Nonstop flight route between Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from VGA to SYA:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- VGA Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about VGA
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to VGA
- List of Nearest Airports to VGA
- Map of Furthest Airports from VGA
- List of Furthest Airports from VGA
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Vijayawada Airport (VGA), Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,456 miles (or 8,780 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 Vijayawada Airport and Eareckson Air Station, 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 Vijayawada Airport and Eareckson Air Station. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | VGA / VBOZ |
| Airport Names: |
|
| Location: | Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India |
| GPS Coordinates: | 16°31'59"N by 80°40'0"E |
| Area Served: | Vijayawada |
| Operator/Owner: | AAI |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 82 feet (25 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from VGA |
| More Information: | VGA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SYA / PASY |
| Airport Names: |
|
| Location: | Shemya, Alaska, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 52°42'43"N by 174°6'48"E |
| Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
| Airport Type: | Military |
| Elevation: | 97 feet (30 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SYA |
| More Information: | SYA Maps & Info |
Facts about Vijayawada Airport (VGA):
- The airfield served as an army base during the World War II and at that time only defense airlines were the one taking flights from here.
- Private airlines, Spicejet and Jet Airways introduced a direct flight from Gannavaram to Hyderabad.
- In addition to being known as "Vijayawada Airport", other names for VGA include "Gannavaram Airport" and "VOBZ".
- Because of Vijayawada Airport's relatively low elevation of 82 feet, planes can take off or land at Vijayawada 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.
- Vijayawada Airport (VGA) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Vijayawada Airport (VGA) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is located 11,459 miles (18,441 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
- The closest airport to Vijayawada Airport (VGA) is Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (HYD), which is located 156 miles (251 kilometers) WNW of VGA.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- 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 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 mission of Eleventh Air Force was to take advantage of the new airfields on Shemya and Attu, and carry out offensive operations against the enemy forces in the Kuriles.
- 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.
- With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war.
- The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
- In July 1973, Raytheon won a contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya.
- Shemya has been the scene of two major earthquakes.
- On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu.
- The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
- 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.
