MODO AVIÓN

Houston to Buenos Aires flight path

IAH → EZEIAHEZE
The shortest path on the sphere. On a flat map it looks curved; on the globe it is a straight line.

Along the shortest route, the flight from Houston to Buenos Aires covers 5,080 miles (8,170 km) — about 9 h 55 min with no wind. It passes over or close to the United States, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Peru and Argentina. It crosses the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean: 28% of the route is over water. Today you leave on UTC−5 and land on UTC−3.

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From George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) to Ezeiza International Airport - Ministro Pistarini (EZE) · IAH · EZE

IAHHouston
EZEBuenos Aires
Great-circle distance
8,170 km
Duration, no wind
9 h 55 min
Over water
28 %
Time difference today
+2 h

The route drawn is the theoretical one — the shortest path on the sphere. The real aircraft follows airways, avoids storms and closed airspace, and rides the wind: it can be hundreds of kilometres off.

What countries do you fly over from Houston to Buenos Aires?

  • United States
  • Mexico
  • Belize
  • Honduras
  • Nicaragua
  • Costa Rica
  • Panama
  • Ecuador
  • Peru
  • Argentina
  • Gulf of Mexico
  • Caribbean Sea
  • Pacific Ocean

Which side of the plane to sit on to see Nevado Sajama

To see Nevado Sajama (6,542 m), sit on the left: it lies about 46 km from the route, ≈ 7 h 10 min into the flight.

Left window
  • Mérida ≈ 1 h 35 min
  • Quito ≈ 4 h 35 min
  • Ausangate (6,372 m) ≈ 6 h 35 min
  • Nevado Sajama (6,542 m) ≈ 7 h 10 min
  • Salta ≈ 8 h 10 min
  • Santa Fe ≈ 9 h 10 min
Right window
  • San José ≈ 3 h 10 min
  • Cerro Chirripó (3,820 m) ≈ 3 h 15 min
  • Santo Domingo de los Colorados ≈ 4 h 35 min
  • Ambato ≈ 4 h 45 min
  • Chimborazo volcano (6,267 m) ≈ 4 h 45 min
  • Cusco ≈ 6 h 30 min
  • Aucanquilcha (6,176 m) ≈ 7 h 35 min
  • San Miguel de Tucumán ≈ 8 h 25 min
  • Rosario ≈ 9 h 20 min

Left and right facing forward, on the theoretical route. Times are from take-off, with no wind.

Leg by leg

2 h4 h6 h8 hUTC−6UTC−5UTC−6UTC−5UTC−3UTC−4UTC−3UTC−4UTC−3UTC−5Gulf of MexicoPacific OceanYucatan PeninsulaAndesAltiplanoPampasNevado Sajama 6,542 m 46 kmAusangate 6,372 m 47 kmChimborazo volcano 6,267 m 83 kmAucanquilcha 6,176 m 79 kmCerro Chirripó 3,820 m 2 kmQuito 8 kmMérida 4 kmRosario 53 kmSan Miguel de Tucumán 87 kmSalta 4 kmSanto Domingo de los Colorados 59 kmSanta Fe 17 kmAmbato 52 kmSan José 38 kmIAHEZE▲ Left window▼ Right window◀ Left windowRight window ▶2 h4 h6 h8 hUTC−6UTC−5UTC−6UTC−5UTC−3UTC−4UTC−3UTC−4UTC−3Gulf of MexicoPacific OceanYucatan PeninsulaAndesAltiplanoPampasMérida4 km off routeQuito8 km off routeAusangate6,372 m · 47 kmNevado Sajama6,542 m · 46 kmSalta4 km off routeSanta Fe17 km off routeSan José38 km off routeCerro Chirripó3,820 m · 2 kmSanto Domingo de los…59 km off routeAmbato52 km off routeChimborazo volcano6,267 m · 83 kmCusco10 km off routeAucanquilcha6,176 m · 79 kmSan Miguel de Tucumán87 km off routeRosario53 km off routeIAHEZEUTC−5

LandWaterCity, with its distance from the routePeakClock change

See the full list, leg by leg
  1. Take-off from George Bush Intercontinental Airport
  2. Below: Atlantic coastal plain0 km · ≈ 15 min into the flight
  3. Gulf of Mexico — 1,040 km without land82 km · ≈ 20 min into the flight
  4. Below: Yucatan Peninsula1,120 km · ≈ 1 h 30 min into the flight
  5. Land again1,120 km · ≈ 1 h 30 min into the flight
  6. Local time below changes: UTC−5 to UTC−61,120 km · ≈ 1 h 30 min into the flight
  7. Mérida, Mexico — on the left, 4 km away1,150 km · ≈ 1 h 35 min into the flight
  8. Local time below changes: UTC−6 to UTC−51,310 km · ≈ 1 h 45 min into the flight
  9. Local time below changes: UTC−5 to UTC−61,500 km · ≈ 2 h 00 min into the flight
  10. Water starts: Caribbean Sea1,530 km · ≈ 2 h 00 min into the flight
  11. Below: Central America1,830 km · ≈ 2 h 20 min into the flight
  12. Land again1,830 km · ≈ 2 h 20 min into the flight
  13. San José, Costa Rica — on the right, 38 km away2,520 km · ≈ 3 h 10 min into the flight
  14. Cerro Chirripó, 3,820 m — on the right, 2 km away2,590 km · ≈ 3 h 15 min into the flight
  15. Local time below changes: UTC−6 to UTC−52,720 km · ≈ 3 h 25 min into the flight
  16. Pacific Ocean — 899 km without land2,750 km · ≈ 3 h 25 min into the flight
  17. Below: Andes3,710 km · ≈ 4 h 30 min into the flight
  18. Below: Cordillera Occidental3,730 km · ≈ 4 h 30 min into the flight
  19. Santo Domingo de los Colorados, Ecuador — on the right, 59 km away3,770 km · ≈ 4 h 35 min into the flight
  20. Quito, Ecuador — on the left, 8 km away3,800 km · ≈ 4 h 35 min into the flight
  21. Below: Amazon basin3,900 km · ≈ 4 h 45 min into the flight
  22. Ambato, Ecuador — on the right, 52 km away3,900 km · ≈ 4 h 45 min into the flight
  23. Chimborazo volcano, 6,267 m — on the right, 83 km away3,910 km · ≈ 4 h 45 min into the flight
  24. Below: Cordillera Oriental3,980 km · ≈ 4 h 50 min into the flight
  25. Below: Selva4,060 km · ≈ 4 h 55 min into the flight
  26. Cusco, Peru — on the right, 10 km away5,450 km · ≈ 6 h 30 min into the flight
  27. Ausangate, 6,372 m — on the left, 47 km away5,510 km · ≈ 6 h 35 min into the flight
  28. Below: Altiplano5,560 km · ≈ 6 h 40 min into the flight
  29. Local time below changes: UTC−5 to UTC−35,990 km · ≈ 7 h 10 min into the flight
  30. Nevado Sajama, 6,542 m — on the left, 46 km away6,050 km · ≈ 7 h 10 min into the flight
  31. Local time below changes: UTC−3 to UTC−46,130 km · ≈ 7 h 20 min into the flight
  32. Local time below changes: UTC−4 to UTC−36,160 km · ≈ 7 h 20 min into the flight
  33. Local time below changes: UTC−3 to UTC−46,240 km · ≈ 7 h 25 min into the flight
  34. Aucanquilcha, 6,176 m — on the right, 79 km away6,380 km · ≈ 7 h 35 min into the flight
  35. Local time below changes: UTC−4 to UTC−36,590 km · ≈ 7 h 50 min into the flight
  36. Salta, Argentina — on the left, 4 km away6,880 km · ≈ 8 h 10 min into the flight
  37. San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina — on the right, 87 km away7,080 km · ≈ 8 h 25 min into the flight
  38. Below: Pampas7,080 km · ≈ 8 h 25 min into the flight
  39. Santa Fe, Argentina — on the left, 17 km away7,770 km · ≈ 9 h 10 min into the flight
  40. Below: Entre Ríos7,820 km · ≈ 9 h 15 min into the flight
  41. Rosario, Argentina — on the right, 53 km away7,890 km · ≈ 9 h 20 min into the flight
  42. Landing at Ezeiza International Airport - Ministro Pistarini8,170 km · ≈ 9 h 40 min into the flight

Times assume a typical jet speed, no wind and an on-time departure. Good for orientation, not for your watch.

Which side the sun, sunrise or sunset will be on

Enter the day and take-off time. Your phone does the maths: the sun's position on every leg of the route, relative to the nose of the aircraft.

Take-offLanding

Sky: light is daytime, amber is sunrise or sunset, dark is night. Left and Right show which side the sun is on for each leg.

Follow the route offline in airplane mode

All of this on board and with no signal: with your phone in airplane mode, Modo Avión shows where you are, what's below and how long is left. GPS still works, because it only listens to satellites.

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Arriving in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires · Photo: ProtoplasmaKid · CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Flight time and distance

About 9 h 55 min with no wind, including half an hour of taxi, climb and descent. On a long flight the wind aloft can change that by more than an hour, differently each way.

5,080 miles (8,170 km, 4,410 nautical miles) along the great circle. The real flight covers a little more because it follows airways.

Time zones you cross

kmTimeZone
0 kmUTC−5Chicago
1,120 kmUTC−6Merida
1,310 kmUTC−5Cancun
1,500 kmUTC−6Belize
2,720 kmUTC−5Panama
5,990 kmUTC−3Santiago
6,130 kmUTC−4La Paz
6,160 kmUTC−3Santiago
6,240 kmUTC−4La Paz
6,590 kmUTC−3Jujuy

Airspace (FIRs) along the route

Each is a control region: when the aircraft crosses the boundary, the centre talking to the pilot changes. Boundaries are approximate, from the VATSIM data set, not the official ICAO chart.

  • Houston
  • Mexico
  • Cenamer
  • Panama
  • Cali (Up To FL245)
  • Guayaquil
  • Lima
  • Antofagasta
  • La Paz
  • Antofagasta
  • La Paz
  • Cordoba
  • Ezeiza

FAQ

Where does the plane fly from Houston to Buenos Aires?

Along the shortest route, the flight from Houston to Buenos Aires covers 5,080 miles (8,170 km) — about 9 h 55 min with no wind. It passes over or close to the United States, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Peru and Argentina. It crosses the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean: 28% of the route is over water. Today you leave on UTC−5 and land on UTC−3.

What countries do you fly over from Houston to Buenos Aires?

It passes over or close to the United States, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Peru and Argentina, and crosses the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. This is the theoretical route: the aircraft may deviate for wind or closed airspace.

How long is the flight from Houston to Buenos Aires?

About 9 h 55 min with no wind, including half an hour of taxi, climb and descent. On a long flight the wind aloft can change that by more than an hour, differently each way.

How far is Houston from Buenos Aires by plane?

5,080 miles (8,170 km, 4,410 nautical miles) along the great circle. The real flight covers a little more because it follows airways.

How much of the flight is over water?

28% of the route, about 2,260 km. The longest stretch without land is 1,040 km.

Why doesn't the plane fly in a straight line on the map?

It does fly straight — on a sphere. On a flat map the shortest path looks curved; on the globe on this page it looks like what it is.

Does GPS work in airplane mode?

Yes. GPS is a receiver: it listens to satellites and transmits nothing, so it keeps working in airplane mode. What you won't have is a map unless you downloaded it; Modo Avión carries its own.

More routes

The way back: Buenos Aires → Houston

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How this was calculated

The route is the great-circle arc between both airports, split into 300 points. At each point a point-in-polygon test runs against 1,102 airspace regions, 418 time zones and 1,338 physical geography regions. Countries are those with a town within 25 km of the route: in empty areas one may be missing. Cities named have over 250,000 people and lie within 110 km.

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