Nonstop flight route between Grande Cache, Alberta, Canada and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grande Cache Airport (YGC), Grande Cache, Alberta, Canada and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,662 miles (or 4,284 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 Grande Cache 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 Grande Cache 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 Grande Cache Airport (YGC):

• Grande Cache Airport (YGC) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Grande Cache Airport", another name for YGC is "CEQ5".
• The furthest airport from Grande Cache Airport (YGC) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,312 miles (16,596 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Because of Grande Cache Airport's high elevation of 4,112 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at YGC. Combined with a high temperature, this could make YGC a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The closest airport to Grande Cache Airport (YGC) is Hinton/Jasper-Hinton Airport (YJP), which is located 62 miles (99 kilometers) SE of YGC.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• Eareckson Air Station is located on the western tip of Alaska's Aleutian islands near the larger island of Attu, and is located approximately 1500 miles southwest of Anchorage.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• By August, Eleventh Air Force B-24s were carrying out successful and accurate attacks on the Japanese military installations and the B-25s were successful in driving the Japanese fishing and much of the shipping out of the North Pacific.
• 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.
• It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome.
• 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.
• On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya, a small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu.
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• 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 "  ".