Nonstop flight route between Sparrevohn, Alaska, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sparrevohn LRRS Airport (SVW), Sparrevohn, Alaska, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,266 miles (or 2,038 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 relatively short distance between Sparrevohn LRRS Airport and Eareckson Air Station, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Sparrevohn LRRS Airport (SVW):

• It is not staffed by any support personnel, and is not open to the public.
• The closest airport to Sparrevohn LRRS Airport (SVW) is Stony River Airport (SRV), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NW of SVW.
• Sparrevohn LRRS has one runway designated 16/34 with a gravel surface measuring 4,198 by 151 feet.
• The furthest airport from Sparrevohn LRRS Airport (SVW) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,563 miles (16,999 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
• Sparrevohn LRRS Airport is a military airstrip located south of Sparrevohn, in the Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area of the U.S.
• Sparrevohn LRRS Airport (SVW) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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 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.
• Additional aircraft and personnel reductions occurred in 1945 and almost all air bases other than Alexi Point, Shemya and Davis in the Aleutians were reduced to caretaker status.
• 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.
• 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 closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• On 27 January 1992 the 5073rd Air Base Group located at Shemya AFB was re-designated as the Pacific Air Forces Eleventh Air Force 673d Air Base Group.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.