George Bush Intcntl/Houston Airport to Chicago O'Hare International IAH → ORD
805 nautical miles (926 statute miles) northeast on a straight line, true course 025°, about 022° magnetic at the departure end (variation 3E). At 120 knots that is 5 h 47 min at the quickest height in today's winds (3,500 ft, a 19-knot tailwind), arriving about 12:11 pm CDT (17:11 UTC). Right now IAH is VFR, wind from the east (090°) at 5 knots; ORD is VFR, wind from the south-southwest (210°) at 8 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: 12,119 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
No SIGMET or AIRMET covers any part of this route right now.
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 IAH.
Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first
- SF30 at 21,000 ft, 2 nm south, 4:35 am CDT (09:35 UTC): light rime icing, -10 °C, remarks: zhu. At the departure end, 2 nm south of the line.
as filed, and in English
IAH UA /OV DAS02002/TM 0935/FL210/TP SF30/TA M10/IC LGT RIME/RM ZHU
- Report
- a routine report filed through IAH
- Where
- DAS02002
- Time
- 09:35 UTC
- Height
- at 21,000 ft
- Aircraft
- SF30
- Temperature
- −10 °C
- Icing
- light rime
- Remarks
- zhu
Winds aloft along the route, and the time en route the forecast for use 08:00–15:00 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 (HOU, CLL, SHV, LIT, SGF, CGI, STL, SPI, 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 | 240° at 21 kt | −19 kt | 139 kt | 5 h 47 min | 12:11 pm CDT (17:11 UTC) | |
| 5,500 ft | 240° at 20 kt | −17 kt | 137 kt | 5 h 53 min | 12:17 pm CDT (17:17 UTC) | |
| 7,500 ft | 240° at 18 kt | −16 kt | 14 °C | 136 kt | 5 h 55 min | 12:19 pm CDT (17:19 UTC) |
| 9,500 ft | 240° at 17 kt | −14 kt | 10 °C | 134 kt | 6 h | 12:24 pm CDT (17:24 UTC) |
| 11,500 ft | 250° at 17 kt | −13 kt | 7 °C | 133 kt | 6 h 03 min | 12:27 pm CDT (17:27 UTC) |
| 13,500 ft | 260° at 18 kt | −12 kt | 3 °C | 132 kt | 6 h 06 min | 12:30 pm CDT (17:30 UTC) |
| 15,500 ft | 260° at 19 kt | −11 kt | -1 °C | 131 kt | 6 h 09 min | 12:33 pm CDT (17:33 UTC) |
| 17,500 ft | 270° at 21 kt | −11 kt | -6 °C | 131 kt | 6 h 09 min | 12:33 pm CDT (17:33 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 270° at 21 kt | −11 kt | -7 °C | 131 kt | 6 h 09 min | 12:33 pm CDT (17:33 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 270° at 25 kt | −12 kt | -17 °C | 132 kt | 6 h 06 min | 12:30 pm CDT (17:30 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 290° at 40 kt | −6 kt | -31 °C | 126 kt | 6 h 23 min | 12:47 pm CDT (17:47 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 290° at 46 kt | −5 kt | -40 °C | 125 kt | 6 h 26 min | 12:50 pm CDT (17:50 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 310° at 47 kt | +7 kt | -50 °C | 113 kt | 7 h 07 min | 1:31 pm CDT (18:31 UTC) |
Based on data from the 12th at 06:00 UTC; valid on the 12th at 12:00 UTC for use 08:00 to 15:00 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HOU | used from 0 nm out; 43 nm from the line | 180/22 | 180/20 16° | 170/7 15° | L/V 8° | 220/11 -6° | 260/15 -13° | 310/20 -30° | 320/20 -40° | 350/32 -51° |
| CLL | used from 50 nm out; 89 nm from the line | 180/24 | 170/21 19° | 180/10 14° | 230/7 8° | 230/16 -6° | 260/20 -13° | 290/23 -29° | 320/21 -39° | 340/35 -51° |
| SHV | used from 99 nm out; 43 nm from the line | 210/20 | 210/20 18° | 230/20 11° | 240/16 7° | 270/17 -7° | 250/11 -15° | 300/34 -30° | 310/34 -40° | 320/36 -51° |
| LIT | used from 248 nm out; 56 nm from the line | 250/22 | 250/25 18° | 240/23 12° | 240/20 7° | 250/17 -6° | 260/25 -17° | 300/45 -29° | 300/49 -40° | 310/43 -51° |
| SGF | used from 397 nm out; 97 nm from the line | 230/37 | 260/20 15° | 250/16 13° | 250/15 8° | 260/28 -7° | 250/31 -17° | 280/59 -31° | 280/59 -39° | 290/55 -50° |
| CGI | used from 447 nm out; 81 nm from the line | 260/22 | 250/15 15° | 250/13 11° | 250/16 6° | 270/29 -7° | 280/30 -18° | 290/40 -31° | 290/55 -40° | 300/51 -51° |
| STL | used from 497 nm out; 60 nm from the line | 250/26 | 240/21 15° | 240/22 11° | 250/23 6° | 270/28 -7° | 260/30 -19° | 280/52 -31° | 280/57 -40° | 300/57 -49° |
| SPI | used from 596 nm out; 34 nm from the line | 260/28 | 250/22 15° | 250/14 9° | 260/20 6° | 280/27 -7° | 280/34 -19° | 280/48 -32° | 280/59 -41° | 300/60 -49° |
| JOT | used from 695 nm out; 55 nm from the line | 250/25 | 260/22 14° | 250/17 9° | 270/21 5° | 280/28 -8° | 280/36 -20° | 270/41 -35° | 280/57 -42° | 290/65 -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
| Airport | Where | Conditions | Wind | Visibility | Ceiling | Elevation | Reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IAH Houston, TX | departure | VFR Sky: a few clouds at 2,500 feet, a broken layer at 23,000 feet | from the east (090°) at 5 knots | 10+ mi | 23,000 ft | 95 ft | 5:53 am CDT (10:53 UTC) |
| CXO Houston, TX | 20 nm out, 13 nm west of the line, tower | VFR | from the east-southeast (120°) at 3 knots | 10+ mi | none | 244 ft | 10:53 UTC |
| OCH Nacogdoches, TX | 99 nm out, 10 nm northwest of the line | reported, no category | calm | none | 343 ft | 10:56 UTC | |
| SHV Shreveport, LA | 169 nm out, 9 nm southeast of the line, tower | VFR | from the south-southeast (160°) at 5 knots | 10+ mi | none | 257 ft | 10:56 UTC |
| ADF Arkadelphia, AR | 268 nm out, 5 nm northeast of the line | VFR | calm | 10+ mi | none | 181 ft | 10:55 UTC |
| LIT Little Rock, AR | 328 nm out, 21 nm southeast of the line, tower | VFR Sky: a few clouds at 25,000 feet | from the south-southeast (150°) at 5 knots | 10+ mi | none | 266 ft | 10:53 UTC |
| CVK Ash Flat, AR | 417 nm out, 10 nm east of the line | no report just now | 717 ft | ||||
| FAM Farmington, MO | 527 nm out, 17 nm southeast of the line | VFR | calm | 10+ mi | none | 945 ft | 20:07 UTC |
| ALN Alton/St Louis, IL | 596 nm out, 2 nm southeast of the line, tower | VFR | calm | 10+ mi | none | 543 ft | 11:15 UTC |
| BMI Bloomington/Normal, IL | 705 nm out, 3 nm southeast of the line, tower | VFR | from the southwest (220°) at 6 knots | 10+ mi | none | 871 ft | 10:56 UTC |
| LOT Chicago/Romeoville, IL | 785 nm out, 5 nm south of the line, tower | VFR | from the south-southeast (150°) at 6 knots | 10+ mi | none | 679 ft | 10:45 UTC |
| ORD Chicago, IL | destination | VFR Sky: a broken layer at 25,000 feet | from the south-southwest (210°) at 8 knots | 10+ mi | 25,000 ft | 680 ft | 5:51 am CDT (10:51 UTC) |
The highest airport on this list sits at 945 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, 12:11 pm CDT (17:11 UTC)
Wind from the south-southwest at 13 knots, gusting to 24, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 feet VFR
The whole forecast for ORD
- From Mon 7:00 am CDT (12:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 8 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a broken layer at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 12:00 pm CDT (17:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 13 knots, gusting to 24, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 6:00 pm CDT (23:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 12 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 12,000 feet
- From Mon 10:00 pm CDT (03:00 UTC): wind from the southwest at 11 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, low-level wind shear, a few clouds at 10,000 feet
- From Tue 5:00 am CDT (10:00 UTC): wind from the west at 10 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 20,000 feet
The forecast for IAH, the departure
- From Mon 7:00 am CDT (12:00 UTC): wind from the east-southeast at 6 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 2,500 feet, scattered clouds at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 11:00 am CDT (16:00 UTC): wind from the southeast at 12 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 3,500 feet, a broken layer at 25,000 feet
- 30% chance between Mon 1:00 pm CDT (18:00 UTC) and 4:00 pm CDT (21:00 UTC): light rain showers
- From Mon 4:00 pm CDT (21:00 UTC): wind from the southeast at 13 knots, gusting to 20, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 10,000 feet
- From Mon 10:00 pm CDT (03:00 UTC): wind from the southeast at 6 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 1,500 feet, overcast at 5,000 feet
- At times between Tue 5:00 am CDT (10:00 UTC) and 8:00 am CDT (13:00 UTC): overcast at 1,500 feet
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 IAH 6:54 pm CDT (23:54 UTC), at ORD 6:15 pm CDT (23:15 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:43 pm CDT (23:43 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: George Bush Intcntl/Houston Airport, Chicago O'Hare International.