The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Plan a flight · Sun 8:35 pm EDT (00:35 UTC)

John F Kennedy International to Sacramento International JFK → SMF

2,185 nautical miles (2,515 statute miles) west on a straight line, true course 283°, about 296° magnetic at the departure end (variation 13W). At 120 knots that is 18 h 41 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 3-knot headwind), arriving about 12:16 pm PDT (19:16 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: 319 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

  • SIGMET E16E: thunderstorms (a convective SIGMET) up to 32,000 ft, moving from the southwest at 25 knots, until 9:55 pm EDT (01:55 UTC). Over the route from 10 to 60 nm out.
    as issued
    WSUS31 KKCI 112355
    MKCE WST 112355
    CONVECTIVE SIGMET 16E
    VALID UNTIL 0155Z
    NY NJ PA DE MD VA DC WV AND NJ NY CSTL WTRS
    FROM SAX-30SE JFK-10N DCA-60ENE EKN-SAX
    AREA EMBD TS MOV FROM 22025KT. TOPS TO FL320.
  • SIGMET W70W: thunderstorms (a convective SIGMET) up to 32,000 ft, moving from the southwest at 40 knots, until 9:55 pm EDT (01:55 UTC). Over the route from 1507 to 1577 nm out.
    as issued
    WSUS33 KKCI 112355
    MKCW WST 112355
    CONVECTIVE SIGMET 70W
    VALID UNTIL 0155Z
    MT WY
    FROM 30SSW MLS-60WNW BFF-40SSE OCS-10S BPI-10S BIL-30SSW MLS
    AREA TS MOV FROM 22040KT. TOPS TO FL320.
  • SIGMET W71W: thunderstorms (a convective SIGMET) up to 27,000 ft, moving from the south at 40 knots, until 9:55 pm EDT (01:55 UTC). Over the route from 1676 to 1786 nm out.
    as issued
    WSUS33 KKCI 112355
    MKCW WST 112355
    CONVECTIVE SIGMET 71W
    VALID UNTIL 0155Z
    WY UT ID
    FROM 40S DBS-40WNW BPI-30WSW MTU-30SSW DTA-30SE TWF-40S DBS
    AREA EMBD TS MOV FROM 20040KT. TOPS TO FL270.
  • SIGMET W72W: thunderstorms (a convective SIGMET) up to 30,000 ft, moving from the southwest at 20 knots, until 9:55 pm EDT (01:55 UTC). Near the route, 1986 nm along the route.
    as issued
    WSUS33 KKCI 112355
    MKCW WST 112355
    CONVECTIVE SIGMET 72W
    VALID UNTIL 0155Z
    NV
    FROM 60SSW BAM-60W ELY-OAL-40WNW OAL-60SSW BAM
    AREA TS MOV FROM 23020KT. TOPS TO FL300.
  • 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 first 249 nm of the route.
  • AIRMET TANGO 2W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 18,000 ft. Over the first 210 nm of the route.
  • AIRMET TANGO 2W: 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 30 to 210 nm out.
  • AIRMET TANGO 3W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 21,000 ft to 33,000 ft. Over the route from 70 to 299 nm out.
  • AIRMET SIERRA 4E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 90 to 269 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). Over the route from 419 to 459 nm out.
  • AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 18,000 ft to 36,000 ft. Over the route from 1267 to 1936 nm out.
  • AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 18,000 ft. Over the route from 1397 to 1766 nm out.
  • AIRMET SIERRA 1E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 1457 to 1906 nm out.
  • 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 route from 1467 to 1736 nm out.
  • AIRMET TANGO 5W: strong surface winds (30 knots or more) (due to sustained surface winds greater than 30 knots). Over the route from 1527 to 1587 nm out.
  • AIRMET ZULU 3C: moderate icing up to 22,000 ft. Over the route from 1607 to 2016 nm out.
  • AIRMET TANGO 3W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) up to 15,000 ft. Near the route, at the destination end.

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 JFK.

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 20 forecast points nearest it (JFK, AVP, PSB, AGC, CLE, FWA, MKG, JOT, DBQ, MCW, DSM, OMA, ONL, BFF, RKS, SLC, ELY, BAM, RNO, SAC). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.

HeightAverage windHead- or tailwindTemperatureGround speedTime en routeArrival
4,500 ft200° at 9 kt+3 kt16 °C117 kt18 h 41 min12:16 pm PDT (19:16 UTC)
6,500 ft230° at 10 kt+8 kt14 °C112 kt19 h 31 min1:06 pm PDT (20:06 UTC)
8,500 ft220° at 16 kt+12 kt10 °C108 kt20 h 14 min1:49 pm PDT (20:49 UTC)
10,500 ft230° at 18 kt+16 kt6 °C104 kt21 h 01 min2:36 pm PDT (21:36 UTC)
12,500 ft230° at 21 kt+19 kt2 °C101 kt21 h 38 min3:13 pm PDT (22:13 UTC)
14,500 ft230° at 22 kt+20 kt-3 °C100 kt21 h 51 min3:26 pm PDT (22:26 UTC)
16,500 ft230° at 24 kt+21 kt-7 °C99 kt22 h 04 min3:39 pm PDT (22:39 UTC)
18,000 ft FL180230° at 25 kt+23 kt-10 °C97 kt22 h 32 min4:07 pm PDT (23:07 UTC)
24,000 ft FL240230° at 29 kt+27 kt-21 °C93 kt23 h 30 min5:05 pm PDT (00:05 UTC)
30,000 ft FL300240° at 40 kt+38 kt-33 °C82 kt26 h 39 min8:14 pm PDT (03:14 UTC)
34,000 ft FL340250° at 49 kt+47 kt-40 °C73 kt29 h 56 min11:31 pm PDT (06:31 UTC)
39,000 ft FL390250° at 54 kt+54 kt-48 °C66 kt33 h 06 min2:41 am PDT (09:41 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
PointFrom3,0006,0009,00012,00018,00024,00030,00034,00039,000
JFKused from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line140/43170/35 13°230/18 9°250/25 5°240/40 -7°230/50 -17°230/75 -31°230/78 -41°230/88 -53°
AVPused from 50 nm out; 30 nm from the line110/36190/34 13°230/11 8°230/16 4°230/26 -8°220/40 -19°230/73 -33°230/98 -41°230/87 -51°
PSBused from 150 nm out; 32 nm from the line260/13 13°220/12 8°220/11 4°230/27 -11°210/31 -21°220/73 -32°220/75 -40°230/66 -50°
AGCused from 249 nm out; 70 nm from the line140/12350/10 12°L/V 9°L/V 3°200/11 -11°220/21 -22°220/47 -33°230/51 -39°230/45 -48°
CLEused from 299 nm out; 48 nm from the line340/5320/13 14°300/12 8°310/10 2°310/14 -10°340/14 -23°320/27 -35°260/28 -40°250/36 -48°
FWAused from 449 nm out; 75 nm from the line350/9350/24 15°360/25 9°360/29 4°350/31 -10°340/39 -22°330/40 -37°320/38 -43°320/48 -48°
MKGused from 549 nm out; 64 nm from the line250/5320/10 15°310/19 9°320/21 3°310/23 -10°330/37 -22°330/51 -38°320/44 -47°300/60 -49°
JOTused from 599 nm out; 49 nm from the line230/11290/12 16°300/19 10°320/19 4°300/17 -9°330/31 -20°320/49 -37°320/53 -45°320/67 -49°
DBQused from 699 nm out; 44 nm from the line220/23240/22 16°240/24 10°260/18 5°270/16 -8°290/27 -19°310/42 -35°320/55 -44°300/71 -52°
MCWused from 848 nm out; 52 nm from the line200/35240/33 18°250/20 10°260/10 6°270/18 -8°260/28 -19°280/30 -34°290/49 -43°280/70 -54°
DSMused from 898 nm out; 53 nm from the line200/32240/27 17°260/19 10°260/16 5°260/19 -7°240/22 -19°270/20 -32°270/38 -42°290/58 -53°
OMAused from 948 nm out; 64 nm from the line190/34230/34 19°250/25 12°250/18 6°250/22 -7°250/28 -19°260/34 -32°260/39 -41°280/56 -51°
ONLused from 1048 nm out; 51 nm from the line200/20 17°230/26 14°240/21 7°250/27 -9°260/32 -19°240/44 -34°240/56 -41°250/62 -51°
BFFused from 1247 nm out; 69 nm from the line120/24180/31 13°210/26 7°230/25 -7°240/41 -20°230/52 -36°250/56 -41°260/57 -45°
RKSused from 1447 nm out; 116 nm from the line190/43210/65 3°210/57 -9°210/56 -21°210/47 -33°230/63 -37°240/77 -46°
SLCused from 1647 nm out; 53 nm from the line280/8210/39 5°210/52 -1°200/50 -11°200/56 -23°220/61 -28°230/73 -37°230/73 -45°
ELYused from 1796 nm out; 75 nm from the line210/20 4°240/21 -1°230/37 -13°200/58 -25°220/73 -27°220/73 -36°220/69 -44°
BAMused from 1896 nm out; 50 nm from the line270/8 4°230/27 -4°220/49 -18°210/52 -26°220/77 -29°220/71 -33°220/63 -43°
RNOused from 1996 nm out; 72 nm from the line320/7260/13 1°230/21 -7°210/38 -17°220/43 -26°230/54 -29°230/59 -32°230/54 -41°
SACused from 2145 nm out; 22 nm from the line270/5L/V 5°L/V -1°240/11 -5°250/22 -15°270/25 -24°260/31 -27°240/39 -33°240/39 -42°

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
JFK New York, NY departure no report just now 13 ft
EWR Newark, NJ 20 nm out, 2 nm southeast of the line, tower no report just now 17 ft
CGF Cleveland, OH 349 nm out, 9 nm southwest of the line, tower no report just now 876 ft
PWK Chicago/Prospect Heights/Wheeling, IL 639 nm out, 5 nm southwest of the line, tower no report just now 644 ft
RFD Chicago/Rockford, IL 699 nm out, 4 nm southeast of the line, tower no report just now 742 ft
SUX Sioux City, IA 1018 nm out, 8 nm north of the line, tower no report just now 1,098 ft
TIF Thedford, NE 1207 nm out, 7 nm south of the line no report just now 2,925 ft
SAA Saratoga, WY 1487 nm out, 4 nm south of the line no report just now 7,014 ft
SLC Salt Lake City, UT 1726 nm out, 3 nm northeast of the line, tower no report just now 4,230 ft
ENV Wendover, UT 1816 nm out, 19 nm north of the line no report just now 4,236 ft
TRK Truckee, CA 2106 nm out, 15 nm northwest of the line, tower no report just now 5,904 ft
SMF Sacramento, CA destination no report just now 26 ft

The highest airport on this list sits at 7,014 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.

At SMF when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 12:16 pm PDT (19:16 UTC)

SMF has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.

Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it

  • 5/2811 NEW YORK, NY, Monday, October 20, 2025 through Tuesday, October 20, 2026 Local 4 nm from the route, at the departure end · security · until 20 October · ZNY
  • 6/8587 Youngstown, OH, Monday, October 12, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 Local on the route, 299 nm along the route · a VIP movement · today · ZOB
  • 6/8829 Youngstown, OH, Monday, October 12, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 Local 16 nm from the route, 309 nm along the route · a VIP movement · today · ZOB
  • 6/8888 Youngstown, OH, Monday, October 12, 2026 through Monday, October 12, 2026 Local 20 nm from the route, 319 nm along the route · security · today · ZOB
  • 6/3475 BEALE AFB, CA, Sunday, March 8, 2026 through Sunday, November 1, 2026 Local 13 nm from the route, at the destination end · security · until 1 November · ZOA
  • 6/6740 SACRAMENTO, CA, Thursday, October 8, 2026 through Sunday, October 11, 2026 Local 5 nm from the route, at the destination end · air shows/sports · ended 11 October · ZOA

Daylight

Sunset at JFK 6:19 pm EDT (22:19 UTC), at SMF 6:32 pm PDT (01:32 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:59 pm PDT (01:59 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 Northeast
Radar now, the Northeast · loop National Weather Service
Radar now, the central Great Lakes
Radar now, the central Great Lakes · loop National Weather Service
Radar now, the upper Mississippi valley
Radar now, the upper Mississippi valley · 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: John F Kennedy International, Sacramento International.