Nonstop flight route between Upington, South Africa and Houston, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Upington Airport (UTN), Upington, South Africa and Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field (EFD), Houston, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,645 miles (or 13,912 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 Upington Airport 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 Upington Airport 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 Upington Airport (UTN):

• Upington Airport's uncommonly long runway and its strategically advantageous location, close to South Africa's northern borders, makes it ideally placed to serve the African continent.
• Upington Airport was opened in 1968 as Pierre van Ryneveld Airport.
• Planning is also under way at Upington Airport to construct a facility for the long-term parking of mothballed aircraft.
• The furthest airport from Upington Airport (UTN) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is nearly antipodal to Upington Airport (meaning Upington Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Princeville Airport), and is located 12,007 miles (19,323 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
• Upington Airport (UTN) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Upington Airport (UTN) is Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH), which is located 147 miles (236 kilometers) ENE of UTN.
• Upington Airport serves as an international cargo hub.

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

• Ellington was considered surplus to requirements after World War I and the base was inactivated as an active duty airfield in January 1920.
• 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.
• 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.
• In 1925 General William Mitchell conducted a "flying tour" of all National Guard Observation Squadrons throughout the United States.
• By the end of 1943, more than 65 women who served in the Women's Army Corps were also stationed at Ellington.
• Ellington now has the rare distinction of having all five military branches of the U.S.
• In addition to being known as "Ellington Field Joint Reserve BaseEllington Air Force BaseEllington Field", another name for EFD is "Ellington Field JRB".
• World War II, with its increasing need for trained pilots, helped to reestablish Ellington Field as an active facility.