Nonstop flight route between Sármellék, Hungary and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hévíz-Balaton Airport (SOB), Sármellék, Hungary and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,436 miles (or 8,748 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 Hévíz-Balaton 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 Hévíz-Balaton 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 Hévíz-Balaton Airport (SOB):

• Sármellék International Airport had operated as a public airport since 1991 and became the second international airport of the country on 15 May 2002 after Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport.
• Hévíz-Balaton Airport, previously also known as Sármellék International Airport, is an international airport in Hungary located west of Lake Balaton, 1 kilometre south-southwest of the village of Sármellék, Zala County and Keszthely.
• Because of Hévíz-Balaton Airport's relatively low elevation of 408 feet, planes can take off or land at Hévíz-Balaton 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 Hévíz-Balaton Airport (SOB) is Maribor Edvard Rusjan Airport (MBX), which is located 71 miles (115 kilometers) W of SOB.
• Hévíz-Balaton Airport (SOB) currently has only 1 runway.
• A military airport was already located here in the 1940s.
• The furthest airport from Hévíz-Balaton Airport (SOB) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,746 miles (18,904 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Its importance is due to the proximity of Lake Balaton, Hungary's most important holiday resort and the thermal spas of Hévíz and Zalakaros.
• In addition to being known as "Hévíz-Balaton Airport", another name for SOB is "Hévíz-Balaton Repülőtér".

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 "  ".
• 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.
• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• In 1966 the Air Defense Command 9th Air Division assumed jurisdiction of the base.