Athens/Ben Epps Airport to Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International AHN → BHM
173 nautical miles (199 statute miles) west on a straight line, true course 263°, about 269° magnetic at the departure end (variation 6W). At 120 knots that is 1 h 29 min at the quickest height in today's winds (24,000 ft, a 4-knot headwind), arriving about 7:58 am CDT (12:58 UTC). Right now AHN is VFR, wind from the southwest (220°) at 3 knots; BHM is VFR, wind calm. 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: 1 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 5W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) from 29,000 ft to 40,000 ft. Near the route, 10 nm along the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 3W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) up to 6,000 ft. Near the route, 38 nm along 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 AHN.
Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first
- B712 at 20,000 ft, 45 nm north, 7:17 am EDT (11:17 UTC): no turbulence, remarks: ztlfd 49. At the departure end, 45 nm north of the line.
as filed, and in English
ATL UA /OV ODF/TM 1117/FL200/TP B712/TB NEG/RM ZTLFD 49
- Report
- a routine report filed through ATL
- Where
- over ODF
- Time
- 11:17 UTC
- Height
- at 20,000 ft
- Aircraft
- B712
- Turbulence
- none
- Remarks
- ztlfd 49
- A319 at 19,000 ft, 45 nm north, 6:42 am EDT (10:42 UTC): no turbulence, remarks: ztlfd 49. At the departure end, 45 nm north of the line.
as filed, and in English
ATL UA /OV ODF/TM 1042/FL190/TP A319/TB NEG/RM ZTLFD 49
- Report
- a routine report filed through ATL
- Where
- over ODF
- Time
- 10:42 UTC
- Height
- at 19,000 ft
- Aircraft
- A319
- Turbulence
- none
- Remarks
- ztlfd 49
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 2 forecast points nearest it (ATL, BHM). 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 | 330° at 26 kt | +11 kt | 109 kt | 1 h 35 min | 8:04 am CDT (13:04 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 330° at 26 kt | +8 kt | 16 °C | 112 kt | 1 h 33 min | 8:02 am CDT (13:02 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 340° at 26 kt | +6 kt | 11 °C | 114 kt | 1 h 31 min | 8:00 am CDT (13:00 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 340° at 23 kt | +6 kt | 8 °C | 114 kt | 1 h 31 min | 8:00 am CDT (13:00 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 340° at 21 kt | +6 kt | 5 °C | 114 kt | 1 h 31 min | 8:00 am CDT (13:00 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 330° at 22 kt | +7 kt | 1 °C | 113 kt | 1 h 32 min | 8:01 am CDT (13:01 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 330° at 24 kt | +9 kt | -3 °C | 111 kt | 1 h 34 min | 8:03 am CDT (13:03 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 330° at 25 kt | +10 kt | -6 °C | 110 kt | 1 h 34 min | 8:03 am CDT (13:03 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 340° at 25 kt | +4 kt | -18 °C | 116 kt | 1 h 29 min | 7:58 am CDT (12:58 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 330° at 43 kt | +19 kt | -32 °C | 101 kt | 1 h 43 min | 8:12 am CDT (13:12 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 340° at 45 kt | +13 kt | -41 °C | 107 kt | 1 h 37 min | 8:06 am CDT (13:06 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 340° at 31 kt | +7 kt | -51 °C | 113 kt | 1 h 32 min | 8:01 am CDT (13:01 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL | used from 0 nm out; 35 nm from the line | 330/32 | 340/36 17° | 350/34 10° | 340/25 6° | 330/27 -6° | 350/35 -18° | 330/49 -32° | 340/47 -41° | 340/27 -51° |
| BHM | used from 96 nm out; 53 nm from the line | 310/19 | 310/15 16° | 320/19 11° | 330/15 5° | 330/23 -5° | 320/14 -18° | 320/36 -32° | 330/44 -40° | 340/36 -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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AHN Athens, GA | departure | VFR | from the southwest (220°) at 3 knots | 10+ mi | none | 812 ft | 6:51 am EDT (10:51 UTC) |
| LZU Lawrenceville, GA | 29 nm out, 6 nm northwest of the line, tower | VFR | from the west-northwest (290°) at 6 knots | 10+ mi | none | 1,061 ft | 10:56 UTC |
| PDK Atlanta, GA | 48 nm out, 2 nm northwest of the line, tower | VFR | from the north-northwest (330°) at 4 knots | 10+ mi | none | 998 ft | 10:53 UTC |
| ANB Anniston, AL | 125 nm out, 6 nm southwest of the line | VFR | calm | 10+ mi | none | 612 ft | 10:53 UTC |
| PLR Pell City, AL | 144 nm out, 6 nm southwest of the line | low IFR Sky: overcast at 200 feet Weather: fog | calm | 0.25 mi | 200 ft | 484 ft | 11:15 UTC |
| BHM Birmingham, AL | destination | VFR | calm | 9 mi | none | 650 ft | 5:53 am CDT (10:53 UTC) |
The highest airport on this list sits at 1,061 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At BHM when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 7:58 am CDT (12:58 UTC)
Wind calm, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 feet VFR
The whole forecast for BHM
- From Mon 7:00 am CDT (12:00 UTC): wind calm, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 11:00 am CDT (16:00 UTC): wind from the west-northwest at 5 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
The forecast for AHN, the departure
- From Mon 6:00 am EDT (10:00 UTC): wind from the west at 5 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
- From Tue 12:00 am EDT (04:00 UTC): wind from the northwest at 3 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
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 AHN 7:03 pm EDT (23:03 UTC), at BHM 6:17 pm CDT (23:17 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:42 pm CDT (23:42 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: Athens/Ben Epps Airport, Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International.