Dallas-Fort Worth International to Aspen-Pitkin County/Sardy Field DFW → ASE
609 nautical miles (701 statute miles) northwest on a straight line, true course 311°, about 307° magnetic at the departure end (variation 4E). At 120 knots that is 4 h 35 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 13-knot tailwind), arriving about 11:39 pm MDT (05:39 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: 2,165 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 below 18,000 ft up to 18,000 ft. Over the last 180 nm of the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 18,000 ft to 36,000 ft. Over the last 100 nm of the route.
- AIRMET SIERRA 1E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Over the last 30 nm of the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 1W: 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 10 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 DFW.
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 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 7 forecast points nearest it (DAL, SPS, AMA, TCC, PUB, ALS, GJT). 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 | 190° at 26 kt | −13 kt | 133 kt | 4 h 35 min | 11:39 pm MDT (05:39 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 200° at 25 kt | −9 kt | 16 °C | 129 kt | 4 h 43 min | 11:47 pm MDT (05:47 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 210° at 24 kt | −3 kt | 14 °C | 123 kt | 4 h 57 min | 12:01 am MDT (06:01 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 220° at 25 kt | −1 kt | 10 °C | 121 kt | 5 h 02 min | 12:06 am MDT (06:06 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 220° at 26 kt | +1 kt | 7 °C | 119 kt | 5 h 07 min | 12:11 am MDT (06:11 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 230° at 28 kt | +3 kt | 2 °C | 117 kt | 5 h 12 min | 12:16 am MDT (06:16 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 230° at 30 kt | +6 kt | -3 °C | 114 kt | 5 h 21 min | 12:25 am MDT (06:25 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 230° at 32 kt | +8 kt | -6 °C | 112 kt | 5 h 26 min | 12:30 am MDT (06:30 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 240° at 36 kt | +12 kt | -18 °C | 108 kt | 5 h 38 min | 12:42 am MDT (06:42 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 240° at 54 kt | +23 kt | -29 °C | 97 kt | 6 h 17 min | 1:21 am MDT (07:21 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 250° at 54 kt | +29 kt | -38 °C | 91 kt | 6 h 42 min | 1:46 am MDT (07:46 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 260° at 46 kt | +29 kt | -49 °C | 91 kt | 6 h 42 min | 1:46 am MDT (07:46 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DAL | used from 0 nm out; 34 nm from the line | 180/21 | 190/24 15° | 230/20 12° | 220/23 8° | 240/22 -5° | 230/18 -15° | 280/33 -29° | 280/36 -39° | 300/33 -52° |
| SPS | used from 50 nm out; 23 nm from the line | 180/26 | 200/25 16° | 220/19 13° | 220/20 9° | 230/26 -5° | 230/34 -15° | 260/37 -28° | 270/42 -39° | 280/40 -51° |
| AMA | used from 200 nm out; 60 nm from the line | 190/28 | 220/26 14° | 230/27 7° | 250/24 -6° | 250/32 -16° | 240/51 -28° | 250/52 -38° | 250/51 -50° | |
| TCC | used from 350 nm out; 108 nm from the line | 200/26 | 200/28 14° | 220/25 7° | 230/28 -7° | 240/41 -19° | 240/62 -28° | 250/61 -37° | 250/49 -49° | |
| PUB | used from 399 nm out; 65 nm from the line | 210/24 16° | 210/28 8° | 230/43 -8° | 240/42 -21° | 240/77 -30° | 240/72 -36° | 250/51 -47° | ||
| ALS | used from 549 nm out; 89 nm from the line | 210/32 5° | 230/48 -8° | 230/49 -20° | 230/78 -30° | 240/74 -36° | 240/61 -47° | |||
| GJT | used from 599 nm out; 81 nm from the line | 210/40 11° | 210/46 3° | 210/61 -10° | 210/68 -22° | 220/57 -29° | 230/59 -36° | 240/66 -46° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DFW Dallas-Fort Worth, TX | departure | no report just now | 606 ft | ||||
| DTO Denton, TX | 20 nm out, 9 nm northeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 642 ft | ||||
| SPS Wichita Falls, TX | 100 nm out, 3 nm east of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,019 ft | ||||
| FDR Frederick, OK | 130 nm out, 3 nm north of the line | no report just now | 1,258 ft | ||||
| PPA Pampa, TX | 260 nm out, 5 nm south of the line | no report just now | 3,245 ft | ||||
| TAD Trinidad, CO | 439 nm out, 25 nm southwest of the line | no report just now | 5,761 ft | ||||
| PUB Pueblo, CO | 489 nm out, 21 nm northeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 4,729 ft | ||||
| AEJ Buena Vista, CO | 569 nm out, 3 nm southeast of the line | no report just now | 7,950 ft | ||||
| ASE Aspen, CO | destination | no report just now | 7,837 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 7,950 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At ASE when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 11:39 pm MDT (05:39 UTC)
ASE has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
- 9/2934 DALLAS, TX 11 nm from the route, at the departure end · a VIP movement · ZFW
- 6/8646 Arlington, TX, Thursday, October 15, 2026 through Friday, October 16, 2026 UTC 8 nm from the route, at the departure end · drones kept away from a public gathering · starts Thursday 15 October · ZFW
- 6/8784 LAKE GEORGE, CO, Sunday, October 11, 2026 through Tuesday, October 13, 2026 UTC 24 nm from the route, 549 nm along the route · a hazard on the ground (fire-fighting, a chemical spill, rescue work) · until 13 October · ZDV
Daylight
Sunset at DFW 6:58 pm CDT (23:58 UTC), at ASE 6:33 pm MDT (00:33 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:00 pm MDT (01:00 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at ASE is before sunrise there (7:14 am MDT (13:14 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: Dallas-Fort Worth International, Aspen-Pitkin County/Sardy Field.