Nonstop flight route between Galena, Alaska, United States and Houston, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL), Galena, Alaska, United States and George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Houston, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,531 miles (or 5,683 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport and George Bush Intercontinental 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport and George Bush Intercontinental 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL):

• The closest airport to Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is Koyukuk Airport (KYU), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) WNW of GAL.
• In addition to being known as "Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport", another name for GAL is "(former Galena Air Force Base)".
• Because of Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport's relatively low elevation of 153 feet, planes can take off or land at Edward G. Pitka Sr. 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.
• The airport also sports a ski-jump takeoff ramp at one end and provisions for arresting gear at the other, a leftover from the Cold War years as Galena Air Force Base, as tactical aircraft required more landing and takeoff space than was available on the runway.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 7,784 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 7,447 enplanements in 2009, and 12,421 in 2010.
• Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,313 miles (16,598 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
• As Galena Airport, it was used as a military transport base during World War II, facilitating the transit of Lend-Lease aircraft to the Soviet Union.

Facts about George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH):

• The furthest airport from George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 10,981 miles (17,672 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Terminal A was one of the original two terminals to open in 1969 and was designed by Goleman & Rolfe and George Pierce-Abel B.
• In the late 1980s, Houston City Council considered a plan to rename the airport after Mickey Leland—an African-American congressman who died in an aviation accident in Ethiopia.
• An above ground train called TerminaLink connects Terminals A, B, C, D, E and the International Arrivals Building for those with connecting flights in different terminals and provides sterile airside connections.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport handled 40,128,953 passengers last year.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) has 5 runways.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport served 40,187,442 passengers in 2011 making the airport the 10th busiest for total passengers in North America.
• On January 7, 2009, a Continental Airlines Boeing 737-800 departing Bush Intercontinental was the first U.S.
• The closest airport to George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) is David Wayne Hooks Memorial Airport (DWH), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) WNW of IAH.
• In addition to being known as "George Bush Intercontinental Airport", another name for IAH is "Houston-Intercontinental".
• Because of George Bush Intercontinental Airport's relatively low elevation of 97 feet, planes can take off or land at George Bush Intercontinental 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.