William P Hobby Airport

William P. Hobby Airport (KHOU) is the older of Houston's two major airports, sitting 7 miles southeast of downtown — far closer than KIAH (which is 23 miles north). KHOU handles a substantial volume of commercial service (Southwest is the dominant carrier) alongside a thriving general aviation and charter community. For Houston corporate and energy-sector flight departments, KHOU is often the default — ground access to the Galleria, downtown, the Medical Center, and the corporate clusters in the energy corridor is dramatically better than from KIAH.

The primary runway 4/22 is 7,602 feet, and runway 12R/30L is 7,602 feet as well — both comfortably accommodating heavy and ultra-long-range business jets on normal departures. Atlantic Aviation, Signature, and Million Air share FBO duties with strong hangar inventories and based fractional fleets. Field elevation is 46 feet, so density altitude isn't a factor; the dominant operational considerations are Gulf Coast weather (afternoon thunderstorms April through October, occasional tropical systems August through October) and the volume of corporate traffic during the offshore-energy work rhythm. Ground time to downtown is 15–20 minutes outside rush hour; the Galleria and Tanglewood are 25–35 minutes.

William P. Hobby Airport, colloquially referred to as Houston Hobby Airport, is an airport in the Greater Hobby neighborhood in Houston, Texas, located approximately 7 miles from Houston city center. Hobby is Houston's oldest commercial airport, and was its primary airport until the Houston Intercontinental Airport, now known as the George Bush Intercontinental Airport, opened in 1969. Hobby was initially closed after the opening of Houston Intercontinental; however, it was re-opened after several years, and became a secondary airport for domestic airline service, and a center for corporate and private aviation.