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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Richmond International Airport (RIC), Richmond, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,881 miles (or 7,856 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 Richmond 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 Richmond 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.
• 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 limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
• 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.
• 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.
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• The station was also used by SAC Cobra Ball and other related projects which monitored missile-associated signals and tracks missiles during boost and re-entry phases to provide reconnaissance for treaty verification and theater ballistic missile proliferation.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.

Facts about Richmond International Airport (RIC):

• Richmond International Airport handled 3,311,747 passengers last year.
• The current president and CEO of the airport is Jon Mathiasen.
• The closest airport to Richmond International Airport (RIC) is A.P. Hill Army Airfield (APH), which is located 39 miles (63 kilometers) N of RIC.
• In November 2012, RIC served 262,146 passengers.
• Richmond International Airport (RIC) has 3 runways.
• Because of Richmond International Airport's relatively low elevation of 167 feet, planes can take off or land at Richmond 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.
• Seven commercial air carriers currently serve RIC, with non-stop flights to 20 destinations, and connecting flights to other countries.
• The furthest airport from Richmond International Airport (RIC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,698 miles (18,827 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.