Nonstop flight route between Mascot (near Sydney), Australia and Houston, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD), Mascot (near Sydney), Australia and George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Houston, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,597 miles (or 13,836 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 Sydney (Kingsford Smith) 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 Sydney (Kingsford Smith) 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 Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD):

• The furthest airport from Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) is Santa Maria Airport (SMA), which is nearly antipodal to Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (meaning Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Santa Maria Airport), and is located 12,144 miles (19,543 kilometers) away in Santa Maria, Portugal.
• Because of Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at Sydney (Kingsford Smith) 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 closest airport to Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) is Bankstown Airport (BWU), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) W of SYD.
• The area that the airport was situated was originally a bullock paddock.Nigel Love, a former wartime pilot, was looking into the possibilities for aviation in Australia.
• Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) has 3 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport", another name for SYD is "Kingsford-Smith Airport".
• The new terminal was officially opened on 3 May 1970, by Queen Elizabeth II.
• The airport provides a shuttle service between the terminals at a cost of A$5.50.
• In December 2011, Sydney Airport announced a proposal to divide the airport into two airline-alliance-based precincts.
• The Federal Government has bought most of the required land in a proposed site at Badgerys Creek, west of Sydney.

Facts about George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH):

• 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".
• 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.
• On January 7, 2009, a Continental Airlines Boeing 737-800 departing Bush Intercontinental was the first U.S.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport handled 40,128,953 passengers last year.
• The City of Houston annexed the Bush Airport area in 1965.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport served 40,187,442 passengers in 2011 making the airport the tenth busiest for total passengers in North America.
• Atlas Air offers a thrice-weekly charter service to Luanda, Angola on behalf of SonAir.
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) has 5 runways.
• 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.
• On March 31, 2014, Scandinavian Airlines announced that it will begin flights from Stavanger to Houston.
• Houston Intercontinental had been scheduled to open in 1967, but design changes regarding the terminals created cost overruns and construction delays.