Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Lauro Kurtz Airport (PFB), Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,542 miles (or 15,356 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 Lauro Kurtz 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 Lauro Kurtz 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 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 closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
• 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.
• Jurisdiction of Shemya AFB was transferred from the Aerospace Defense Command to the Strategic Air Command when the former was inactivated on 1 October 1979.
• 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.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions 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.

Facts about Lauro Kurtz Airport (PFB):

• The airport was renovated in 2007.
• The closest airport to Lauro Kurtz Airport (PFB) is Erechim Airport (ERM), which is located 41 miles (65 kilometers) N of PFB.
• In addition to being known as "Lauro Kurtz Airport", another name for PFB is "Aeroporto Lauro Kurtz".
• Lauro Kurtz Airport (PFB) currently has only 1 runway.
• Lauro Kurtz Airport is the airport serving Passo Fundo, Brazil.
• The furthest airport from Lauro Kurtz Airport (PFB) is Iejima Airport (IEJ), which is nearly antipodal to Lauro Kurtz Airport (meaning Lauro Kurtz Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Iejima Airport), and is located 12,331 miles (19,845 kilometers) away in Iejima, Japan.