Nonstop flight route between Yamagata, Japan and Falmouth, Massachusetts, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shonai Airport (SYO), Yamagata, Japan and Otis Air National Guard Base Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod (FMH), Falmouth, Massachusetts, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,559 miles (or 10,556 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 Shonai Airport and Otis Air National Guard Base Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod, 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 Shonai Airport and Otis Air National Guard Base Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod. 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 Shonai Airport (SYO):

• The closest airport to Shonai Airport (SYO) is Yamagata Airport (GAJ), which is located 42 miles (67 kilometers) SE of SYO.
• Because of Shonai Airport's relatively low elevation of 72 feet, planes can take off or land at Shonai 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 Shonai Airport (SYO) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,620 miles (18,701 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Shonai Airport (SYO) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport opened in 1991 after lobbying efforts by local chambers of commerce, as the area was highly isolated from the major cities of Tokyo and Osaka, requiring half a day of travel to reach either.
• In addition to being known as "Shonai Airport", other names for SYO include "庄内空港" and "Shonai Kūkō".

Facts about Otis Air National Guard Base Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod (FMH):

• During World War II, the field was known as Naval Auxiliary Air Facility Otis and was a subordinate field for Naval Air Station Quonset Point, Rhode Island.
• In addition to being known as "Otis Air National Guard Base Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod", another name for FMH is "Otis ANGB".
• In May 2013, it was announced that one third of the 104th Fighter Wing's F-15 aircraft would be moving to Otis to take up an alert mission for four to six month, as Barnes Municipal Airport's runway underwent renovation.
• The closest airport to Otis Air National Guard Base Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod (FMH) is Barnstable Municipal Airport (HYA), which is located only 12 miles (20 kilometers) E of FMH.
• The Massachusetts Air National Guard's 102d Fighter Wing, 101st Fighter Squadron including its previous iterations as a fighter-interceptor group, fighter group, air defense wing and fighter-interceptor wing became the lead command at Otis for executing this mission.
• Otis ANGB was an alternative landing site for the Space Shuttle orbiter if it ever had to abort its mission during liftoff.
• On September 11, 2001, the Federal Aviation Administration 's Boston Center contacted the base at 8:34 notifying them of the hijacking of American Airlines Flight 11.
• The furthest airport from Otis Air National Guard Base Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod (FMH) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,821 miles (19,024 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.