Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and La Coloma, Cuba:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and La Coloma Airport (LCL), La Coloma, Cuba would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,488 miles (or 8,832 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 La Coloma 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 La Coloma 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):

• 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.
• It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
• 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.
• 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 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.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya, a small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.

Facts about La Coloma Airport (LCL):

• The furthest airport from La Coloma Airport (LCL) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,735 miles (18,886 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• La Coloma Airport (LCL) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "La Coloma Airport", another name for LCL is "Aeropuerto "La Coloma"".
• Because of La Coloma Airport's relatively low elevation of 131 feet, planes can take off or land at La Coloma 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 closest airport to La Coloma Airport (LCL) is Rafael Cabrera Mustelier Airport Rafael Cabrera Airport (GER), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) ESE of LCL.