Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Sørkjosen, Norway:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Sørkjosen Airport (SOJ), Sørkjosen, Norway would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,866 miles (or 6,222 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 Sørkjosen 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 Sørkjosen 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 is a United States Air Force military airport located on the island of Shemya, in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands.
• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In 1966 the Air Defense Command 9th Air Division assumed jurisdiction of the base.
• 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.
• 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.
• On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• By the end of 1944, several hundred American airmen had been interned by the Russians after their crippled aircraft landed on Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.

Facts about Sørkjosen Airport (SOJ):

• In addition to being known as "Sørkjosen Airport", another name for SOJ is "Sørkjosen lufthavn".
• Because of Sørkjosen Airport's relatively low elevation of 16 feet, planes can take off or land at Sørkjosen 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.
• In the mid-1990s, Nordreisa Municipal Council attempted to change the airport's name from Sørkjosen to Nordreisa.
• Sørkjosen Airport handled 16,993 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Sørkjosen Airport (SOJ) is Tromsø Airport, Langnes (TOS), which is located 49 miles (80 kilometers) W of SOJ.
• The furthest airport from Sørkjosen Airport (SOJ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,541 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.