Ellington Airport (IATA: EFD, ICAO: KEFD, FAA LID: EFD) 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 mi, 28 km) southeast of downtown Houston. 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. It is named for 1st Lt. Eric Ellington, a U.S. Army aviator who was killed in a plane crash in San Diego, California in 1913. Originally created as a training facility, Ellington Airport is currently used by military, commercial, NASA aircraft and general aviation sectors. Formerly known as Ellington Field, then Ellington Air Force Base, then again 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. In September 2017, the Lone Star Flight Museum moved from Galveston's Scholes International Airport at Galveston to Ellington, a move that had been in the works since the aftermath of Hurricane Ike in 2008. The Museum built a brand new facility at Ellington to house its airworthy and static aircraft, as well as its Texas Aviation Hall of Fame. The facility is complete with training centers and administrative space, allowing the Museum to operate solely from Ellington. On October 17, 2018, the City of Houston approved Phase 1 of the Houston Spaceport project on the Ellington Airport site.

FLICKR - GLOBAL PLANESPOTTING