Plan a flight · Sun 10:06 pm EDT (02:06 UTC)

Patrick Leahy Burlington International to Rapid City Regional BTV → RAP

1,279 nautical miles (1,472 statute miles) west on a straight line, true course 279°, about 294° magnetic at the departure end (variation 15W). At 120 knots that is 11 h 13 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 6-knot headwind), arriving about 7:19 am MDT (13:19 UTC). Right now BTV is VFR, wind from the south (180°) at 8 knots; RAP is low IFR, wind from the east (090°) at 7 knots. 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 SIERRA 3E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist). Near the route, at the departure end.
AIRMET ZULU 1C: moderate icing up to 22,000 ft. Over the first 30 nm of the route.
AIRMET TANGO 3W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 21,000 ft to 33,000 ft. Over the first 90 nm of the route.
AIRMET TANGO 2W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 13,000 ft. Over the first 40 nm of the route.
AIRMET SIERRA 4E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Near the route, at the departure end.
AIRMET SIERRA 4E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 989 to 989 nm out.
AIRMET SIERRA 4E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 1149 to 1259 nm out.
AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 18,000 ft to 36,000 ft. Over the last 40 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 BTV.

Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first

B787 at 37,000 ft, 49 nm east, 7:34 pm EDT (23:34 UTC): light to moderate turbulence. At the departure end, 49 nm east of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
CDA UA /OV CDA/TM 2334/FL370/TP B787/TB LGT OCNL MOD
```
Report
a routine report filed through CDA
Where
over CDA
Time
23:34 UTC
Height
at 37,000 ft
Aircraft
B787
Turbulence
light occasional moderate
B767 at 36,000 ft, 19 nm east, 7:26 pm EDT (23:26 UTC): light to moderate turbulence. At the departure end, 19 nm east of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
BTV UA /OV BTV100020/TM 2326/FL360/TP B767/TB LGT OCNL MOD
```
Report
a routine report filed through BTV
Where
20 nm east (100°) of BTV
Time
23:26 UTC
Height
at 36,000 ft
Aircraft
B767
Turbulence
light occasional moderate
CRJ9 at 18,000 ft, 27 nm south, 9:48 pm EDT (01:48 UTC): no turbulence. 699 nm along the route, 27 nm south of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
CWA UA /OV CWA/TM 0148/FL180/TP CRJ9/TB NEG
```
Report
a routine report filed through CWA
Where
over CWA
Time
01:48 UTC
Height
at 18,000 ft
Aircraft
CRJ9
Turbulence
none
B39M at 34,000 ft, 26 nm south, 7:25 pm EDT (23:25 UTC): light chop turbulence. 889 nm along the route, 26 nm south of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
MSP UA /OV MSP240040/TM 2325/FL340/TP B39M/TB LGT CHOP
```
Report
a routine report filed through MSP
Where
40 nm southwest (240°) of MSP
Time
23:25 UTC
Height
at 34,000 ft
Aircraft
B39M
Turbulence
light chop
BE20 at 14,000 ft, 33 nm south, 8:20 pm EDT (00:20 UTC): light turbulence. 1019 nm along the route, 33 nm south of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
FSD UA /OV FSD340035/TM 0020/FL140/TP BE20/TB CONS LGT/ NEG 120
```
Report
a routine report filed through FSD
Where
35 nm north (340°) of FSD
Time
00:20 UTC
Height
at 14,000 ft
Aircraft
BE20
Turbulence
continuous light no at 12,000 ft
B39M at 35,000 ft, 40 nm north, 7:28 pm EDT (23:28 UTC): light chop turbulence. 1079 nm along the route, 40 nm north of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
ABR UA /OV ABR230015/TM 2328/FL350/TP B39M/TB LGT CHOP
```
Report
a routine report filed through ABR
Where
15 nm southwest (230°) of ABR
Time
23:28 UTC
Height
at 35,000 ft
Aircraft
B39M
Turbulence
light chop
B763 at 32,000 ft, 30 nm south, 9:29 pm EDT (01:29 UTC): light to moderate clear-air turbulence, remarks: zdvwc. 1199 nm along the route, 30 nm south of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
RAP UA /OV RAP084081/TM 0129/FL320/TP B763/TB OCNL LGT-MOD CAT/RM ZDVWC
```
Report
a routine report filed through RAP
Where
81 nm east (084°) of RAP
Time
01:29 UTC
Height
at 32,000 ft
Aircraft
B763
Turbulence
occasional light to moderate clear-air turbulence
Remarks
zdvwc

Winds aloft along the route, and the time en route the forecast for use 20:00–03:00 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 11 forecast points nearest it (ALB, SYR, BUF, TVC, GRB, LSE, MSP, AXN, ABR, PIR, RAP). 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	210° at 11 kt	+6 kt	15 °C	114 kt	11 h 13 min	7:19 am MDT (13:19 UTC)
6,500 ft	240° at 12 kt	+10 kt	13 °C	110 kt	11 h 38 min	7:44 am MDT (13:44 UTC)
8,500 ft	250° at 12 kt	+12 kt	10 °C	108 kt	11 h 51 min	7:57 am MDT (13:57 UTC)
10,500 ft	250° at 13 kt	+13 kt	7 °C	107 kt	11 h 57 min	8:03 am MDT (14:03 UTC)
12,500 ft	250° at 14 kt	+14 kt	3 °C	106 kt	12 h 04 min	8:10 am MDT (14:10 UTC)
14,500 ft	260° at 17 kt	+17 kt	-2 °C	103 kt	12 h 25 min	8:31 am MDT (14:31 UTC)
16,500 ft	260° at 19 kt	+20 kt	-7 °C	100 kt	12 h 47 min	8:53 am MDT (14:53 UTC)
18,000 ft FL180	260° at 21 kt	+22 kt	-10 °C	98 kt	13 h 03 min	9:09 am MDT (15:09 UTC)
24,000 ft FL240	260° at 28 kt	+28 kt	-21 °C	92 kt	13 h 54 min	10:00 am MDT (16:00 UTC)
30,000 ft FL300	260° at 40 kt	+39 kt	-36 °C	81 kt	15 h 47 min	11:53 am MDT (17:53 UTC)
34,000 ft FL340	260° at 48 kt	+47 kt	-45 °C	73 kt	17 h 31 min	1:37 pm MDT (19:37 UTC)
39,000 ft FL390	260° at 61 kt	+60 kt	-51 °C	60 kt	21 h 19 min	5:25 pm MDT (23:25 UTC)

Based on data from the 11th at 18:00 UTC; valid on the 12th at 00:00 UTC for use 20:00 to 03:00 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
ALB	used from 0 nm out; 107 nm from the line	160/27	190/16 9°	200/29 7°	230/21 3°	240/24 -9°	240/43 -19°	230/65 -33°	240/91 -42°	230/99 -53°
SYR	used from 50 nm out; 107 nm from the line	160/17	200/22 10°	250/10 6°	L/V 1°	270/11 -11°	220/25 -20°	220/66 -36°	230/89 -42°	240/74 -51°
BUF	used from 200 nm out; 123 nm from the line	170/19	L/V 10°	040/9 6°	220/8 2°	230/15 -11°	220/33 -22°	220/47 -35°	230/55 -41°	230/56 -50°
TVC	used from 350 nm out; 158 nm from the line	210/17	290/14 15°	310/20 9°	310/18 2°	310/24 -11°	320/35 -22°	320/53 -39°	310/45 -49°	290/58 -51°
GRB	used from 600 nm out; 48 nm from the line	240/24	260/18 16°	270/20 11°	290/14 4°	280/24 -9°	300/34 -21°	310/51 -38°	310/54 -48°	300/71 -51°
LSE	used from 699 nm out; 92 nm from the line	220/33	250/29 17°	250/15 9°	260/12 6°	280/21 -9°	280/33 -20°	300/43 -36°	310/56 -45°	300/79 -53°
MSP	used from 799 nm out; 32 nm from the line	200/28	240/30 19°	240/24 12°	240/17 5°	270/24 -10°	270/33 -20°	280/48 -35°	290/55 -45°	280/84 -54°
AXN	used from 899 nm out; 59 nm from the line	L/V	220/23 17°	230/24 12°	240/25 5°	260/32 -11°	260/40 -21°	270/50 -35°	270/57 -45°	270/81 -55°
ABR	used from 999 nm out; 66 nm from the line	030/24	220/5 16°	230/18 12°	230/32 5°	240/38 -10°	250/37 -20°	240/40 -35°	240/56 -44°	250/72 -52°
PIR	used from 1099 nm out; 34 nm from the line		L/V 17°	230/13 12°	220/22 6°	250/31 -9°	250/34 -21°	240/50 -35°	230/61 -43°	240/62 -51°
RAP	used from 1199 nm out; 55 nm from the line		120/15 12°	180/22 11°	220/26 5°	230/35 -9°	240/40 -22°	240/50 -37°	240/51 -41°	240/47 -47°

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
BTV Burlington, VT	departure	VFR Sky: overcast at 4,500 feet Weather: light rain	from the south (180°) at 8 knots	10+ mi	4,500 ft	334 ft	9:54 pm EDT (01:54 UTC)
PTD Potsdam, NY	80 nm out, 2 nm east of the line	VFR Sky: overcast at 3,900 feet	from the south (190°) at 4 knots	10+ mi	3,900 ft	474 ft	23:35 UTC
CYQA Muskoka,	260 nm out, 5 nm southwest of the line	VFR Sky: a few clouds at 21,000 feet	from the south-southeast (150°) at 4 knots	9 mi	none	925 ft	01:00 UTC
APN Alpena, MI	450 nm out, 10 nm southeast of the line, tower	VFR	from the south (180°) at 8 knots	10+ mi	none	689 ft	01:54 UTC
CVX Charlevoix, MI	520 nm out, 4 nm northeast of the line	VFR	from the south-southwest (210°) at 4 knots	10+ mi	none	668 ft	01:55 UTC
AIG Antigo, WI	679 nm out, 4 nm south of the line	VFR	from the south (190°) at 4 knots	10+ mi	none	1,523 ft	01:50 UTC
MIC Minneapolis, MN	859 nm out, 1 nm northwest of the line, tower	VFR	from the south (170°) at 7 knots	10+ mi	none	869 ft	01:53 UTC
MVE Montevideo, MN	959 nm out, 5 nm north of the line	VFR	from the northwest (310°) at 10 knots	10+ mi	none	1,034 ft	01:55 UTC
MKA Miller, SD	1099 nm out, 3 nm south of the line	no report just now				1,569 ft
PIR Pierre, SD	1159 nm out, 2 nm southeast of the line	marginal VFR Sky: overcast at 1,200 feet	from the east-northeast (070°) at 7 knots	10+ mi	1,200 ft	1,744 ft	01:53 UTC
RAP Rapid City, SD	destination	low IFR Sky: overcast at 300 feet Weather: mist	from the east (090°) at 7 knots	2.5 mi	300 ft	3,203 ft	7:52 pm MDT (01:52 UTC)

The highest airport on this list sits at 3,203 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.

At RAP when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 7:19 am MDT (13:19 UTC)

Wind from the east-southeast at 10 knots, gusting to 20, visibility 2 miles, mist, a broken layer at 600 feet IFR

The whole forecast for RAP

From Sun 8:00 pm MDT (02:00 UTC): wind from the east-southeast at 10 knots, gusting to 20, visibility 2 miles, mist, a broken layer at 600 feet
30% chance between Sun 10:00 pm MDT (04:00 UTC) and 2:00 am MDT (08:00 UTC): visibility 3 miles, light rain showers, mist, scattered clouds at 800 feet, a broken layer at 1,500 feet
From Mon 10:00 am MDT (16:00 UTC): wind from the north-northwest at 20 knots, gusting to 30, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 1,500 feet, scattered clouds at 3,500 feet

The forecast for BTV, the departure

From Sun 8:00 pm EDT (00:00 UTC): wind from the south at 8 knots, gusting to 16, visibility more than 6 miles, overcast at 6,000 feet
30% chance between Sun 8:00 pm EDT (00:00 UTC) and 12:00 am EDT (04:00 UTC): visibility 5 miles, light rain, mist, overcast at 3,500 feet
From Mon 12:00 am EDT (04:00 UTC): wind from the south at 7 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, overcast at 3,500 feet
30% chance between Mon 12:00 am EDT (04:00 UTC) and 2:00 am EDT (06:00 UTC): visibility 5 miles, light rain, mist
From Mon 5:00 am EDT (09:00 UTC): wind light and variable, visibility more than 6 miles, overcast at 1,500 feet
From Mon 8:00 am EDT (12:00 UTC): wind light and variable, visibility more than 6 miles, a broken layer at 4,000 feet
From Mon 2:00 pm EDT (18:00 UTC): wind from the north at 6 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a broken layer at 2,500 feet

Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it

6/6656 ANOKA, MN, Monday, October 5, 2026 through Monday, October 19, 2026 Local 8 nm from the route, 859 nm along the route · security · until 19 October · ZMP

Daylight

Sunset at BTV 6:13 pm EDT (22:13 UTC), at RAP 6:13 pm MDT (00:13 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:42 pm MDT (00:42 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

Radar now, the Northeast · loop National Weather Service

Radar now, the central Great Lakes · loop National Weather Service

Radar now, the upper Mississippi valley · loop National Weather Service

Radar, the whole country · loop National Weather Service

Surface analysis now Weather Prediction Center

Forecast chart, 12 hours ahead Weather Prediction Center

Forecast chart, 24 hours ahead Weather Prediction Center

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: Patrick Leahy Burlington International, Rapid City Regional.