Nonstop flight route between Houston, Texas, United States and Vila Real, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD), Houston, Texas, United States and Vila Real Airport (VRL), Vila Real, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,781 miles (or 7,695 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 Vila Real 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 Vila Real 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):

• Ellington now has the rare distinction of having all five military branches of the U.S.
• The base, which consisted of a few hangars and some wooden headquarters buildings, was completed in a matter of months.
• 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.
• The Texas National Guard and 36th Infantry Division bought most of the airfield's buildings, but the field remained unused.
• World War II, with its increasing need for trained pilots, helped to reestablish Ellington Field as an active facility.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field", another name for EFD is "Ellington Field JRB".
• In May 1923, the War Department had ordered the small caretaker force at Ellington Field to dismantle all remaining structures and to sell them as surplus.
• Ellington AFB was selected as one of the first of twenty-four Air Defense Command stations of the permanent United States surveillance radar network.
• 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.
• Several years later in 1927, Ellington's status was again threatened as local city leaders began to discuss the construction of a municipal airport.

Facts about Vila Real Airport (VRL):

• In addition to being known as "Vila Real Airport", another name for VRL is "Aeródromo Municipal de Vila Real".
• Vila Real Airport (VRL) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Vila Real Airport (VRL) is Braga Airport (BGZ), which is located 43 miles (70 kilometers) WNW of VRL.
• The furthest airport from Vila Real Airport (VRL) is Takaka Aerodrome (KTF), which is nearly antipodal to Vila Real Airport (meaning Vila Real Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Takaka Aerodrome), and is located 12,399 miles (19,955 kilometers) away in Takaka, New Zealand.