Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Arrecife, Canary Islands, Spain:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Lanzarote Airport (ACE), Arrecife, Canary Islands, Spain would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,776 miles (or 10,904 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 Eareckson Air Station and Lanzarote Airport, 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 Eareckson Air Station and Lanzarote Airport. 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 Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• The base host squadron was re-designated the 5073rd Air Base Squadron on October 1962, and upgraded to a group on 15 October 1974 in recognition of the number and complexities of the tenant units it supported.
• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• 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.

Facts about Lanzarote Airport (ACE):

• Lanzarote Airport, also known as Arrecife Airport, is the airport serving the island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.
• Lanzarote Airport (ACE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Lanzarote Airport's relatively low elevation of 47 feet, planes can take off or land at Lanzarote 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.
• A new passenger terminal was constructed along with a control centre, and on 3 March 1970 international and domestic flights began using the airport.
• The furthest airport from Lanzarote Airport (ACE) is Norfolk Island Airport (NLK), which is nearly antipodal to Lanzarote Airport (meaning Lanzarote Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Norfolk Island Airport), and is located 12,343 miles (19,865 kilometers) away in Norfolk Island, Australia.
• Lanzarote Airport handled 5,334,598 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Lanzarote Airport (ACE) is Fuerteventura Airport (FUE), which is located 37 miles (60 kilometers) SSW of ACE.
• In the 1930s a need for an aerodrome on the island became evident when connections were required with the other islands and the mainland, as well as a refuelling point for aircraft.
• In addition to being known as "Lanzarote Airport", another name for ACE is "Aeropuerto de Lanzarote".