Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Emerald, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Emerald Airport (EMD), Emerald, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,497 miles (or 8,846 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 Emerald 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 Emerald 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 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 Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• 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.
• 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 1966 the Air Defense Command 9th Air Division assumed jurisdiction of the base.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.

Facts about Emerald Airport (EMD):

• The closest airport to Emerald Airport (EMD) is Blackwater Airport (BLT), which is located 40 miles (64 kilometers) E of EMD.
• Emerald Airport (EMD) has 2 runways.
• Emerald Airport recently spent $7.7 million extending the terminal and refurbishing the old terminal.
• The furthest airport from Emerald Airport (EMD) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,818 miles (19,019 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• Emerald Airport was ranked 37th in Australia for the number of revenue passengers served in financial year 2010-2011.
• Because of Emerald Airport's relatively low elevation of 624 feet, planes can take off or land at Emerald 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.