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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Penticton Regional Airport (YYF), Penticton, British Columbia, Canada and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,782 miles (or 4,478 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 Penticton Regional 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 Penticton Regional 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 Penticton Regional Airport (YYF):

• The closest airport to Penticton Regional Airport (YYF) is Kelowna International Airport (YLW), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) NNE of YYF.
• Penticton Regional Airport (YYF) currently has only 1 runway.
• Kelowna International Airport—an international airport operated in nearby city Kelowna—has had an impact on this airport, since they both share the same catchment area.
• Controversy has occurred over airport ownership before.
• Penticton Regional Airport, also known as Penticton Airport, is a regional airport located 1.8 nautical miles southwest of Penticton, British Columbia, a city in the Okanagan region of Canada.
• In addition to being known as "Penticton Regional Airport", another name for YYF is "Penticton Airport".
• The airport has three scheduled flights to the Vancouver International Airport every day, with one fewer on Sunday.
• The furthest airport from Penticton Regional Airport (YYF) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,601 miles (17,060 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Penticton Regional Airport handled 80,000 passengers last year.
• The facility has been recognized as a certified airport by the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation.

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• 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.
• 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.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.