Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Montluçon, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU), Montluçon, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,583 miles (or 8,986 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 Montluçon - Guéret 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 Montluçon - Guéret 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The base host squadron was re-designated the 5073rd Air Base Squadron on October 1962, and upgraded to a group on 15 October 1974 in recognition of the number and complexities of the tenant units it supported.
• 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 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 limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over 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.
• 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.

Facts about Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU):

• Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Montluçon - Guéret Airport (meaning Montluçon - Guéret Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,260 miles (19,731 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Montluçon - Guéret Airport (MCU) is Clermont-Ferrand Auvergne Airport (CFE), which is located 49 miles (79 kilometers) SE of MCU.
• In addition to being known as "Montluçon - Guéret Airport", another name for MCU is "Aéroport de Montluçon - Guéret".