Nonstop flight route between Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada and Shemya, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kelowna International Airport (YLW), Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,774 miles (or 4,464 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 Kelowna International 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 Kelowna International 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 Kelowna International Airport (YLW):

• Today, the recently expanded main terminal building is a modern, full-service facility covering approximately 76,000 sq ft.
• The closest airport to Kelowna International Airport (YLW) is Vernon Regional Airport (YVE), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) N of YLW.
• The furthest airport from Kelowna International Airport (YLW) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,566 miles (17,004 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Kelowna International Airport (YLW) currently has only 1 runway.
• Kelowna International Airport handled 1,440,952 passengers last year.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• On 27 January 1992 the 5073rd Air Base Group located at Shemya AFB was re-designated as the Pacific Air Forces Eleventh Air Force 673d Air Base Group.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• The aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
• A second attack by B-24 Liberators was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• In 1958, the Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities.
• 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.
• By the end of 1944, several hundred American airmen had been interned by the Russians after their crippled aircraft landed on Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.