Nonstop flight route between Sukhumi, Georgia and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SUI to SYA:
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- About this route
- SUI Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about SUI
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to SUI
- List of Nearest Airports to SUI
- Map of Furthest Airports from SUI
- List of Furthest Airports from SUI
- 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 Sukhumi Babushara Airport (SUI), Sukhumi, Georgia and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,266 miles (or 8,474 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 Sukhumi Babushara 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 Sukhumi Babushara 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: | SUI / UGSS |
Airport Name: | Sukhumi Babushara Airport |
Location: | Sukhumi, Georgia |
GPS Coordinates: | 42°51'29"N by 41°7'41"E |
Area Served: | Sukhumi |
Airport Type: | Public / Military |
Elevation: | 53 feet (16 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SUI |
More Information: | SUI 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 Sukhumi Babushara Airport (SUI):
- There is another airport in Abkhazia near Gudauta, which serves Russian military troops located there.
- Because of Sukhumi Babushara Airport's relatively low elevation of 53 feet, planes can take off or land at Sukhumi Babushara 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 Sukhumi Babushara Airport (SUI) is Sochi International Airport, Russia (AER), which is located 72 miles (116 kilometers) NW of SUI.
- Sukhumi Babushara Airport (SUI) currently has only 1 runway.
- In 2006 the government of the Republic of Abkhazia expressed its desire to resume international air traffic in the future, however the facility is not recognized as an international airport by ICAO and flights can only be allowed with the permission of the Georgian government.
- The furthest airport from Sukhumi Babushara Airport (SUI) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,052 miles (17,786 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
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.
- Eareckson Air Station is a United States Air Force military airport located on the island of Shemya, in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands.
- 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.
- 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.
- The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.