Flight planning: Bradley International BDL / KBDL
What a pilot looks at before a flight from or to Bradley International in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, in plain English: right now low IFR: very low ceiling or visibility, Wind from the north (010°) at 8 knots. The warnings, reports and winds below come from the government's aviation weather service and the restrictions from the FAA, refreshed every few minutes. For planning, not a briefing: the legal preflight briefing comes from Flight Service (1-800-WX-BRIEF) or the FAA's own tools.
Warnings in force SIGMETs and AIRMETs whose area covers this field
- AIRMET SIERRA 3E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist).
- AIRMET TANGO 3W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 21,000 ft to 33,000 ft.
- AIRMET TANGO 2W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 13,000 ft.
A SIGMET warns of weather hazardous to all aircraft (thunderstorms, severe turbulence or icing, volcanic ash); an AIRMET of weather that matters to small aircraft and to flying without instruments (moderate turbulence or icing, low cloud, strong surface wind, mountains hidden in cloud). An area is counted when it covers this field's position.
Pilot reports within 100 nautical miles, last three hours, nearest first
- B739 at 600 ft, 0 nm south, 9:51 pm EDT (01:51 UTC): a broken layer above 600 ft, remarks: during the descent runway 6.
as filed, and in English
BDL UA /OV BDL/TM 0151/FL006/TP B739/SK BKN 006/RM DURD RY6
- Report
- a routine report filed through BDL
- Where
- over BDL
- Time
- 01:51 UTC
- Height
- at 600 ft
- Aircraft
- B739
- Sky
- a broken layer from 600 ft
- Remarks
- during the descent runway 6
- CL60 at 200 ft, 0 nm south, 8:30 pm EDT (00:30 UTC): a broken layer above 600 ft, remarks: during the descent runway 6.
as filed, and in English
BDL UA /OV BDL/TM 0030/FLSFC/TP CL60/SK BKN006/RM DURD RY6
- Report
- a routine report filed through BDL
- Where
- over BDL
- Time
- 00:30 UTC
- Height
- at the surface
- Aircraft
- CL60
- Sky
- a broken layer from 600 ft
- Remarks
- during the descent runway 6
- E75S at 30,000 ft, 10 nm southwest, 8:50 pm EDT (00:50 UTC): light chop turbulence, remarks: during the climb.
as filed, and in English
BDL UA /OV BDL240010/TM 0050/FL300/TP E75S/TB OCNL LGT CHOP/RM DURC
- Report
- a routine report filed through BDL
- Where
- 10 nm southwest (240°) of BDL
- Time
- 00:50 UTC
- Height
- at 30,000 ft
- Aircraft
- E75S
- Turbulence
- occasional light chop
- Remarks
- during the climb
- E75S at 16,000 ft, 19 nm southwest, 8:28 pm EDT (00:28 UTC): moderate chop turbulence.
as filed, and in English
POU UA /OV PWL100025/TM 0028/FL160/TP E75S/TB MOD CHOP
- Report
- a routine report filed through POU
- Where
- 25 nm east (100°) of PWL
- Time
- 00:28 UTC
- Height
- at 16,000 ft
- Aircraft
- E75S
- Turbulence
- moderate chop
- BCS3 at 17,000 ft, 24 nm northwest, 7:59 pm EDT (23:59 UTC): light turbulence, light rime icing above 17,000 ft, -7 °C.
as filed, and in English
BAF UA /OV CTR/TM 2359/FL170/TP BCS3/TA M07/TB LGT MOD/IC LGT RIME ABV 170
- Report
- a routine report filed through BAF
- Where
- over CTR
- Time
- 23:59 UTC
- Height
- at 17,000 ft
- Aircraft
- BCS3
- Temperature
- −7 °C
- Turbulence
- light moderate
- Icing
- light rime above 17,000 ft
- GLF4 at 10,000 ft, 27 nm northeast, 9:03 pm EDT (01:03 UTC): moderate turbulence above 10,000 ft, light rain, remarks: instrument conditions.
as filed, and in English
BDL UA /OV CEF060010/TM 0103/FL100/TP GLF4/WX -RA/TB MOD 100/RM IMC
- Report
- a routine report filed through BDL
- Where
- 10 nm northeast (060°) of CEF
- Time
- 01:03 UTC
- Height
- at 10,000 ft
- Aircraft
- GLF4
- Weather
- light rain
- Turbulence
- moderate at 10,000 ft
- Remarks
- instrument conditions
- E550 at 16,000 ft, 28 nm northeast, 7:43 pm EDT (23:43 UTC): light chop turbulence above 16,000 ft.
as filed, and in English
SFZ UA /OV PUT330020/TM 2343/FL160/TP E550/TB OCNL LGT CHOP 160
- Report
- a routine report filed through SFZ
- Where
- 20 nm northwest (330°) of PUT
- Time
- 23:43 UTC
- Height
- at 16,000 ft
- Aircraft
- E550
- Turbulence
- occasional light chop at 16,000 ft
- PC12 at 10,000 ft, 29 nm southeast, 7:53 pm EDT (23:53 UTC): moderate turbulence.
as filed, and in English
BDL UA /OV HFD100017/TM 2353/FL100/TP PC12/TB MOD
- Report
- a routine report filed through BDL
- Where
- 17 nm east (100°) of HFD
- Time
- 23:53 UTC
- Height
- at 10,000 ft
- Aircraft
- PC12
- Turbulence
- moderate
- B772 at 37,000 ft, 36 nm east, 8:04 pm EDT (00:04 UTC): light turbulence.
as filed, and in English
IJD UA /OV LZD/TM 0004/FL370/TP B772/TB LGT MOD CHOP 370
- Report
- a routine report filed through IJD
- Where
- over LZD
- Time
- 00:04 UTC
- Height
- at 37,000 ft
- Aircraft
- B772
- Turbulence
- light moderate chop at 37,000 ft
- B738 descending, 42 nm south, 7:49 pm EDT (23:49 UTC): a broken layer above 900 ft.
as filed, and in English
HVN UA /OV HVN/TM 2349/FLDURD/TP B738/SK BKN009
- Report
- a routine report filed through HVN
- Where
- over HVN
- Time
- 23:49 UTC
- Height
- during the descent
- Aircraft
- B738
- Sky
- a broken layer from 900 ft
- E75S at 16,000 ft, 44 nm east, 8:07 pm EDT (00:07 UTC): light chop turbulence, remarks: moderate during the climb.
as filed, and in English
SFZ UA /OV PUT030015/TM 0007/FL160/TP E75S/TB OCNL LGT CHOP 160 MOD CAT BLO 150/RM MOD DURC
- Report
- a routine report filed through SFZ
- Where
- 15 nm northeast (030°) of PUT
- Time
- 00:07 UTC
- Height
- at 16,000 ft
- Aircraft
- E75S
- Turbulence
- occasional light chop at 16,000 ft moderate clear-air turbulence below 15,000 ft
- Remarks
- moderate during the climb
- E75S at 10,000 ft, 47 nm west, 7:53 pm EDT (23:53 UTC): moderate clear-air turbulence.
as filed, and in English
POU UA /OV PWL350015/TM 2353/FL100/TP E75S/TB MOD CAT
- Report
- a routine report filed through POU
- Where
- 15 nm north (350°) of PWL
- Time
- 23:53 UTC
- Height
- at 10,000 ft
- Aircraft
- E75S
- Turbulence
- moderate clear-air turbulence
What pilots in the air told air traffic control or Flight Service: turbulence, icing, cloud tops and bases, temperature, wind, and whatever they remarked on (wind shear on final, a smooth ride). An urgent report is one of severe turbulence or icing, wind shear, or similar. Open "as filed, and in English" for the coded report and its translation line by line.
Winds and temperatures aloft forecast point BDL · for use 02:00–09:00 UTC
| Height | Wind from | Speed | Temperature |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3,000 ft | 120° (southeast) | 24 knots | |
| 6,000 ft | 290° (west) | 23 knots | 12 °C |
| 9,000 ft | 280° (west) | 21 knots | 8 °C |
| 12,000 ft | 250° (west) | 36 knots | 3 °C |
| 18,000 ft | 250° (west) | 41 knots | -11 °C |
| 24,000 ft | 230° (southwest) | 48 knots | -21 °C |
| 30,000 ft | 230° (southwest) | 78 knots | -32 °C |
| 34,000 ft | 230° (southwest) | 96 knots | -41 °C |
| 39,000 ft | 230° (southwest) | 86 knots | -52 °C |
Based on data from the 12th at 00:00 UTC; valid on the 12th at 06:00 UTC for use 02:00 to 09:00 UTC; temperatures above 24,000 ft are below zero. Heights are above sea level; the lowest rows are left out where the ground is already that high.
Temporary flight restrictions within 50 nautical miles, from the FAA's list
- 6/7153 North Sicuate, RI, Saturday, October 10, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 UTC 45 nm east · drones kept away from a public gathering · until 12 October · ZBW
Each restriction opens the FAA's own page with the exact area, heights and times. Ordinary notices to air missions (a closed runway, lights out, a crane) are not shown here: the FAA's notice search is not open to sites like this one at this time, and the application for the FAA's data feed is in hand.
Radar and forecast charts government pictures, the latest each time the page loads
The radar pictures come from the National Weather Service (the nearest radar, then the region); the surface analysis and the 12- and 24-hour forecast charts from the Weather Prediction Center. They are public-domain government images shown as they are published.
Sources: the Aviation Weather Center's data service (SIGMETs, AIRMETs, graphical AIRMETs, pilot reports, winds and temperatures aloft), the National Weather Service radar, the Weather Prediction Center's charts, and the FAA's temporary flight restriction list and shapes. Fetched when the page is viewed and kept a few minutes. Back to Bradley International, where the current observation and the forecast for the field are.