Airport (SCU) is Mariana Grajales Airport (GAO), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) E of SCU.
• The furthest airport from Antonio Maceo Airport (SCU) is RAAF Learmonth (LEA), which is located 11,778 miles (18,955 kilometers) away in Exmouth, Western Australia, Australia.
• Antonio Maceo Airport is an international airport located in Santiago, Cuba

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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 Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• 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.
• The station was also used by SAC Cobra Ball and other related projects which monitored missile-associated signals and tracks missiles during boost and re-entry phases to provide reconnaissance for treaty verification and theater ballistic missile proliferation.
• The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles.