Albuquerque International Sunport to George Bush Intcntl/Houston Airport ABQ → IAH
646 nautical miles (743 statute miles) southeast on a straight line, true course 115°, about 104° magnetic at the departure end (variation 11E). At 120 knots that is 4 h 07 min at the quickest height in today's winds (39,000 ft, a 37-knot tailwind), arriving about 5:51 am CDT (10:51 UTC), after sunset at the destination. For planning, not a briefing: the legal preflight briefing comes from Flight Service (1-800-WX-BRIEF) or the FAA's own tools. Airlines fly this pair: 2,424 flights in the DOT's last twelve reported months, the route's page.
The route the straight line, the warnings crossed, restrictions, pilot reports and the airports along the way · click a mark for its words
Green, blue, red and purple airport dots are the flying conditions reported there now (VFR, marginal VFR, IFR, low IFR); grey means no report. Red areas are SIGMETs, orange areas AIRMETs, hatched red areas temporary flight restrictions. Map tiles: OpenFreeMap, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Warnings the route crosses SIGMETs and AIRMETs whose area the line passes through or comes within 25 nm of
- AIRMET TANGO 2W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 35,000 ft to 45,000 ft. Over the first 20 nm of the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 18,000 ft. Over the first 99 nm of the route.
A SIGMET warns of weather hazardous to all aircraft; an AIRMET of weather that matters to small aircraft and to flying without instruments. "From 60 to 180 nm out" is measured along the route from ABQ.
Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first
Not fetched just now.
Winds aloft along the route, and the time en route the forecast for use 02:00–09:00 UTC · at 120 knots true airspeed
The eastbound cruising heights for this course (VFR: odd thousands plus 500 ft; above 18,000 ft the forecast levels), with the wind averaged along the line from the 5 forecast points nearest it (ABQ, ROW, LBB, ABI, CLL). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.
| Height | Average wind | Head- or tailwind | Temperature | Ground speed | Time en route | Arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,500 ft | 190° at 30 kt | +9 kt | 17 °C | 111 kt | 5 h 49 min | 7:33 am CDT (12:33 UTC) |
| 7,500 ft | 200° at 25 kt | +2 kt | 15 °C | 118 kt | 5 h 28 min | 7:12 am CDT (12:12 UTC) |
| 9,500 ft | 210° at 21 kt | −2 kt | 13 °C | 122 kt | 5 h 18 min | 7:02 am CDT (12:02 UTC) |
| 11,500 ft | 230° at 20 kt | −6 kt | 9 °C | 126 kt | 5 h 08 min | 6:52 am CDT (11:52 UTC) |
| 13,500 ft | 230° at 21 kt | −8 kt | 5 °C | 128 kt | 5 h 03 min | 6:47 am CDT (11:47 UTC) |
| 15,500 ft | 230° at 22 kt | −9 kt | 0 °C | 129 kt | 5 h | 6:44 am CDT (11:44 UTC) |
| 17,500 ft | 230° at 23 kt | −10 kt | -4 °C | 130 kt | 4 h 58 min | 6:42 am CDT (11:42 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 230° at 24 kt | −10 kt | -5 °C | 130 kt | 4 h 58 min | 6:42 am CDT (11:42 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 240° at 35 kt | −18 kt | -15 °C | 138 kt | 4 h 41 min | 6:25 am CDT (11:25 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 250° at 46 kt | −30 kt | -28 °C | 150 kt | 4 h 18 min | 6:02 am CDT (11:02 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 260° at 43 kt | −33 kt | -38 °C | 153 kt | 4 h 13 min | 5:57 am CDT (10:57 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 280° at 40 kt | −37 kt | -50 °C | 157 kt | 4 h 07 min | 5:51 am CDT (10:51 UTC) |
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; a height is left out when the forecast has no wind for it over most of the line (the ground is higher). Ground speed is the airspeed less the headwind; the time en route is for the straight line and ignores climb, descent and routing around weather.
The forecast points as issued
| Point | From | 3,000 | 6,000 | 9,000 | 12,000 | 18,000 | 24,000 | 30,000 | 34,000 | 39,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABQ | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 220/27 11° | 210/35 5° | 220/46 -9° | 230/62 -20° | 240/78 -25° | 240/80 -35° | 240/56 -47° | ||
| ROW | used from 99 nm out; 52 nm from the line | 190/33 | 210/27 14° | 220/28 6° | 230/36 -6° | 230/56 -15° | 230/63 -27° | 250/59 -37° | 260/57 -49° | |
| LBB | used from 199 nm out; 40 nm from the line | 200/36 18° | 220/19 15° | 240/20 8° | 230/24 -4° | 240/37 -16° | 250/57 -28° | 250/51 -38° | 270/47 -50° | |
| ABI | used from 298 nm out; 59 nm from the line | 200/31 17° | 210/21 15° | 240/15 9° | 250/14 -4° | 250/24 -14° | 250/36 -28° | 270/35 -38° | 290/41 -50° | |
| CLL | used from 497 nm out; 60 nm from the line | 170/22 | 170/26 18° | 200/15 14° | 240/13 8° | 240/15 -5° | 260/17 -13° | 290/27 -29° | 290/22 -40° | 320/30 -51° |
The weather now: both ends and the airports along the way public airports with a weather report within 25 nm of the line, one for each stretch
| Airport | Where | Conditions | Wind | Visibility | Ceiling | Elevation | Reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABQ Albuquerque, NM | departure | no report just now | 5,354 ft | ||||
| FSU Fort Sumner, NM | 119 nm out, 21 nm northeast of the line | no report just now | 4,164 ft | ||||
| PRZ Portales, NM | 169 nm out, 21 nm north of the line | no report just now | 4,077 ft | ||||
| BFE Brownfield, TX | 248 nm out, 4 nm southwest of the line | no report just now | 3,264 ft | ||||
| SNK Snyder, TX | 318 nm out, 3 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 2,430 ft | ||||
| ABI Abilene, TX | 377 nm out, 16 nm northeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,790 ft | ||||
| BWD Brownwood, TX | 427 nm out, 3 nm east of the line | no report just now | 1,386 ft | ||||
| GRK Fort Hood (Killeen), TX | 507 nm out, 10 nm southwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,015 ft | ||||
| RWV Caldwell, TX | 566 nm out, 9 nm south of the line | no report just now | 390 ft | ||||
| CLL College Station, TX | 586 nm out, 6 nm north of the line, tower | no report just now | 320 ft | ||||
| IAH Houston, TX | destination | no report just now | 95 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 5,354 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At IAH when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 5:51 am CDT (10:51 UTC)
IAH has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
- 6/0543 MCGREGOR, TX 17 nm from the route, 507 nm along the route · security · ZFW
Daylight
Sunset at ABQ 6:34 pm MDT (00:34 UTC), at IAH 6:54 pm CDT (23:54 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:18 pm CDT (00:18 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at IAH is before sunrise there (7:21 am CDT (12:21 UTC)).
Each restriction opens the FAA's own page with the exact area, heights and times. Ordinary notices to air missions (closed runways, lights out) are not shown: the FAA's notice search is not open to sites like this one at this time.
Radar and forecast charts for the regions crossed government pictures, the latest each time the page loads
Sources: the Aviation Weather Center's data service (SIGMETs, AIRMETs, graphical AIRMETs, pilot reports, winds and temperatures aloft, observations and terminal forecasts), the National Weather Service radar, the Weather Prediction Center's charts, the FAA's temporary flight restriction list and shapes, and the FAA's airport file for the positions, elevations and magnetic variation. Fetched when the page is viewed and kept a few minutes. Each leg is the straight line between its two airports; airways, terrain and airspace are not considered. The airports in detail: Albuquerque International Sunport, George Bush Intcntl/Houston Airport.