Nonstop flight route between Houston, Texas, United States and Colombo, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD), Houston, Texas, United States and Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), Colombo, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,874 miles (or 15,890 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 Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field and Bandaranaike International 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 Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field and Bandaranaike International 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 Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD):

• During World War I, Ellington served as an advanced flight training base.
• In 1925 General William Mitchell conducted a "flying tour" of all National Guard Observation Squadrons throughout the United States.
• Ellington AFB was selected as one of the first of twenty-four Air Defense Command stations of the permanent United States surveillance radar network.
• Ellington now has the rare distinction of having all five military branches of the U.S.
• In addition to being known as "Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field", another name for EFD is "Ellington Field JRB".
• Ellington Field was also a site for the USAAC Bombardier School, also known as "the Bombardment Academy of the Air." At Ellington Field, officials planned to train 4,480 bombardier cadets per year.
• The furthest airport from Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,008 miles (17,716 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Ellington was considered surplus to requirements after World War I and the base was inactivated as an active duty airfield in January 1920.
• The closest airport to Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD) is William P. Hobby Airport (HOU), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) WNW of EFD.

Facts about Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB):

• The furthest airport from Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,614 miles (18,691 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• On 7 November 1971 the first Boeing 747 landing took place, the Boeing 747-200B was operated by Condor was carrying German tourists from Frankfurt.
• Airport expansion projects have recently been undertaken at the airport under the Stage 1, Phase II Expansion Project.
• The airport is used by Emirates as an alternative emergency airport for its Airbus A380 aircraft.
• In addition to being known as "Bandaranaike International Airport", another name for CMB is "බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළபண்டாரநாயக்க பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• Bandaranaike International Airport handled 7,328,798 passengers last year.
• Because of Bandaranaike International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Bandaranaike International 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.
• Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The second stage will involve the acquisition of 600 hectares of public land, the construction of a runway capable of accommodating new-generation airplanes, an aircraft repair and maintenance center, an arrival and a departure terminal, a shopping arcade, a cargo complex connected to the airport by rail and a multistory car park.
• Bandaranaike International Airport at Katunayake, Sri Lanka, is 30 kilometers north of the island nation's capital of Colombo.
• The closest airport to Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Ratmalana Airport (RML), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) S of CMB.