Nonstop flight route between Thames, New Zealand and Houston, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Thames Aerodrome (TMZ), Thames, New Zealand and Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD), Houston, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,383 miles (or 11,881 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 Thames Aerodrome and Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field, 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 Thames Aerodrome and Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field. 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 Thames Aerodrome (TMZ):

• Because of Thames Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Thames Aerodrome 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.
• Thames Aerodrome (TMZ) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Thames Aerodrome (TMZ) is Coromandel Aerodrome (CMV), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) N of TMZ.
• The furthest airport from Thames Aerodrome (TMZ) is Málaga Airport (AGP), which is nearly antipodal to Thames Aerodrome (meaning Thames Aerodrome is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Málaga Airport), and is located 12,403 miles (19,961 kilometers) away in Málaga, Spain.

Facts about Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD):

• 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.
• Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base is a joint installation shared by various active component and reserve component military units, as well as aircraft flight operations of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration under the aegis of the nearby Johnson Space Center.
• World War II, with its increasing need for trained pilots, helped to reestablish Ellington Field as an active facility.
• 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.
• Ellington Field was the site for advanced flight training for bomber pilots.
• Though the 111th Observation Squadron had the excess World War I storage and maintenance facilities at Ellington Field, the squadron did not have a true headquarters building.
• For the first months of operation, Ellington Field had no pilot fatalities.
• In addition to being known as "Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field", another name for EFD is "Ellington Field JRB".
• 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.
• 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.