Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and St Denis, Réunion, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Roland Garros Airport (RUN), St Denis, Réunion, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,546 miles (or 13,753 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 Roland Garros 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 Roland Garros 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):

• 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.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• 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.
• 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.
• The 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7, which was used for navigator training.
• In July 1973, Raytheon won a contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya.
• The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions 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 "  ".
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Roland Garros Airport (RUN):

• If constructed, the Réunion Tram Train will link the airport to the capital Saint-Denis and Saint-Paul.
• The closest airport to Roland Garros Airport (RUN) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) S of RUN.
• The furthest airport from Roland Garros Airport (RUN) is Guerrero Negro Airport (GUB), which is located 11,615 miles (18,693 kilometers) away in Guerrero Negro, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
• Roland Garros Airport handled 206,776 passengers last year.
• Roland Garros Airport (RUN) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Roland Garros Airport", other names for RUN include "Aéroport de la Réunion Roland Garros" and "Saint Denis Gillot Airport".
• Roland Garros Airport, formerly known as Gillot Airport, is located in Sainte-Marie on Réunion, The airport is 7 kilometres east of Saint-Denis.
• Air Austral has its head office on the airport property.
• Because of Roland Garros Airport's relatively low elevation of 66 feet, planes can take off or land at Roland Garros 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.