Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Sørvágur, Faroe Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Vágar Airport (FAE), Sørvágur, Faroe Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,506 miles (or 7,252 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 Vágar 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 Vágar 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 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• The mission of Eleventh Air Force was to take advantage of the new airfields on Shemya and Attu, and carry out offensive operations against the enemy forces in 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.
• 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.
• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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 Vágar Airport (FAE):

• Vágar Airport handled 23,618 passengers last year.
• As of 2013, a new terminal was expected to open in Spring 2014.
• Vágar Airport (FAE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Vágar Airport (FAE) is Scatsta Airport (SCS), which is located 228 miles (368 kilometers) ESE of FAE.
• Atlantic Airways Avro RJ at Vágar Airport
• The furthest airport from Vágar Airport (FAE) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,373 miles (18,304 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• After the war the airfield was abandoned and left unused until 1963 when it was reopened as a civilian airport at the initiative of two Sørvágur residents, Hugo Fjørðoy and Lars Larsen.
• Because of Vágar Airport's relatively low elevation of 280 feet, planes can take off or land at Vágar 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.
• In addition to being known as "Vágar Airport", another name for FAE is "Vága FloghavnVágar Lufthavn".