Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Avalon, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs Airport (CIB), Avalon, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,511 miles (or 5,651 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 Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs 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 Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs 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 "  ".
• The station was also used by SAC Cobra Ball and other related projects which monitored missile-associated signals and tracks missiles during boost and re-entry phases to provide reconnaissance for treaty verification and theater ballistic missile proliferation.
• 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.
• 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 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• The news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm, the biggest topic was "When do we go home?".
• 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.

Facts about Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs Airport (CIB):

• In addition to being known as "Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs Airport", another name for CIB is "AVX".
• Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs Airport (CIB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs Airport (CIB) is Zamperini FieldLomita Landing Strip (TOA), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) N of CIB.
• The furthest airport from Catalina AirportBuffalo Springs Airport (CIB) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,521 miles (18,541 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.