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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wick Airport (WIC), Wick, Scotland, United Kingdom and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States 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 Wick 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 Wick 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Wick Airport (WIC):

• Requisitioned by the Air Ministry during World War II, the airfield was extended with hard runways, hangars, and other buildings.
• On 21 May 1941, a photographic reconnaissance Supermarine Spitfire piloted by Flying Officer Michael F.
• The closest airport to Wick Airport (WIC) is Kirkwall Airport (KOI), which is located 35 miles (57 kilometers) N of WIC.
• Wick Airport (WIC) has 2 runways.
• 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 airport is marketed as Wick John O' Groats by FlyBe, which operates a daily service to Edinburgh, using its franchise partner Loganair.
• 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 Airport is located 1 nautical mile north of the town of Wick in Caithness at the north-eastern extremity of the mainland of Scotland.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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 closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
• The station was also used by SAC Cobra Ball and other related projects which monitored missile-associated signals and tracks missiles during boost and re-entry phases to provide reconnaissance for treaty verification and theater ballistic missile proliferation.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• After the disastrous attack, the focus of Eleventh Air Force was shifted to a defensive posture in the event of retaliatory attacks from the Japanese.
• 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.
• 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.