Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Olympia, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Olympia Regional Airport (OLM), Olympia, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,743 miles (or 4,415 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 Olympia Regional 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 Olympia Regional 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):

• 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 July 1973, Raytheon won a contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya.
• 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.
• On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
• 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.
• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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.
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".

Facts about Olympia Regional Airport (OLM):

• In addition to being known as "Olympia Regional Airport", another name for OLM is "Olympia Army Airfield".
• The airport served as a satellite of nearby McChord Field during World War II, and commercial aviation history at the Olympia Airport extends to the 1920s.
• Because of Olympia Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 209 feet, planes can take off or land at Olympia Regional 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.
• Olympic Flight Museum is located at the Olympia Airport, and Airlift Northwest, the region's air medical transport service uses the airport as one of its medical helicopter bases.
• Olympia Regional Airport is a public use airport located four nautical miles south of the central business district of Olympia, a city in Thurston County and the capital of the U.S.
• Olympia Regional Airport (OLM) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Olympia Regional Airport (OLM) is Gray Army Airfield (GRF), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) ENE of OLM.
• The furthest airport from Olympia Regional Airport (OLM) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,822 miles (17,417 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.