Nonstop flight route between Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada and Cold Bay, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from YAW to CDB:
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- About this route
- YAW Airport Information
- CDB Airport Information
- Facts about YAW
- Facts about CDB
- Map of Nearest Airports to YAW
- List of Nearest Airports to YAW
- Map of Furthest Airports from YAW
- List of Furthest Airports from YAW
- Map of Nearest Airports to CDB
- List of Nearest Airports to CDB
- Map of Furthest Airports from CDB
- List of Furthest Airports from CDB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada and Cold Bay Airport (CDB), Cold Bay, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,091 miles (or 6,584 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 Shearwater Heliport and Cold Bay 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 Shearwater Heliport and Cold Bay Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | YAW / CYAW |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada |
GPS Coordinates: | 44°38'13"N by 63°30'7"W |
Operator/Owner: | Government of Canada |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 144 feet (44 meters) |
View all routes: | Routes from YAW |
More Information: | YAW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | CDB / PACD |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Cold Bay, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 55°12'19"N by 162°43'27"W |
Area Served: | Cold Bay, Alaska |
Operator/Owner: | State of Alaska DOT&PF - Central Region |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 102 feet (31 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from CDB |
More Information: | CDB Maps & Info |
Facts about Shearwater Heliport (YAW):
- The furthest airport from Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Albany Airport (ALH), which is located 11,763 miles (18,931 kilometers) away in Albany, Western Australia, Australia.
- Shearwater Heliport's primary mission remains as a heliport in support of the Royal Canadian Navy's Maritime Forces Atlantic warships with shipborne helicopters operated by 12 Wing, a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
- The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
- Because of Shearwater Heliport's relatively low elevation of 144 feet, planes can take off or land at Shearwater Heliport 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.
- Post-war, 1948, the Royal Canadian Navy took over the facility, naming it HMCS Shearwater, also known as Royal Canadian Naval Air Station Shearwater.
- In addition to being known as "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".
- Organizers of the "Nova Scotia International Air Show" continued to make use the Shearwater airfield for both ground displays and the air show component until 2002.
Facts about Cold Bay Airport (CDB):
- Because of Cold Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 102 feet, planes can take off or land at Cold Bay 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.
- On September 8, 1973 World Airways Flight 802 a Military Airlift Command cargo flight crashed into Mount Dutton when on approach to Cold Bay.
- On October 30, 2013 a Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300 on the flight from Tokyo to San Francisco landed on the airport due to an engine shut-down.
- The closest airport to Cold Bay Airport (CDB) is King Cove Airport (KVC), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) ESE of CDB.
- Cold Bay Airport (CDB) has 2 runways.
- The 5042d ABS was discontinued on 1 January 1950 per AAC General Order Number 198, dated 13 December 1949, due to budget restrictions.
- The airport was constructed during World War II as Fort Randall Army Airfield during the secret military buildup of the Territory of Alaska that began in 1941.
- The furthest airport from Cold Bay Airport (CDB) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,968 miles (17,652 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
- It was redesignated from Army Air Base to an Air Force Base on 28 March 1948 along with seven other Army Air Bases in Alaska.
- In addition to being known as "Cold Bay Airport", other names for CDB include "Cold Bay Air Force Station" and "Fort Randall Army Airfield".