Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Béziers, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport (BZR), Béziers, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,779 miles (or 9,300 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 Béziers Cap d'Agde 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 Béziers Cap d'Agde 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):

• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• After the disastrous attack, the focus of Eleventh Air Force was shifted to a defensive posture in the event of retaliatory attacks from the Japanese.
• 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.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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 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.
• On 1 July 1994, the 11th Air Control Wing was inactivated and the 673d ABG was reassigned to Eleventh Air Force.

Facts about Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport (BZR):

• Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport (BZR) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of its comparatively short runway measuring 1,820 m × 30 m, the airport was unable to benefit from the growth of low-cost flights that had fuelled expansion at other airports in the region.
• The closest airport to Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport (BZR) is Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL), which is located 35 miles (57 kilometers) ENE of BZR.
• Because of Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport's relatively low elevation of 56 feet, planes can take off or land at Béziers Cap d'Agde 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 airport resides at an elevation of 56 feet above mean sea level.
• Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport is an airport serving the town of Béziers and the nearby Languedoc coastal resorts such as Cap d'Agde.
• In addition to being known as "Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport", another name for BZR is "Aéroport Béziers Cap d'Agde".
• The furthest airport from Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport (BZR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport (meaning Béziers Cap d'Agde Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,402 miles (19,959 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.