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85-657: Eareckson Air Station ( IATA : SYA , ICAO : PASY ), formerly Shemya Air Force Base , is a United States Air Force military airport located on the island of Shemya , in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands . The airport was closed as an active Air Force Station on 1 July 1994. However, it is still owned by the USAF and is operated by the USAF Pacific Air Forces Regional Support Center at Elmendorf AFB for refueling purposes. It also serves as

170-451: A diversion airport for civilian aircraft. The base previously hosted the AN/FPS-17 and AN/FPS-80 radars and since 1977 the more powerful AN/FPS-108 COBRA DANE phased-array radar. Eareckson Air Station is located on the western tip of Alaska's Aleutian islands near the larger island of Attu , lying approximately 1,500 miles southwest of Anchorage . The airport lies on the south side of

255-574: A church in 1747 to convert the local inhabitants. Imperial Russia 's claim of sovereignty over the island was initially confirmed under the terms of the Treaty of Shimoda in 1855, but was transferred to the Empire of Japan per the 1875 Treaty of Saint Petersburg , along with the rest of the Kuril Islands . The Japanese established a settlement, Kashiwabara, on the site of the largest Ainu village, which became

340-809: A contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya. Cobra Dane replaced the AN/FPS-17 and AN/FPS-80 radars with a more powerful AN/FPS-108 phased-array radar. Cobra Dane was declared operational on 1 August 1977. Its primary mission is intelligence gathering in support of verification of the SALT II arms limitation agreement. 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. The aircraft used were extensively modified C-135 Bs. In August 1988, at least one Aries rocket

425-529: A diversion airport for civilian aircraft which encounter an emergency while travelling across the Pacific Ocean. United States Army Air Forces United States Air Force Eareckson Station is a census-designated place (CDP) covering the residential population of Eareckson Air Station on the island of Shemya in the Aleutians West Census Area , Alaska , United States. The population at

510-407: A low-level raid on shipping between Paramushir and Shumshu Islands. On coming out of their bomb run, they also were attacked by numerous Japanese interceptors. After an hour of continuing attacks by the interceptors, one B-25 was shot down and five others were severely damaged and had to land at Petropavlovsk. Eleventh Air Force had lost over half its bombers. It was six months before another attack

595-550: A new airport is built, replacing the old one, leaving the city's new "major" airport (or the only remaining airport) code to no longer correspond with the city's name. The original airport in Nashville, Tennessee, was built in 1936 as part of the Works Progress Administration and called Berry Field with the designation, BNA. A new facility known as Nashville International Airport was built in 1987 but still uses BNA. This

680-525: A provisional organization with the inactivation of IX Fighter and IX Bomber Command; remaining staff being assigned to the provisional Command. The 28th Bombardment Group and 404th Bombardment Squadron were assigned to Shemya; the 77th Fighter Squadron assigned to Alexi Point. The mission would be to carry out both day and night bombing and photo-reconnaissance attacks on the Kuriles, and also to conduct searches for Japanese shipping, including fishing vessels in

765-712: A radar site. These bases were subject to sporadic air raids from the US Army Air Forces and US Navy based in the Aleutian Islands from 1943 until the end of the war . Soviet troops landed on Paramushir on August 18, 1945, during the Invasion of the Kuril Islands , and combat operations continued through August 23, ending with the surrender of the surviving members of the Japanese garrison. The Soviets forcibly deported

850-488: A small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu . The following day, United States Army Engineers came ashore to begin construction of a runway suitable for B-29 Superfortress bombers. Tents were erected, a rudimentary electrical system, radios and some rough streets were laid down. A 10,000-foot runway was constructed, along with two 5,000-foot cross runways. The 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7 , which

935-499: Is GSN and its IATA code is SPN, and some coincide with IATA codes of non-U.S. airports. Canada's unusual codes—which bear little to no similarity with any conventional abbreviation to the city's name—such as YUL in Montréal , and YYZ in Toronto , originated from the two-letter codes used to identify weather reporting stations in the 1930s. The letters preceding the two-letter code follow

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1020-518: Is a volcanic island in the northern portion of the Kuril Islands chain in the Sea of Okhotsk in the northwest Pacific Ocean . It is separated from Shumshu by the very narrow Second Kuril Strait in the northeast 2.5 km (1.6 mi), from Antsiferov by the Luzhin Strait (15 km (9.3 mi)) to the southwest, from Atlasov in the northwest by 20 km (12 mi), and from Onekotan in

1105-600: Is available. However, many railway administrations have their own list of codes for their stations, such as the list of Amtrak station codes . Airport codes arose out of the convenience that the practice brought pilots for location identification in the 1930s. Initially, pilots in the United States used the two-letter code from the National Weather Service (NWS) for identifying cities. This system became unmanageable for cities and towns without an NWS identifier, and

1190-424: Is consequently limited to dense, stunted copses of Siberian dwarf pine and shrubby alder . The alpine tundra which dominates the landscape produces plentiful edible mushrooms and berries , especially lingonberry , Arctic raspberry , whortleberry and crowberry . Red fox , Arctic hare and ermine are notably abundant and hunted by the inhabitants. The island also supports a population of brown bears . In

1275-518: Is different from the name in English, yet the airport code represents only the English name. Examples include: Due to scarcity of codes, some airports are given codes with letters not found in their names: The use of 'X' as a filler letter is a practice to create three-letter identifiers when more straightforward options were unavailable: Some airports in the United States retained their NWS ( National Weather Service ) codes and simply appended an X at

1360-650: Is governed by IATA Resolution 763, and it is administered by the IATA's headquarters in Montreal , Canada. The codes are published semi-annually in the IATA Airline Coding Directory. IATA provides codes for airport handling entities, and for certain railway stations. Alphabetical lists of airports sorted by IATA code are available. A list of railway station codes , shared in agreements between airlines and rail lines such as Amtrak , SNCF , and Deutsche Bahn ,

1445-513: Is in conjunction to rules aimed to avoid confusion that seem to apply in the United States, which state that "the first and second letters or second and third letters of an identifier may not be duplicated with less than 200 nautical miles separation." Thus, Washington, D.C. area's three airports all have radically different codes: IAD for Washington–Dulles , DCA for Washington–Reagan (District of Columbia Airport), and BWI for Baltimore (Baltimore–Washington International, formerly BAL). Since HOU

1530-532: Is not followed outside the United States: In addition, since three letter codes starting with Q are widely used in radio communication, cities whose name begins with "Q" also had to find alternate codes, as in the case of: IATA codes should not be confused with the FAA identifiers of U.S. airports. Most FAA identifiers agree with the corresponding IATA codes, but some do not, such as Saipan , whose FAA identifier

1615-499: Is roughly rectangular and is the second largest of the Kuril Islands with an area of 2,053 square kilometres (793 sq mi). Geologically, Paramushir is a continuous chain of 23 volcanoes . At least five of them are active, and exceed 1,000 m (3,281 ft): Paramushir has a sub-arctic climate strongly modulated by the cooling effects of the North Pacific Oyashio Current . The arboreal flora of Paramushir

1700-416: Is used for William P. Hobby Airport , the new Houston–Intercontinental became IAH. The code BKK was originally assigned to Bangkok–Don Mueang and was later transferred to Suvarnabhumi Airport , while the former adopted DMK. The code ISK was originally assigned to Gandhinagar Airport (Nashik's old airport) and later on transferred to Ozar Airport (Nashik's current airport). Shanghai–Hongqiao retained

1785-694: The 2020 Census was 232. It first appeared as the Shemya Air Force Base in the United States Census from 1960 to 1980. As Shemya in 1960 (an unincorporated military base) and as Shemya (Air Force) Station in 1970. In 1980, it was made a census-designated place (CDP). It was dissolved as a CDP in 1990 and did not report separately again until 2020 as Eareckson Station CDP. [REDACTED]  This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency IATA airport code The assignment of these codes

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1870-431: The 2d Photographic Charting Squadron arrived with four F-7 Liberators , from Peterson Field , Colorado, configured for photo-reconnaissance and mapping. Over the next five months, over 3,000 photographs of the Kuriles were taken and highly detailed and accurate maps of the islands were created. By August, Eleventh Air Force B-24s were carrying out successful and accurate attacks on the Japanese military installations and

1955-526: The 404th Bombardment Squadron and twelve B-25s of the 77th Bombardment Squadron lifted off from Alexi Point AAF and headed to the Kuriles. The B-24s attacked the Kashiwabra Army Staging Area and as they turned towards home, they were attacked by numerous Japanese interceptors. Three of the Liberators were severely damaged and headed for Petropavlovsk where they crash-landed. The B-25s conducted

2040-631: The Air Defense Command 9th Air Division assumed jurisdiction of the base. ADC organized the 16th Surveillance Squadron with AN/FPS-17 Detection and AN/FPS-80 Tracking Radars to monitor Soviet missile tests on the Kamchatka Peninsula and to support the Air Force Spacetrack System. Soviet fishing trawlers were a common sight in the offshore waters of the island, monitoring the squadron's activities. In July 1973, Raytheon won

2125-561: The Canadian transcontinental railroads were built, each station was assigned its own two-letter Morse code : When the Canadian government established airports, it used the existing railway codes for them as well. If the airport had a weather station, authorities added a "Y" to the front of the code, meaning "Yes" to indicate it had a weather station or some other letter to indicate it did not. When international codes were created in cooperation with

2210-464: The dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1990, the population of the island has decreased (2592 in 2002 census, 5180 in the 1989 census), and villages that once lined the coast are now ghost towns. This is due in part to the crash of the formerly lucrative herring fishery, to the extremely destructive tsunami of 1952, and general economic hardships in the more remote reaches of Russia since the fall of

2295-468: The 2-mile by 4-mile island and is 98 feet above mean sea level. Shemya Island has been the scene of two major earthquakes. The 1965 Rat Islands earthquake , measuring 8.7 on the moment magnitude scale, occurred on 3 February. It was followed by severe aftershocks and a tsunami, but damage was limited to cracks in the taxiways. The 1975 Near Islands earthquake , measuring 7.6 (surface wave magnitude), occurred on 1 February. A high degree of damage occurred to

2380-589: The 5073rd Air Base Group located at Shemya AFB was re-designated as the 673d Air Base Group (673 ABG), subordinate to the Eleventh Air Force (11AF) of Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). The 673d and the base were subsequently reassigned from Eleventh Air Force to the 11th Air Control Wing (11 ACW). The Cobra Dane radar was integrated into the Joint-Service DOD Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS). The air station also serves as

2465-719: The Air Force decided to retain Shemya because its location provided an ideal refueling stop on the Great Circle Route from Japan to McChord Field , Washington. The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) for the logistical support of Korea and Japan. Its strategic location drastically shortened the air route to the Orient . With the development of Trans-Pacific airlifters (C-124), Shemya

2550-475: The Air Force resumed operations on Shemya in support of various Air Force and Army strategic intelligence collection activities. Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB. The 5040th Air Base Squadron was activated on 15 July 1958 to provide base support. The stations initial use was that of a long range weather station, with WB-50D Superfortresses being flown from

2635-577: The Aleutians were reduced to caretaker status. Weather hampered missions over the winter, although new B-24Js were received by the 404th Bomb Squadron and longer-range P-38L Lightnings were received by the 54th Fighter Squadron. Along with the mission against the Kuriels, the P-38s were assigned the mission of shooting down Japanese bomb-carrying fire balloons which were launched from Japan along great circle routes near

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2720-528: The Aleutians. The balloons were designed to carry incendiary bombs over the United States and start fires in the Pacific Northwest. Although they floated above 38,000 feet, several were shot down, and one landed on Amchatka where intelligence personnel recovered it for inspection. The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over

2805-513: The B-25s were successful in driving the Japanese fishing and much of the shipping out of the North Pacific. In October, in an effort to cripple the Japanese food supply, the B-25s were ordered to fly missions against canneries and other food processing plants in the Kuriles. Additional aircraft and personnel reductions occurred in 1945 and almost all air bases other than Alexi Point, Shemya and Davis in

2890-479: The Japanese installations, then headed back to Alexi Point and landed after nine and a half-hour, 1,000-mile flight. At the time, it was the longest B-25 Mitchell mission of the war. Meanwhile, the B-24 Liberators had attacked the transports but failed to achieve any hits. One Liberator was hit by anti-aircraft fire from the ships and managed to make a wheels-up landing on Shemya. A second attack by B-24 Liberators

2975-600: The Kataoka Naval Base and the Kashiwabra Army Staging Area. This time numerous bomb hits were observed on both targets and many aerial photographs were taken. About 40 Zeros were launched to intercept the Americans and in a 35-minute air battle, the B-24 gunners claimed four Zeros shot down, with one probable and four possibles. The Japanese managed to shoot down one B-24. Another B-24 diverted to Soviet territory and crash-landed at

3060-629: The Kurile Islands. IX Bomber Command coordinated with Navy personnel who were able to provide various documents, maps and other documents about the Islands. This included captured Japanese documents from Attu. From this information the command put together an accurate assessment of the Japanese military installations on the island chain. On 10 July 1943, eight B-25 Mitchells from the 77th Bombardment Squadron left Adak AAF and refueled at Alexai Point AAF on Attu. High-explosive bombs were also loaded on

3145-574: The Kuriles the command losing eight B-25s. The 404th lost its last B-24 in June. Missions continued through July, the last combat mission taking place on 13 August, a few days after the United States atomic bomb attacks on Japan. 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

3230-499: The Kuriles. Photographic missions were flown beginning on 4 August and continued until 4 September when the B-24s encountered some Russian fighters and turned back without incident. Although allies, the message from the Soviets was clear: The Kuriles were now in Russian hands and off-limits to American aircraft. The news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm; the biggest topic

3315-471: The Kuriles. The 404th Bomb Squadron, consisting of a dozen B-24s by May 1945, carried out missions over Paramushiro and lost two aircraft. The 77th Bomb Squadron flew a B-25 mission over the Minami Cape Radar Station and lost two aircraft; both crews captured by the Japanese. Two other B-24 missions over the Kuriles were flown without loss. During the summer of 1945, more missions were flown against

3400-513: The North Pacific. The Navy Fleet Air Wing Four at Naval Air Station Attu and IX Strategic Command would be assigned to the Navy's North Pacific Command for operational control. The 77th Bombardment Squadron with B-25 Mitchells assumed the primary responsibility for searching for Japanese shipping, as the Mitchells were very suited for low-level attacks. However, within a few weeks, IX Strategic Command

3485-575: The Soviet Pacific Coast with on-board sensors which enable the crew to detect, identify and geolocate signals throughout the electromagnetic spectrum. The base host squadron was re-designated the 5073rd Air Base Squadron in October 1962, and upgraded to a group on 15 October 1974 in recognition of the number and complexities of the tenant units it supported. Shemya was re-designated from an Air Force Station to an Air Force Base on 21 June 1968. In 1966

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3570-521: The Tukharka river, which at 20 km (12 mi) is the longest river on the island. Paramushir was inhabited by the Ainu at the time of European contact. The island appears on an official map showing the territories of Matsumae Domain , a feudal domain of Edo period Japan dated 1644. Russian fur traders are known to have visited the island in 1711 and 1713, and Russian Orthodox missionaries established

3655-614: The U.S. For example, several airports in Alaska have scheduled commercial service, such as Stebbins and Nanwalek , which use FAA codes instead of ICAO codes. Thus, neither system completely includes all airports with scheduled service. Some airports are identified in colloquial speech by their IATA code. Examples include LAX and JFK . Paramushiro Paramushir ( Russian : Парамушир , romanized :  Paramushir , Japanese : 幌筵島 , romanized :  Paramushiru-tō , Ainu : パラムシㇼ , romanized:  Para=mu=sir )

3740-629: The USSR as a result of operations against Japan. In reality, however, US aviators who made forced landings on Kamchatka were secretly returned to the United States, by way of a camp in the Kazakh SSR and Iran (which was under British and Soviet occupation at the time). The US aircraft involved were generally retained in the USSR. Over the next few years, dozens of US aircraft with mechanical problems and/or damage from by Japanese defenses were diverted to Soviet bases on Kamchatka – usually Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. By

3825-481: The United States, because "Y" was seldom used in the United States, Canada simply used the weather station codes for its airports, changing the "Y" to a "Z" if it conflicted with an airport code already in use. The result is that most major Canadian airport codes start with "Y" followed by two letters in the city's name (for example, YOW for O tta w a , YWG for W innipe g , YYC for C algar y , or YVR for V ancouve r ), whereas other Canadian airports append

3910-402: The aircraft. Six B-24 Liberator bombers from the 21st Bombardment Squadron on Shemya were scheduled to join them, but they were diverted to attack Japanese transport ships spotted by a Navy PBY aircrew. The B-25s reached Paramushiro , which they found completely socked in by clouds. Using time/distance calculations they dropped their 500-pound bombs though the clouds on what they believed were

3995-449: The airfield at Petropavlovsk on Kamchatka Peninsula . One airman was killed in the crash and the survivors were, at least officially, interned in the Soviet Union. At the time, the Soviets were officially, for strategic reasons, neutral in the war between the Japanese Empire and Western Allies; in order to maintain this neutrality, international law required Soviet authorities to intern any Western Allied personnel forced to seek refuge in

4080-440: The airport itself instead of the city it serves, while another code is reserved which refers to the city itself which can be used to search for flights to any of its airports. For instance: Or using a code for the city in one of the major airports and then assigning another code to another airport: When different cities with the same name each have an airport, they need to be assigned different codes. Examples include: Sometimes,

4165-418: The airport's former name, such as Orlando International Airport 's MCO (for Mc C o y Air Force Base), or Chicago's O'Hare International Airport , which is coded ORD for its original name: Or char d Field. In rare cases, the code comes from the airport's unofficial name, such as Kahului Airport 's OGG (for local aviation pioneer Jimmy H ogg ). In large metropolitan areas, airport codes are often named after

4250-612: The base by the MATS 7th Weather Group, Air Weather Service . It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome . SAC would have the tankers rotated to Shemya where they were re-fueled prior to taking off and refueling the loitering B-52s over Alaska which would loiter outside the Soviet Union to provide rapid first strike or retaliation capability in case of nuclear war. Shemya also supported various SAC Boeing RC-135 "Rivet" reconnaissance aircraft flying along

4335-491: The code SHA, while the newer Shanghai–Pudong adopted PVG. The opposite was true for Berlin : the airport Berlin–Tegel used the code TXL, while its smaller counterpart Berlin–Schönefeld used SXF; the Berlin Brandenburg Airport has the airport code BER, which is also part of its branding. The airports of Hamburg (HAM) and Hannover (HAJ) are less than 100 nautical miles (190 km) apart and therefore share

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4420-437: The difficult missions against the Japanese which were located on two other Aleutian Islands, Kiska and Attu . Eareckson also helped plan the successful retaking of Attu. During the bombing campaigns, he introduced low-level skip bombing and Forward Air Control (FAC) procedures long before they became common practices in other war theaters. On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya,

4505-657: The early 1950s for its weekly Vancouver, B.C.-Tokyo service. In later years during the 1970s through to the 1990s, passenger and cargo service into the airfield was operated by Reeve Aleutian Airways flying Lockheed L-188 Electra turboprops and Boeing 727-100 jetliners with service to and from Anchorage via several intermediate stops at other locations in the Aleutian Island chain. The Reeve operated Electra propjets and 727 jets were both configured as combi aircraft and were capable of transporting mixed loads of passengers and freight on their respective main decks. In 1958,

4590-538: The end of 1944, several hundred US aviators had been interned in the Soviet Union. Some of the internees complained about their treatment in the USSR – including accommodation which, to the Americans, resembled prisoner of war camps , and their interrogation by Soviet officials. The aerial photos taken on the raid of 11 August 1943 showed that the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido . The Japanese early-warning system, however, did not seem to be effective as

4675-919: The end. Examples include: A lot of minor airfields without scheduled passenger traffic have ICAO codes but not IATA codes, since the four letter codes allow more number of codes, and IATA codes are mainly used for passenger services such as tickets, and ICAO codes by pilots. In the US, such airfields use FAA codes instead of ICAO. There are airports with scheduled service for which there are ICAO codes but not IATA codes, such as Nkhotakota Airport/Tangole Airport in Malawi or Chōfu Airport in Tokyo, Japan. There are also several minor airports in Russia (e.g., Omsukchan Airport ) which lack IATA codes and instead use internal Russian codes for booking. Flights to these airports cannot be booked through

4760-557: The first three letters of the city in which it is located, for instance: The code may also be a combination of the letters in its name, such as: Sometimes the airport code reflects pronunciation, rather than spelling, namely: For many reasons, some airport codes do not fit the normal scheme described above. Some airports, for example, cross several municipalities or regions, and therefore, use codes derived from some of their letters, resulting in: Other airports—particularly those serving cities with multiple airports—have codes derived from

4845-474: The following format: Most large airports in Canada have codes that begin with the letter "Y", although not all "Y" codes are Canadian (for example, YUM for Yuma, Arizona , and YNT for Yantai , China), and not all Canadian airports start with the letter "Y" (for example, ZBF for Bathurst, New Brunswick ). Many Canadian airports have a code that starts with W, X or Z, but none of these are major airports. When

4930-593: The form of " YYZ ", a song by the rock band Rush , which utilizes the Morse code signal as a musical motif. Some airports have started using their IATA codes as brand names , such as Calgary International Airport (YYC) and Vancouver International Airport (YVR). Numerous New Zealand airports use codes that contain the letter Z, to distinguish them from similar airport names in other countries. Examples include HLZ for Hamilton , ZQN for Queenstown , and WSZ for Westport . Predominantly, airport codes are named after

5015-417: The interceptor aircraft were launched after the B-24s attacked their targets. After a month, in which the Eleventh Air Force units on Shemya and Attu concentrated on attacking Kiska and forcing the Japanese to withdraw from the island, the next mission against the Kuriles was flown on 11 September 1943. It was the most disastrous mission flown by Eleventh Air Force and was the last flown in 1943. Seven B-24s of

5100-482: The international air booking systems or have international luggage transferred there, and thus, they are booked instead through the airline or a domestic booking system. Several heliports in Greenland have 3-letter codes used internally which might be IATA codes for airports in faraway countries. There are several airports with scheduled service that have not been assigned ICAO codes that do have IATA codes, especially in

5185-515: The major port on the island, and a center for the commercial fishing industry. The island was administered as part of Shimushu District of Nemuro Subprefecture of Hokkaidō . During World War II the island was strongly garrisoned by both the Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy . The headquarters of the IJA 91st Infantry Division, responsible for defense of the northern Kurils,

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5270-612: The name of the airport itself, for instance: This is also true with some cities with a single airport (even if there is more than one airport in the metropolitan area of said city), such as BDL for Hartford, Connecticut 's B ra dl ey International Airport or Baltimore's BWI, for B altimore/ W ashington I nternational Airport ; however, the latter also serves Washington, D.C. , alongside Dulles International Airport (IAD, for I nternational A irport D ulles) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA, for D istrict of C olumbia A irport). The code also sometimes comes from

5355-408: The northeast coast with a 4,000 ft (1,219 m) runway, and Suribachi Airfield, an auxiliary base in the center of the south coast with two runways. The Imperial Japanese Navy had Musashi Airfield on the south-western tip of the island with two 4,000 ft (1,219 m) runways, one 4,300 ft (1,311 m) and another 4,200 ft (1,280 m), operating a variety of aircraft as well as

5440-416: The one they are located in: Other airport codes are of obscure origin, and each has its own peculiarities: In Asia, codes that do not correspond with their city's names include Niigata 's KIJ , Nanchang 's KHN and Pyongyang 's FNJ . EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg , which serves three countries, has three airport codes: BSL, MLH, EAP. Some cities have a name in their respective language which

5525-561: The other tools of war, including ammunition and bombs were simply left out to the elements. A small Radar squadron was assigned briefly then was moved out and the last operational combat unit, the 66th Fighter Squadron , left the airfield on 30 May 1947. For a time the Air Force considered transferring the island to the Civil Aeronautics Authority, the forerunner of the Federal Aviation Administration . However,

5610-499: The remaining Japanese civilian inhabitants and sent the prisoners of war to labor camps . Kashiwabara was renamed Severo-Kurilsk and the island annexed by the Soviet Union in 1946. Japan formally gave up sovereignty over the island under the terms of the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951. In November 1952, Severo-Kurilsk was destroyed by the 1952 Severo-Kurilsk tsunami and was rebuilt in another location. Following

5695-515: The retreating B-24s. After staging though Attu and Shemya for refueling, the B-24s returned to Adak AAF. Most importantly, aerial photographs were taken over the targets which were provided to intelligence analysists. The third attack on 11 August found the Japanese defenses prepared for the American bombers. B-24s from the 404th Bombardment Squadron and B-24s from the 21st Bombardment Squadron were met by intense anti-aircraft fire when they arrived over

5780-525: The runways and hangars and communications were disrupted for a short time. Eareckson Air Station has one runway : There are also an NDB , TACAN and VOR on the island. On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station after Colonel William O. Eareckson (1900–1966). The renaming was initiated by the Eleventh Air Force Association to honor their wartime commander. From 1941 to 1943, Eareckson personally led all of

5865-501: The same first and middle letters, indicating that this rule might be followed only in Germany. Many cities retain historical names in their airport codes, even after having undergone an official name/spelling/transliteration change: Some airport codes are based on previous names associated with a present airport, often with a military heritage. These include: Some airports are named for an administrative division or nearby city, rather than

5950-546: The south by the 40 km (25 mi) wide Fourth Kuril Strait . Its northern tip is 39 km (24 mi) from Cape Lopatka at the southern tip of the Kamchatka Peninsula . Its name is derived from the Ainu language , from “broad island” or “populous island”. Severo-Kurilsk , the administrative center of the Severo-Kurilsky district, is the only permanently populated settlement on Paramushir island. Paramushir

6035-593: The south-southwest of Shemya. The Japanese had established a sizable defense complex on the northernmost islands, with most installations being located on Paramushiro , the largest island in the chain. It supported three airfields and the Imperial Japanese Army Kashiwabra Staging Area. In addition, it was the headquarters for the Imperial Japanese Navy Fifth Fleet, located on Kataoka . The mission of Eleventh Air Force

6120-402: The spring crested auklet nest on the island. The straits between Paramushir and Shumshu island support a notably dense population of sea otters ; harbor seals are also common. North Pacific right whales , one of the rarest and the most endangered whale species are known to appear in the surrounding waters. Several species of charr and Pacific salmon spawn in its rivers, notably in

6205-497: The station code of Malton, Mississauga , where it is located). YUL is used for Montréal–Trudeau (UL was the ID code for the beacon in the city of Kirkland , now the location of Montréal–Trudeau). While these codes make it difficult for the public to associate them with a particular Canadian city, some codes have become popular in usage despite their cryptic nature, particularly at the largest airports. Toronto's code has entered pop culture in

6290-641: The twin tail B-24. Many administrative and cargo aircraft, such as the C-47 "Gooney Bird" flew in and out of Shemya during the war. The dispersal aircraft standings were placed in the area to the north of the main runway. 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

6375-504: The two-letter code of the radio beacons that were the closest to the actual airport, such as YQX in Gander or YXS in Prince George . Four of the ten provincial capital airports in Canada have ended up with codes beginning with YY, including: Canada's largest airport is YYZ for Toronto Pearson (as YTZ was already allocated to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport , the airport was given

6460-529: The use of two letters allowed only a few hundred combinations; a three-letter system of airport codes was implemented. This system allowed for 17,576 permutations, assuming all letters can be used in conjunction with each other. Since the U.S. Navy reserved "N" codes, and to prevent confusion with Federal Communications Commission broadcast call signs , which begin with "W" or "K", the airports of certain U.S. cities whose name begins with one of these letters had to adopt "irregular" airport codes: This practice

6545-430: Was "When do we go home?" Shemya was rapidly reduced to standby status by demobilization and by the end of 1945 and the base was essentially abandoned. With the exception of a small station housekeeping unit, Shemya was abandoned after the war. The island was littered with abandoned Army and Navy aircraft wrecks and deteriorating station structures. Abandoned vehicles, warehouse stores of all types, rations, clothing and all

6630-403: Was declared surplus and the base was inactivated on 1 July 1954. The facilities were turned over to the Civil Aeronautics Authority in 1955. They were then leased to Northwest Orient Airlines who remained on the island until 1961 and used the airport as a technical stop for their service between the U.S. and Asia. The airfield was also used as a technical stop by Canadian Pacific Airlines during

6715-429: Was disestablished and all Eleventh Air Force units came under the direct control of HQ Eleventh Air Force, now at Davis AAF on Adak. The spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles. Most flights were photo-reconnaissance or the occasional bombing attack to keep the Japanese off-guard and were flown at night using flash bombs for night photography. In early April,

6800-473: Was established at Kashiwabara, and numerous coastal artillery positions and fortified bunkers were constructed in various locations around the island. In addition, the Imperial Japanese Army constructed four airfields: Kashiwabara Airfield in the northeast with Ki-43 Oscars , Kakumabestu Airfield on the southwest coast with a 3,800 ft (1,158 m) runway and Ki-44 Tojos , Kitanodai Airfield on

6885-451: Was launched from Alexai Point and Shemya on 18 July. They found the weather over the northern Kuriles clear with unlimited visibility. The Katkoa Naval Base; Kashiwabra Army Staging Area and a nearby airfield were attacked. However, no hits were observed on the targets. The Japanese defenses were taken by surprise, with only five Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" and a few Nakajima A6M2-N "Rufe" float plane interceptors sent up which were unable to catch

6970-753: Was launched, relating to the Queen Match program, for anti-ballistic missile testing. Jurisdiction of Shemya AFB was transferred from the Aerospace Defense Command to the Strategic Air Command when the former was inactivated on 1 October 1979. It was transferred to the Air Force Space Command on 1 May 1983. During the 1980s the facilities on Shemya were upgraded. Many of the old World War II structures were replaced with modern buildings and new facilities were built. On 27 January 1992

7055-472: Was made by IX Bomber Command on the Kuriles. 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. Also the command was reorganized in light of the new mission and the reduction of forces in the Aleutians after the conclusion of the Aleutian Islands Campaign . The IX Strategic Command was activated as

7140-543: Was to take advantage of the new airfields on Shemya and Attu, and carry out offensive operations against the enemy forces in the Kuriles. Orders were issued in early July 1943 for the first bombing attack on the Japanese Home Islands since the April 1942 Doolittle Raid . Crews and aircraft were to be provided by the 21st , 36th and 77th bomb Squadrons. Initially Eleventh Air Force had little intelligence available about

7225-402: Was used for navigator training. The 344th Fighter Squadron flew both P-40 Warhawks and P-38 Lightnings . In addition, a North American AT-6 was utilized for pilot training. One RB-34 , a UC-64A and numerous TB-26s were flown by the 15th Tow Target Squadron that was stationed on Shemya. The Navy assigned one squadron of Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateers , which were single tail versions of

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