The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Plan a flight · Mon 3:06 am CDT (08:06 UTC)

Hector International to Huntsville Intl-Carl T Jones Field FAR → HSV

866 nautical miles (996 statute miles) southeast on a straight line, true course 145°, about 141° magnetic at the departure end (variation 4E). At 120 knots that is 5 h 35 min at the quickest height in today's winds (39,000 ft, a 35-knot tailwind), arriving about 8:41 am CDT (13:41 UTC). 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 return flight

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: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist). Over the first 90 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 229 to 468 nm out.
  • AIRMET SIERRA 3E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist, fog). Over the last 0 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 FAR.

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 9 forecast points nearest it (AXN, MSP, MCW, BRL, SPI, STL, CGI, BNA, HSV). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.

HeightAverage windHead- or tailwindTemperatureGround speedTime en routeArrival
3,500 ft240° at 18 kt+1 kt119 kt7 h 17 min10:23 am CDT (15:23 UTC)
5,500 ft250° at 20 kt−5 kt125 kt6 h 56 min10:02 am CDT (15:02 UTC)
7,500 ft260° at 19 kt−8 kt13 °C128 kt6 h 46 min9:52 am CDT (14:52 UTC)
9,500 ft270° at 17 kt−8 kt10 °C128 kt6 h 46 min9:52 am CDT (14:52 UTC)
11,500 ft270° at 16 kt−8 kt6 °C128 kt6 h 46 min9:52 am CDT (14:52 UTC)
13,500 ft270° at 18 kt−9 kt2 °C129 kt6 h 43 min9:49 am CDT (14:49 UTC)
15,500 ft270° at 20 kt−11 kt-2 °C131 kt6 h 37 min9:43 am CDT (14:43 UTC)
17,500 ft270° at 23 kt−12 kt-7 °C132 kt6 h 34 min9:40 am CDT (14:40 UTC)
18,000 ft FL180270° at 23 kt−13 kt-8 °C133 kt6 h 31 min9:37 am CDT (14:37 UTC)
24,000 ft FL240270° at 28 kt−17 kt-19 °C137 kt6 h 19 min9:25 am CDT (14:25 UTC)
30,000 ft FL300270° at 33 kt−20 kt-34 °C140 kt6 h 11 min9:17 am CDT (14:17 UTC)
34,000 ft FL340280° at 46 kt−33 kt-42 °C153 kt5 h 40 min8:46 am CDT (13:46 UTC)
39,000 ft FL390280° at 48 kt−35 kt-51 °C155 kt5 h 35 min8:41 am CDT (13:41 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
PointFrom3,0006,0009,00012,00018,00024,00030,00034,00039,000
AXNused from 0 nm out; 62 nm from the line100/14250/21 14°240/24 12°240/31 5°260/36 -10°260/40 -21°250/42 -36°260/48 -45°260/53 -50°
MSPused from 149 nm out; 58 nm from the line230/26240/30 17°240/24 12°250/22 5°250/35 -10°260/36 -21°250/41 -36°250/49 -45°260/58 -52°
MCWused from 199 nm out; 46 nm from the line220/44250/30 17°230/14 12°240/17 6°250/22 -8°270/29 -20°250/34 -34°260/52 -43°260/59 -51°
BRLused from 348 nm out; 70 nm from the line230/24240/29 15°290/16 10°280/15 4°260/23 -7°260/32 -19°260/36 -33°280/48 -41°280/59 -52°
SPIused from 498 nm out; 33 nm from the line220/21250/23 16°260/27 9°270/14 6°270/23 -7°270/31 -19°270/28 -33°290/48 -42°300/55 -52°
STLused from 547 nm out; 29 nm from the line250/24250/24 16°260/23 9°270/16 6°260/25 -6°270/29 -19°290/34 -33°290/48 -41°290/54 -51°
CGIused from 597 nm out; 59 nm from the line240/20270/15 15°280/15 11°300/13 6°290/20 -6°280/24 -18°300/34 -32°300/47 -41°310/49 -51°
BNAused from 746 nm out; 50 nm from the line310/20340/20 17°330/24 10°340/22 5°330/26 -6°340/29 -18°330/52 -33°320/62 -41°340/45 -50°
HSVused from 796 nm out; 45 nm from the line310/20330/20 16°320/27 11°340/23 5°320/23 -7°340/30 -17°320/50 -33°330/61 -41°340/41 -50°

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

AirportWhereConditionsWindVisibilityCeilingElevationReported
FAR Fargo, ND departure no report just now 901 ft
FFM Fergus Falls, MN 50 nm out, 3 nm northwest of the line no report just now 1,182 ft
BDH Willmar, MN 129 nm out, 4 nm southwest of the line no report just now 1,126 ft
ULM New Ulm, MN 179 nm out, 9 nm southwest of the line no report just now 1,011 ft
ALO Waterloo, IA 318 nm out, 12 nm east of the line, tower no report just now 873 ft
CID Cedar Rapids, IA 368 nm out, 17 nm east of the line, tower no report just now 869 ft
BRL Burlington, IA 448 nm out, 7 nm north of the line no report just now 698 ft
ALN Alton/St Louis, IL 567 nm out, 11 nm southwest of the line, tower no report just now 543 ft
MWA Marion, IL 647 nm out, 4 nm south of the line, tower no report just now 471 ft
CEY Murray, KY 726 nm out, 10 nm west of the line no report just now 577 ft
GZS Pulaski, TN 836 nm out, 5 nm north of the line no report just now 688 ft
HSV Huntsville, AL destination no report just now 628 ft

The highest airport on this list sits at 1,182 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.

At HSV when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 8:41 am CDT (13:41 UTC)

HSV 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 FAR 6:45 pm CDT (23:45 UTC), at HSV 6:16 pm CDT (23:16 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:41 pm CDT (23:41 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 northern Rockies
Radar now, the northern Rockies · loop National Weather Service
Radar now, the upper Mississippi valley
Radar now, the upper Mississippi valley · loop National Weather Service
Radar now, the central Great Lakes
Radar now, the central Great Lakes · loop National Weather Service
Radar, the whole country
Radar, the whole country · loop National Weather Service
Surface analysis now
Surface analysis now Weather Prediction Center
Forecast chart, 12 hours ahead
Forecast chart, 12 hours ahead Weather Prediction Center
Forecast chart, 24 hours ahead
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: Hector International, Huntsville Intl-Carl T Jones Field.