Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Kangersuatsiaq, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Kangersuatsiaq Heliport (KGQ), Kangersuatsiaq, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,471 miles (or 5,586 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 Kangersuatsiaq Heliport, 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 Kangersuatsiaq Heliport. 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):

• Additional aircraft and personnel reductions occurred in 1945 and almost all air bases other than Alexi Point, Shemya and Davis in the Aleutians were reduced to caretaker status.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• 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 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 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 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 is a United States Air Force military airport located on the island of Shemya, in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands.

Facts about Kangersuatsiaq Heliport (KGQ):

• The closest airport to Kangersuatsiaq Heliport (KGQ) is Upernavik Airport (JUV), which is located 31 miles (50 kilometers) NNW of KGQ.
• The furthest airport from Kangersuatsiaq Heliport (KGQ) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 10,257 miles (16,508 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• Because of Kangersuatsiaq Heliport's relatively low elevation of 112 feet, planes can take off or land at Kangersuatsiaq Heliport 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 "Kangersuatsiaq Heliport", another name for KGQ is "KAQ".