Denver International to Chicago O'Hare International DEN → ORD
770 nautical miles (886 statute miles) east on a straight line, true course 075°, about 067° magnetic at the departure end (variation 8E). At 120 knots that is 4 h 21 min at the quickest height in today's winds (39,000 ft, a 57-knot tailwind), arriving about 5:18 am CDT (10:18 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: 12,268 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 4W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 18,000 ft to 38,000 ft. Over the first 100 nm of the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 18,000 ft. Over the first 70 nm of the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 3W: 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 route from 80 to 650 nm out.
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 DEN.
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 7 forecast points nearest it (DEN, GLD, GRI, OMA, DSM, DBQ, JOT). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.
| Height | Average wind | Head- or tailwind | Temperature | Ground speed | Time en route | Arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,500 ft | 230° at 35 kt | −31 kt | 151 kt | 5 h 06 min | 6:03 am CDT (11:03 UTC) | |
| 5,500 ft | 240° at 34 kt | −32 kt | 21 °C | 152 kt | 5 h 04 min | 6:01 am CDT (11:01 UTC) |
| 7,500 ft | 240° at 27 kt | −25 kt | 14 °C | 145 kt | 5 h 19 min | 6:16 am CDT (11:16 UTC) |
| 9,500 ft | 240° at 21 kt | −20 kt | 11 °C | 140 kt | 5 h 30 min | 6:27 am CDT (11:27 UTC) |
| 11,500 ft | 240° at 21 kt | −19 kt | 7 °C | 139 kt | 5 h 32 min | 6:29 am CDT (11:29 UTC) |
| 13,500 ft | 240° at 22 kt | −21 kt | 2 °C | 141 kt | 5 h 28 min | 6:25 am CDT (11:25 UTC) |
| 15,500 ft | 240° at 24 kt | −23 kt | -2 °C | 143 kt | 5 h 23 min | 6:20 am CDT (11:20 UTC) |
| 17,500 ft | 250° at 26 kt | −25 kt | -7 °C | 145 kt | 5 h 19 min | 6:16 am CDT (11:16 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 250° at 26 kt | −26 kt | -8 °C | 146 kt | 5 h 16 min | 6:13 am CDT (11:13 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 250° at 32 kt | −32 kt | -20 °C | 152 kt | 5 h 04 min | 6:01 am CDT (11:01 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 250° at 45 kt | −45 kt | -32 °C | 165 kt | 4 h 40 min | 5:37 am CDT (10:37 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 260° at 53 kt | −54 kt | -39 °C | 174 kt | 4 h 26 min | 5:23 am CDT (10:23 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 270° at 57 kt | −57 kt | -49 °C | 177 kt | 4 h 21 min | 5:18 am CDT (10:18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 240/21 14° | 250/44 6° | 220/49 -8° | 220/49 -21° | 230/54 -30° | 240/57 -35° | 240/49 -45° | ||
| GLD | used from 100 nm out; 62 nm from the line | 230/49 | 230/42 15° | 220/26 8° | 240/18 -7° | 230/27 -21° | 240/62 -30° | 240/61 -35° | 250/57 -47° | |
| GRI | used from 200 nm out; 73 nm from the line | 230/35 21° | 230/23 13° | 220/20 7° | 240/25 -8° | 240/37 -20° | 250/49 -33° | 260/57 -38° | 260/58 -47° | |
| OMA | used from 350 nm out; 34 nm from the line | 220/47 | 240/33 19° | 250/18 11° | 230/17 6° | 260/29 -8° | 250/33 -19° | 250/51 -33° | 260/61 -40° | 270/62 -49° |
| DSM | used from 450 nm out; 36 nm from the line | 230/40 | 250/33 17° | 250/18 12° | 240/17 5° | 260/28 -8° | 270/34 -19° | 260/41 -33° | 260/55 -41° | 270/62 -51° |
| DBQ | used from 600 nm out; 43 nm from the line | 230/33 | 250/30 16° | 280/15 9° | 260/15 5° | 260/21 -7° | 260/24 -20° | 250/37 -33° | 270/42 -43° | 280/63 -52° |
| JOT | used from 700 nm out; 41 nm from the line | 250/23 | 270/22 15° | 250/16 10° | 240/9 4° | 280/22 -7° | 280/29 -19° | 300/29 -34° | 290/50 -43° | 300/64 -52° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN Denver, CO | departure | no report just now | 5,433 ft | ||||
| AKO Akron, CO | 70 nm out, 2 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 4,716 ft | ||||
| IML Imperial, NE | 150 nm out, 6 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 3,276 ft | ||||
| LXN Lexington, NE | 230 nm out, 3 nm north of the line | no report just now | 2,412 ft | ||||
| GRI Grand Island, NE | 300 nm out, 2 nm west of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,847 ft | ||||
| LNK Lincoln, NE | 370 nm out, 20 nm south of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,218 ft | ||||
| OMA Omaha, NE | 410 nm out, 1 nm northwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 984 ft | ||||
| DSM Des Moines, IA | 510 nm out, 1 nm east of the line, tower | no report just now | 957 ft | ||||
| CID Cedar Rapids, IA | 600 nm out, 10 nm north of the line, tower | no report just now | 869 ft | ||||
| MLI Moline, IL | 650 nm out, 22 nm south of the line, tower | no report just now | 589 ft | ||||
| DPA Chicago/West Chicago, IL | 750 nm out, 6 nm southeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 758 ft | ||||
| ORD Chicago, IL | destination | no report just now | 680 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 5,433 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At ORD when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 5:18 am CDT (10:18 UTC)
ORD 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 DEN 6:24 pm MDT (00:24 UTC), at ORD 6:15 pm CDT (23:15 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:43 pm CDT (23:43 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at ORD is before sunrise there (7:00 am CDT (12:00 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: Denver International, Chicago O'Hare International.