Ellington Airport ( Texas ) Ellington Airport is a public and military use airport in Harris County , Texas , United States . It is owned by the City of Houston and located 15 nautical miles ( 17 mile , 28 km ) southeast of downtown Houston . Formerly known as Ellington Field , it is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011 – 2015 , which categorized it as a general aviation " reliever airport " . The airport does not have scheduled commercial passenger service . On September 4 , 2013 , the City of Houston unveiled a plan which if approved , would build a terminal building on the site with the facility being rebranded as the Houston Spaceport . History . Established by the Army Air Service on May 21 , 1917 , Ellington Field was one of the initial World War I Army Air Service installations when aviation was in its infancy . Originally created as a training facility , Ellington Airport is currently used by military , commercial , NASA aircraft and general aviation sectors . Ellington Airport is one of the few airfields built for World War I training purposes still in operation today . In January 2009 , a name change from Ellington Field to Ellington Airport was approved by the Houston City Council . In August 2011 , the city announced that the facility would be renamed Ellington International Airport . However , as of May 2013 , it is still listed as Ellington Airport by the Federal Aviation Administration and the Houston Airport System . Overview . Ellington Airport consists of three active runways ( a 9 , 001 - foot ILS CAT I runway , an runway , and a runway ) . The airport supports the operations of the United States military , NASA and a variety of general aviation tenants . The field is a base for NASA ' s administrative , cargo transport and high - altitude aircraft , which also includes NASA ' s fleet of T - 38 Talon jets bailed to the agency from USAF , Gulfstream Shuttle Training Aircraft , and a former USN C - 9 " Weightless Wonder VI " replaced the USAF NKC - 135 aircraft known as the Vomit Comet , a zero - g trainer . The only two WB - 57F aircraft used for atmospheric research and reconnaissance still flying in the world today are housed at Ellington . The Texas Air National Guard , Texas Army National Guard and the U . S . Coast Guard also maintain a presence at the base . The Coast Guard facility known as Coast Guard Air Station Houston operates 3 Eurocopter MH - 65C " Dolphin " Short - Range Recovery ( SRR ) helicopters for search and rescue ( SAR ) and port security roles . Ellington Field is also home to the largest flying club in Texas and the annual " Wings Over Houston " airshow . Ellington Field once had scheduled commercial air service : Continental Express flights between Ellington Airport and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in north Houston ended in 2004 . Prior to the cessation of commercial air service , the route flown between Bush Intercontinental and Ellington Field was the shortest fixed - wing route flown in the United States at only . Flight times were as short as six minutes , depending on direction of departure . To this day , Ellington Field serves as a reliever airport for both Bush Intercontinental and the William P . Hobby Airport , and handles diverted aircraft from those two airports during bad weather events and peak traffic times . A Terminal Aerodrome Forecast is produced for the airfield 365 days a year at 20Z , 04Z , and 12Z by the 26th Operational Weather Squadron , a USAF weather squadron . Facilities and aircraft . Ellington Field covers an area of 2 , 362 acres ( 956 hectare ) at an elevation of 32 feet ( 10 m ) above mean sea level . It has three runways with concrete surfaces : 4 / 22 is 8 , 001 by 150 feet ( 2 , 439 x 46 m ) ; 17R / 35L is 9 , 000 by 150 feet ( 2 , 743 x 46 m ) ; 17L / 35R is 4 , 609 by 80 feet ( 1 , 405 x 24 m ) . For the 12 - month period ending December 31 , 2009 , the airport had 126 , 702 aircraft operations , an average of 347 per day : 70 % general aviation , 22 % military , 6 % air taxi , and 2 % scheduled commercial . At that time there were 197 aircraft based at this airport : 46 % single - engine , 28 % jet , 12 % multi - engine , 12 % military , 2 % helicopter , and 1 % glider .