George Bush Intercontinental Airport

IAH KIAH  Houston, United States

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IAH at a glance

  • What it is: George Bush Intercontinental Airport is a major international airport serving Houston, United States.
  • Codes: IAH on your ticket, KIAH on the radar.
  • How busy: the reference profile lists about 46.2 million annual passengers across 5 runways.
  • Main airline: United Airlines bases aircraft here.
  • Right now: 32 aircraft are within 55 km, shown live on the map above.
  • Local time zone: America/Chicago (UTC-5), so every time shown for IAH is local rather than UTC.

Aircraft observed near IAH

32 aircraft are within 55 km of IAH right now. This is live ADS-B traffic, not a published timetable: aircraft are classified by what they are physically doing - Climbing out, on approach, or holding at cruise overhead. For gate numbers and scheduled times, check with IAH directly or your airline.

Departing now

FlightOperatorRouteStatusAltitudeSpeed
UCA4341 — route not published climbing out 550 ft 160 kts
JSX285 — route not published climbing out 13,525 ft 343 kts
DAL1143 Delta Air Lines route not published climbing out 5,325 ft 273 kts
N555ME — route not published climbing out 6,400 ft 171 kts
UAL1211 United Airlines route not published climbing out 13,075 ft 369 kts
UAL2249 United Airlines route not published climbing out 6,925 ft 294 kts
N3AS — route not published climbing out 16,825 ft 352 kts

Arriving now

FlightOperatorRouteStatusAltitudeSpeed
ASH4046 — route not published on approach 500 ft 141 kts
DAL2930 Delta Air Lines route not published on approach 575 ft 147 kts
UAE1Y Emirates route not published on approach 550 ft 140 kts
UAL527 United Airlines route not published on approach 525 ft 162 kts
SKW5837 — route not published on approach 2,425 ft 203 kts
N8339D — route not published on approach 200 ft 72 kts
N224V — route not published on approach 300 ft 68 kts
UCA4242 — route not published on approach 4,400 ft 260 kts

Overhead and in the area

FlightOperatorRouteStatusAltitudeSpeed
N674TX — route not published in the area 825 ft 62 kts
SCX3031 — route not published in the area 36,050 ft 452 kts
N75169 — route not published in the area 800 ft 81 kts
N4822G — route not published in the area 2,000 ft 87 kts
N41606 — route not published in the area 1,575 ft 96 kts
SWA4861 Southwest Airlines route not published in the area 2,125 ft 161 kts
N441FS — route not published in the area 27,000 ft 268 kts
N942JS — route not published in the area 35,525 ft 465 kts
46.2M
Annual passengers (reference)
5
Runways
5
Terminals
97 ft
Field elevation

About IAH

United Airlines' second-largest hub and the main international gateway for Texas and the US energy industry. It offers the most nonstop destinations in Mexico of any US airport. The airport is named after President George H. W. Bush.

Houston's second great airport began with a secret: in 1957 a group of local businessmen quietly bought thousands of acres of ranchland north of the city through a front company so that land prices would not soar, later selling the site to the city at cost.

George Bush Intercontinental Airport opened there in June 1969 as Houston Intercontinental, with modular Terminals A and B designed for the jet age and an underground train linking them. The airport took over all scheduled service from Hobby Airport, which later reopened for domestic flights.

Houston-based Continental Airlines made Intercontinental its flagship hub in the 1980s, building it into the dominant gateway between the United States and Latin America. The airport was renamed in 1997 for George H. W. Bush, the former president and longtime Houston resident. Continental's 2010 merger with United Airlines made IAH one of United's largest hubs, anchored by the Mickey Leland international terminal and Terminal E. Steady expansion has continued, including a major redevelopment of the international terminal complex completed in the mid-2020s, keeping pace with Houston's energy-industry travel demand.

How IAH operates today

Bush Intercontinental operates five runways, including two sets of parallels, spread across a sprawling wooded site 37 kilometers north of downtown Houston. Five terminals, A through E, are linked airside by the Skyway train and landside by an underground people mover.

United Airlines dominates, using IAH as one of its biggest hubs and its primary gateway to Mexico, Central America and South America, a legacy of the Continental era. The energy industry generates outsized premium and international demand. The airport also handles substantial cargo alongside passenger operations that run in distinct connecting banks through the day.

Top routes from IAH

DestinationMain airlinesWhy it matters
Mexico City (MEX) United Airlines, Aeromexico A cornerstone of IAH's role as America's gateway to Mexico.
Cancun (CUN) United Airlines, Spirit A huge leisure pipeline from Texas to the Mexican Caribbean.
Denver (DEN) United Airlines, Frontier A high-frequency link between two of United's largest hubs.
Los Angeles (LAX) United Airlines, Spirit A dense transcontinental trunk route connecting hub to hub.
Chicago (ORD) United Airlines, American Airlines Ties Houston into United's midwestern mega-hub many times daily.

Facts about IAH

  • The airport's land was assembled in secret in 1957 by Houston businessmen using a front company to keep prices from soaring.
  • It was renamed in 1997 for President George H. W. Bush, who lived in Houston.
  • A bronze statue of George H. W. Bush, titled 'Winds of Change,' stands in the terminal complex.
  • United and its predecessor Continental have used IAH as their principal gateway to Latin America since the 1980s.

Plane spotting at IAH

There is no official viewing area, so spotters use roads and parking areas around the runway approach paths north and east of the field, where United's widebody fleet and Latin America-bound traffic dominate. New to spotting? Start with our aircraft identification guide and the world's best spotting airports.

IATA / ICAO
IAH / KIAH
Location
Houston, United States 29.990, -95.337
Time zone
America/Chicago
Opened
1969
Hub for
United Airlines
Website
www.fly2houston.com

Airlines hubbed at IAH

UA · UAL United Airlines United States

Nearby and related airports

Geographically close airports and useful alternatives in United States.

HOU William P. Hobby Airport Houston, United States DAL Dallas Love Field Dallas, United States DFW Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Dallas - Fort Worth, United States MEX Benito Juárez International Airport Mexico City, Mexico MEM Memphis International Airport Memphis, United States ATL Hartsfield - Jackson Atlanta International Airport Atlanta, United States IND Indianapolis International Airport Indianapolis, United States MCO Orlando International Airport Orlando, United States

More airports and guides connected to IAH

Most of the tails you see here belong to United Airlines. How a field like this runs day to day is covered in how airports work. Nearby, Houston (HOU) serves the same country. The codes IAH and KIAH are explained in airport codes decoded.

Data sources and review

Reviewed 2026-07-29 by Flight-Tracker.net Editorial Team

Passenger, runway, terminal and hub figures are maintained as a reviewed reference snapshot, not a live operational record. Check the airport directly before travelling.

Read our airport data sourcing and review process, or inspect the machine-readable reference dataset.

Frequently asked questions about IAH

What is the airport code for George Bush Intercontinental Airport?

George Bush Intercontinental Airport uses the IATA code IAH on tickets and baggage tags, and the ICAO code KIAH in flight plans and on radar. The leading “K” in KIAH is the region marker: ICAO codes are grouped geographically, which is why airports near each other usually share their first letter or two while their IATA codes look unrelated.

How many runways does IAH have?

George Bush Intercontinental Airport operates 5 runways across 5 passenger terminals. The field sits at 97 ft above sea level.

How busy is IAH?

This reference profile lists roughly 46.2 million annual passengers for George Bush Intercontinental Airport. You can see aircraft observed departing, arriving and overhead on this page, taken from live ADS-B broadcasts.

Which airlines are based at IAH?

United Airlines treat IAH as a hub or major base. Many other carriers serve the airport without basing aircraft there.

How many terminals does IAH have?

This reference lists George Bush Intercontinental Airport with 5 passenger terminals. Check the airport or operating airline for the terminal assigned to a specific flight.

What time zone is IAH in?

George Bush Intercontinental Airport runs on America/Chicago, currently UTC-5. Flight trackers work in UTC internally, so the seven-day history on our flight pages is stamped UTC while the boards on this page are in IAH local time - worth remembering when the two disagree by a whole calendar day.

Can I track flights at IAH live?

Yes. The map on this page shows every aircraft broadcasting its position within about 55 km of George Bush Intercontinental Airport, and there are 32 in range as this page loaded. The boards split them into departures, arrivals and traffic passing overhead, all timed in America/Chicago.