Nonstop flight route between Semonkong, Lesotho and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SOK to SYA:
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- About this route
- SOK Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about SOK
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to SOK
- List of Nearest Airports to SOK
- Map of Furthest Airports from SOK
- List of Furthest Airports from SOK
- 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 Semonkong Airport (SOK), Semonkong, Lesotho and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,107 miles (or 16,266 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 Semonkong 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 Semonkong 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: | SOK / FXSM |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Semonkong, Lesotho |
GPS Coordinates: | 29°50'17"S by 28°3'35"E |
Airport Type: | Civil |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from SOK |
More Information: | SOK 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 Semonkong Airport (SOK):
- Semonkong Airport (SOK) has 2 runways.
- The furthest airport from Semonkong Airport (SOK) is Kalaupapa Airport (LUP), which is located 11,763 miles (18,931 kilometers) away in Kalaupapa, Hawaii, United States.
- In addition to being known as "Semonkong Airport", another name for SOK is "Semonkong".
- The closest airport to Semonkong Airport (SOK) is Lesobeng Airport (LES), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) ENE of SOK.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles.
- 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.
- In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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 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 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7, which was used for navigator training.
- In July 1973, Raytheon won a contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya.