Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Rochester, Minnesota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Rochester International Airport (RST), Rochester, Minnesota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,026 miles (or 6,479 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 Rochester 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 Rochester 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):

• 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 aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
• With the successful completion of the Aleutian Campaign in August 1943, Eleventh Air Force came within striking distance of the Japanese Kurile Islands, the northernmost being 750 miles to the south-southwest of Shemya.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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 "  ".
• 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.
• In August, after the Soviet Union declared war against the Japanese Empire, B-24s were dispatched on reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering missions to observe the Russian activity in the Kuriles.

Facts about Rochester International Airport (RST):

• The closest airport to Rochester International Airport (RST) is Austin Municipal Airport (AUM), which is located 27 miles (44 kilometers) SW of RST.
• Rochester Aviation is the general aviation terminal at the airport.
• A five passenger plane en route to Rochester crashed in Lake Michigan, killing the four passengers, but the pilot did survive.
• The furthest airport from Rochester International Airport (RST) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,811 miles (17,399 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Rochester International Airport (RST) has 2 runways.
• Commercial air service is provided by American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, and Allegiant Air.
• In 1960 it was decided to replace Lobb Field with a new airport southwest of the town because it could not be expanded to accommodate the larger airliners & was too close to the urban area of Rochester.
• In 1940, the existing runways were paved, and additional land was acquired, bringing the airport's total area to 370 acres.