Nonstop flight route between Houston, Texas, United States and Zhaotong, Yunnan, China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD), Houston, Texas, United States and Zhaotong Airport (ZAT), Zhaotong, Yunnan, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,309 miles (or 13,372 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 Zhaotong 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 Zhaotong 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):

• In 1943 Ellington Field became the site for advanced navigator training.
• Also the possibility of a new municipal airfield endangered the existence of Ellington Field, rumors circulated throughout the Texas National Guard that the War Department wanted to transfer the aviation schools at Kelly and Brooks Fields to Houston.
• 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.
• The $80 million construction project includes a 40,000-square-foot Battle Command Training Center, which simulates war conditions in Iraq and Afghanistan., a second Armed Forces Reserve Center with an assembly hall and offices, a Welcome Center, which will handle retention, recruitment and military identification services.
• The United States Air Force's 147th Reconnaissance Wing is an Air National Guard unit operationally-gained by the Air Combat Command.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field", another name for EFD is "Ellington Field JRB".
• For the first months of operation, Ellington Field had no pilot fatalities.
• Radar facilities were activated on 1 February 1953 with the 747th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron operating a pair of AN/FPS-10 radars The station was designated P-79.

Facts about Zhaotong Airport (ZAT):

• The closest airport to Zhaotong Airport (ZAT) is Bijie Feixiong Airport (BFJ), which is located 95 miles (153 kilometers) E of ZAT.
• The furthest airport from Zhaotong Airport (ZAT) is Chañaral Airport (CNR), which is nearly antipodal to Zhaotong Airport (meaning Zhaotong Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chañaral Airport), and is located 12,083 miles (19,445 kilometers) away in Chañaral, Atacama Region, Chile.
• In addition to being known as "Zhaotong Airport", other names for ZAT include "昭通机场" and "Zhāotōng Jīchǎng".