Nonstop flight route between Mashiki, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan and Houston, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kumamoto Airport (KMJ), Mashiki, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan and George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Houston, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,148 miles (or 11,504 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 Kumamoto 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 Kumamoto 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 Kumamoto Airport (KMJ):

• Kumamoto Airport (KMJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Kumamoto Airport (KMJ) is Saga Airport (HSG), which is located 39 miles (62 kilometers) NW of KMJ.
• Because of Kumamoto Airport's relatively low elevation of 632 feet, planes can take off or land at Kumamoto 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 furthest airport from Kumamoto Airport (KMJ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is nearly antipodal to Kumamoto Airport (meaning Kumamoto Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rio Grande Regional Airport), and is located 12,253 miles (19,720 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• The first Kumamoto Airport opened in 1960 on the site of a former Imperial Japanese Army air base and had a 1,200 m runway.
• In addition to being known as "Kumamoto Airport", other names for KMJ include "熊本空港" and "Kumamoto Kūkō".

Facts about George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH):

• In 2011 Continental Airlines began service to Lagos.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) has 5 runways.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport served 40,187,442 passengers in 2011 making the airport the tenth busiest for total passengers in North America.
• United Airlines offers thrice-daily bus service to Beaumont, TX, which replaced its air service on July 1, 2012.
• The food court areas are in the center of each concourse, near the departure gates.
• 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.
• 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.
• As of 2007, Terminals A and B remain from the original design of the airport.
• In addition to being known as "George Bush Intercontinental Airport", another name for IAH is "Houston-Intercontinental".
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport handled 40,128,953 passengers last year.
• On April 24, 2014, Spirit Airlines announced new services from Houston, to 6 new domestic destinations, including Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale, Kansas City, New Orleans and San Diego.
• 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.