Buffalo Niagara International to Louisville Muhammad Ali International BUF → SDF
429 nautical miles (493 statute miles) southwest on a straight line, true course 230°, about 241° magnetic at the departure end (variation 11W). At 120 knots that is 3 h 09 min at the quickest height in today's winds (30,000 ft, a 16-knot tailwind), arriving about 5:23 am EDT (09:23 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: 960 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 4E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Near the route, 40 nm along the route.
- AIRMET SIERRA 3E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist). Over the last 289 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 BUF.
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 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 (BUF, CLE, CMH, CVG, LOU). 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 | 340° at 17 kt | −7 kt | 127 kt | 3 h 23 min | 5:37 am EDT (09:37 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 350° at 22 kt | −12 kt | 12 °C | 132 kt | 3 h 15 min | 5:29 am EDT (09:29 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 350° at 22 kt | −11 kt | 9 °C | 131 kt | 3 h 16 min | 5:30 am EDT (09:30 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 350° at 22 kt | −11 kt | 6 °C | 131 kt | 3 h 16 min | 5:30 am EDT (09:30 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 340° at 22 kt | −10 kt | 2 °C | 130 kt | 3 h 18 min | 5:32 am EDT (09:32 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 340° at 25 kt | −10 kt | -2 °C | 130 kt | 3 h 18 min | 5:32 am EDT (09:32 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 340° at 27 kt | −9 kt | -6 °C | 129 kt | 3 h 20 min | 5:34 am EDT (09:34 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 340° at 29 kt | −9 kt | -9 °C | 129 kt | 3 h 20 min | 5:34 am EDT (09:34 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 330° at 40 kt | −11 kt | -21 °C | 131 kt | 3 h 16 min | 5:30 am EDT (09:30 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 340° at 50 kt | −16 kt | -36 °C | 136 kt | 3 h 09 min | 5:23 am EDT (09:23 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 330° at 58 kt | −9 kt | -43 °C | 129 kt | 3 h 20 min | 5:34 am EDT (09:34 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 330° at 44 kt | −6 kt | -49 °C | 126 kt | 3 h 24 min | 5:38 am EDT (09:38 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUF | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 320/10 | 010/16 10° | 360/10 6° | 340/13 2° | 330/22 -11° | 300/25 -23° | 320/31 -38° | 300/29 -44° | 280/36 -50° |
| CLE | used from 100 nm out; 46 nm from the line | 340/7 | 010/16 13° | 350/18 8° | 350/20 3° | 340/31 -10° | 340/46 -21° | 340/54 -37° | 330/62 -44° | 340/65 -49° |
| CMH | used from 199 nm out; 35 nm from the line | 330/15 | 340/22 14° | 340/24 9° | 340/23 4° | 340/35 -9° | 340/49 -20° | 340/58 -37° | 330/70 -42° | 340/55 -47° |
| CVG | used from 299 nm out; 32 nm from the line | 320/18 | 350/32 16° | 350/35 10° | 350/30 3° | 330/30 -7° | 340/44 -20° | 340/58 -35° | 330/72 -41° | 320/36 -49° |
| LOU | used from 399 nm out; 10 nm from the line | 310/18 | 340/28 16° | 340/29 10° | 350/27 3° | 330/27 -7° | 340/39 -19° | 330/58 -33° | 330/67 -41° | 330/40 -49° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUF Buffalo, NY | departure | no report just now | 726 ft | ||||
| DKK Dunkirk, NY | 40 nm out, 7 nm east of the line | no report just now | 692 ft | ||||
| ERI Erie, PA | 80 nm out, 3 nm west of the line, tower | no report just now | 732 ft | ||||
| HZY Ashtabula, OH | 110 nm out, 4 nm west of the line | no report just now | 926 ft | ||||
| CAK Akron, OH | 169 nm out, 14 nm southeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,225 ft | ||||
| MFD Mansfield, OH | 209 nm out, 14 nm northwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,297 ft | ||||
| DLZ Delaware, OH | 249 nm out, 9 nm west of the line | no report just now | 945 ft | ||||
| OSU Columbus, OH | 259 nm out, 2 nm south of the line, tower | no report just now | 905 ft | ||||
| ILN Wilmington, OH | 309 nm out, 8 nm southeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,076 ft | ||||
| CVG Covington, KY | 359 nm out, 4 nm north of the line, tower | no report just now | 896 ft | ||||
| IMS Madison, IN | 399 nm out, 17 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 819 ft | ||||
| SDF Louisville, KY | destination | no report just now | 500 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 1,297 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At SDF when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 5:23 am EDT (09:23 UTC)
SDF has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
- 6/8587 Youngstown, OH, Monday, October 12, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 Local on the route, 120 nm along the route · a VIP movement · today · ZOB
- 6/8888 Youngstown, OH, Monday, October 12, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 Local 19 nm from the route, 130 nm along the route · security · today · ZOB
- 6/8829 Youngstown, OH, Monday, October 12, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 Local 14 nm from the route, 140 nm along the route · a VIP movement · today · ZOB
- 6/8029 Cincinnati, OH, Friday, October 9, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 Local on the route, 359 nm along the route · a VIP movement · until 12 October · ZID
Daylight
Sunset at BUF 6:37 pm EDT (22:37 UTC), at SDF 7:09 pm EDT (23:09 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:36 pm EDT (23:36 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at SDF is before sunrise there (7:48 am EDT (11:48 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: Buffalo Niagara International, Louisville Muhammad Ali International.