Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Newport News, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (PHF), Newport News, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,929 miles (or 7,933 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 Newport News/Williamsburg International 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 Newport News/Williamsburg International 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):

• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles.
• The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• In July 1973, Raytheon won a contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya.

Facts about Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (PHF):

• In 1951, the original passenger terminal was damaged by a fire.
• Frontier Airlines began nonstop service from Newport News in 2010 as the airport was finishing a $23 million renovation.
• When the original control tower was shut down in July 2007 with the opening of the state of the art 147 ft tall new tower, it had been the oldest operating control tower on the east coast with continuous service for 55 years.
• The furthest airport from Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (PHF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,749 miles (18,908 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (PHF) has 2 runways.
• In 1985, USAir added large jet services from Pittsburgh and Washington, DC.
• In addition to being known as "Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport", another name for PHF is "Patrick Henry Field".
• The closest airport to Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (PHF) is Langley Field (LFI), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) ESE of PHF.
• Because of Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport's relatively low elevation of 43 feet, planes can take off or land at Newport News/Williamsburg International 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.