Nonstop flight route between Harlingen, Texas, United States and Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Valley International Airport (HRL), Harlingen, Texas, United States and Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN), Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,429 miles (or 8,736 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 Valley International Airport and Cologne/Bonn 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 Valley International Airport and Cologne/Bonn 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 Valley International Airport (HRL):

• Valley International Airport is a city owned airport three miles northeast of Harlingen, in Cameron County, Texas.
• Because of Valley International Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Valley 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.
• After the airport's closure by the military, it was turned over to the local government and converted to civil use as Valley International Airport after Hurricane Beulah flooded the original Harlingen civil airport in 1967.
• The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a primary commercial service airport.Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 417,557 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 367,269 in 2009 and 373,438 in 2010.
• The furthest airport from Valley International Airport (HRL) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,151 miles (17,946 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Valley International Airport (HRL) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Valley International Airport (HRL) is Brownsville/South Padre Island International Airport (BRO), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) SSE of HRL.

Facts about Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN):

• In addition to being known as "Cologne/Bonn Airport", another name for CGN is "Flughafen Köln/Bonn".
• Cologne/Bonn Airport handled 9,280,070 passengers last year.
• In 1986 Cologne/Bonn Airport was chosen by United Parcel Service as the location for their European hub.
• The furthest airport from Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,921 miles (19,185 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• After World War II the British military took over and expanded the airport.
• The airport is jointly owned by the City of Cologne, the Federal Republic of Germany, the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, the City of Bonn and two counties.
• In the late 1990s the Airport started an expansion program.
• The closest airport to Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN) is Düsseldorf Airport (DUS), which is located 34 miles (54 kilometers) NNW of CGN.
• Ryanair and Norwegian began service to Cologne/Bonn in May 2012.
• Also, the Canadian Forces began to use the airport as a staging area to move troops and supplies in support of humanitarian missions and possible anti-terrorism roles.
• Cologne Bonn Airport is a major cargo hub in the world mainly due to its function as a hub for FedEx and UPS.
• Because of Cologne/Bonn Airport's relatively low elevation of 302 feet, planes can take off or land at Cologne/Bonn 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.
• Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN) has 3 runways.