Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Bridgetown, Barbados:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Grantley Adams International Airport (BGI), Bridgetown, Barbados would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,895 miles (or 11,097 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 Grantley Adams International 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 Grantley Adams International 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):

• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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.
• 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 1966 the Air Defense Command 9th Air Division assumed jurisdiction of the base.
• 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 aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
• 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 news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm, the biggest topic was "When do we go home?".

Facts about Grantley Adams International Airport (BGI):

• After the expansion project, the airport's arrivals facility was moved to a separate brand-new 70,000-square-foot building adjacent to the previous structure.
• Grantley Adams Airport also serves as the main air-transportation hub for the Eastern Caribbean.
• In addition to being known as "Grantley Adams International Airport", another name for BGI is "78954[1][2][4]".
• Grantley Adams International Airport (BGI) currently has only 1 runway.
• Phase I, which is now complete, saw an upgrading of the runways, taxiways, parking aprons, and approach lighting.
• To the east of the main Sir Grantley Adams Airport is the 8,534 m2 site of the British Airways Concorde Museum on the old Spencers Plantation.
• In 1983, the US-sponsored invasion of Grenada prompted the United States to form yet another agreement with Barbados.
• Since Grantley Adams International Airport had become a relatively busy airport for such a small island, and based on the fact that future air traffic to the facilities is expected to increase, the Government of Barbados commenced a US$100 million programme to revamp the Airport's current infrastructure.
• The furthest airport from Grantley Adams International Airport (BGI) is Tardamu Airport (SAU), which is nearly antipodal to Grantley Adams International Airport (meaning Grantley Adams International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Tardamu Airport), and is located 12,231 miles (19,684 kilometers) away in Savu Island, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia.
• The closest airport to Grantley Adams International Airport (BGI) is Hewanorra International Airport (UVF), which is located 108 miles (174 kilometers) WNW of BGI.