Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Wick, Scotland, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Wick Airport (WIC), Wick, Scotland, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,754 miles (or 7,651 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 Wick 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 Wick 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.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
• The news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm, the biggest topic was "When do we go home?".
• The base host squadron was re-designated the 5073rd Air Base Squadron on October 1962, and upgraded to a group on 15 October 1974 in recognition of the number and complexities of the tenant units it supported.
• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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 aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.

Facts about Wick Airport (WIC):

• Because of Wick Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Wick 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.
• The furthest airport from Wick Airport (WIC) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,559 miles (18,602 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Wick was originally a grass airfield, used by Captain E.
• Wick Airport (WIC) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Wick Airport (WIC) is Kirkwall Airport (KOI), which is located 35 miles (57 kilometers) N of WIC.
• The airport is marketed as Wick John O' Groats by FlyBe, which operates a daily service to Edinburgh, using its franchise partner Loganair.