Nonstop flight route between Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada and Port Heiden, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada and Port Heiden Airport (PTH), Port Heiden, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,893 miles (or 6,264 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 Port Heiden 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 Port Heiden 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 Shearwater Heliport (YAW):

• As part of the heliport conversion project, the old runway 16/34 was permanently closed and placed outside of a new fence for the Shearwater Heliport, as shown in the Canada Flight Supplement effective 31 July 2008.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".
• Beginning in the 1970s, CFB Shearwater began hosting an Armed Forces Day every fall, typically on the weekend following Labour Day, and included an air show where the long and wide runways at Shearwater hosted some of the largest aircraft in the world, including the U.S.
• The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
• 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.
• Shearwater is the second-oldest military aerodrome in Canada.
• 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.
• These changes allowed for heliport operations including instrument approaches and were accompanied with the construction of other non-airfield facilities in support of the Maritime Helicopter Project.

Facts about Port Heiden Airport (PTH):

• The closest airport to Port Heiden Airport (PTH) is Chignik Fisheries Airport (KCG), which is located 44 miles (71 kilometers) S of PTH.
• The Air Force remediated the radar site around 2000, removing all abandoned military structures and returning the site to a natural condition.
• In addition to being known as "Port Heiden Airport", other names for PTH include "Port Heiden Air Force Station" and "Fort Morrow Army Airfield".
• The furthest airport from Port Heiden Airport (PTH) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,850 miles (17,462 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
• Port Heiden Airport (PTH) has 2 runways.
• Because of Port Heiden Airport's relatively low elevation of 95 feet, planes can take off or land at Port Heiden 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.