Alexandria International to Manhattan Regional AEX → MHK
511 nautical miles (588 statute miles) north on a straight line, true course 338°, about 335° magnetic at the departure end (variation 3E). At 120 knots that is 4 h 01 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 7-knot tailwind), arriving about 9:58 am CDT (14:58 UTC). 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 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: low-level wind shear (due to air speed loss or gain of 20 knots or more below 2,000 ft above the ground). Over the last 246 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 AEX.
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 08:00–15:00 UTC · at 120 knots true airspeed
The westbound cruising heights for this course (VFR: even 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 (SHV, FSM, TUL, ICT, SLN). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.
| Height | Average wind | Head- or tailwind | Temperature | Ground speed | Time en route | Arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4,500 ft | 230° at 29 kt | −7 kt | 127 kt | 4 h 01 min | 9:58 am CDT (14:58 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 240° at 24 kt | −3 kt | 17 °C | 123 kt | 4 h 09 min | 10:06 am CDT (15:06 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 230° at 22 kt | −5 kt | 13 °C | 125 kt | 4 h 05 min | 10:02 am CDT (15:02 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 230° at 19 kt | −5 kt | 10 °C | 125 kt | 4 h 05 min | 10:02 am CDT (15:02 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 230° at 17 kt | −4 kt | 6 °C | 124 kt | 4 h 07 min | 10:04 am CDT (15:04 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 240° at 19 kt | −3 kt | 1 °C | 123 kt | 4 h 09 min | 10:06 am CDT (15:06 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 240° at 20 kt | −2 kt | -4 °C | 122 kt | 4 h 11 min | 10:08 am CDT (15:08 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 240° at 22 kt | −1 kt | -7 °C | 121 kt | 4 h 13 min | 10:10 am CDT (15:10 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 250° at 27 kt | +1 kt | -17 °C | 119 kt | 4 h 18 min | 10:15 am CDT (15:15 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 270° at 52 kt | +25 kt | -30 °C | 95 kt | 5 h 23 min | 11:20 am CDT (16:20 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 280° at 49 kt | +29 kt | -38 °C | 91 kt | 5 h 37 min | 11:34 am CDT (16:34 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 290° at 44 kt | +32 kt | -50 °C | 88 kt | 5 h 48 min | 11:45 am CDT (16:45 UTC) |
Based on data from the 12th at 06:00 UTC; valid on the 12th at 12:00 UTC for use 08:00 to 15:00 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SHV | used from 0 nm out; 71 nm from the line | 210/20 | 210/20 18° | 230/20 11° | 240/16 7° | 270/17 -7° | 250/11 -15° | 300/34 -30° | 310/34 -40° | 320/36 -51° |
| FSM | used from 147 nm out; 86 nm from the line | 230/33 | 260/23 15° | 240/23 11° | 230/18 8° | 230/20 -8° | 250/31 -17° | 280/51 -30° | 280/52 -39° | 300/47 -51° |
| TUL | used from 295 nm out; 42 nm from the line | 230/42 | 250/23 17° | 220/16 14° | 240/10 8° | 240/20 -6° | 260/28 -17° | 270/61 -29° | 280/52 -38° | 290/46 -50° |
| ICT | used from 393 nm out; 75 nm from the line | 230/45 | 240/33 21° | 230/23 14° | 230/22 7° | 240/29 -7° | 240/36 -20° | 260/78 -29° | 270/69 -36° | 270/56 -49° |
| SLN | used from 442 nm out; 67 nm from the line | 230/49 | 240/41 22° | 230/26 15° | 220/21 7° | 240/38 -8° | 240/44 -21° | 260/77 -29° | 270/70 -36° | 270/63 -48° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AEX Alexandria, LA | departure | no report just now | 88 ft | ||||
| IER Natchitoches, LA | 29 nm out, 17 nm west of the line | no report just now | 121 ft | ||||
| MNE Minden, LA | 88 nm out, 5 nm southwest of the line | no report just now | 278 ft | ||||
| TXK Texarkana, AR | 147 nm out, 19 nm southwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 389 ft | ||||
| DEQ De Queen, AR | 187 nm out, 23 nm southwest of the line | no report just now | 354 ft | ||||
| FSM Fort Smith, AR | 255 nm out, 9 nm northeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 469 ft | ||||
| TQH Tahlequah, OK | 304 nm out, 6 nm southwest of the line | no report just now | 874 ft | ||||
| GCM Claremore, OK | 334 nm out, 19 nm southwest of the line | no report just now | 733 ft | ||||
| CFV Coffeyville, KS | 373 nm out, 5 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 754 ft | ||||
| UKL Burlington, KS | 442 nm out, 20 nm northeast of the line | no report just now | 1,174 ft | ||||
| EMP Emporia, KS | 462 nm out, 5 nm southeast of the line | no report just now | 1,207 ft | ||||
| MHK Manhattan, KS | destination | no report just now | 1,066 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 1,207 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At MHK when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 9:58 am CDT (14:58 UTC)
MHK has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
No temporary flight restriction on or near this route right now.
Daylight
Sunset at AEX 6:42 pm CDT (23:42 UTC), at MHK 6:52 pm CDT (23:52 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:19 pm CDT (00:19 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: Alexandria International, Manhattan Regional.
