Plan a flight · Sun 9:05 pm EDT (01:05 UTC)

Purdue University Airport to Bellingham International LAF → BLI

1,586 nautical miles (1,825 statute miles) northwest on a straight line, true course 300°, about 301° magnetic at the departure end (variation 1W). At 120 knots that is 12 h 35 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 6-knot tailwind), arriving about 6:40 am PDT (13:40 UTC), after sunset at the destination. Right now LAF is VFR, wind calm; BLI is VFR, wind from the northwest (310°) at 6 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: 1 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 SIERRA 4E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 668 to 1227 nm out.
AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 18,000 ft to 36,000 ft. Over the route from 788 to 1297 nm out.
AIRMET SIERRA 1E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 1028 to 1347 nm out.
AIRMET ZULU 2C: moderate icing up to 14,000 ft. Over the route from 1217 to 1437 nm out.
AIRMET TANGO 1W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 25,000 ft to 39,000 ft. Over the last 20 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 LAF.

Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first

E170 at 23,000 ft, 25 nm southeast, 7:14 pm EDT (23:14 UTC): light turbulence. At the departure end, 25 nm southeast of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
IND UA /OV VHP315020/TM 2314/FL230/TP E170/TB LGT
```
Report
a routine report filed through IND
Where
20 nm northwest (315°) of VHP
Time
23:14 UTC
Height
at 23,000 ft
Aircraft
E170
Turbulence
light
B39M at 35,000 ft, 42 nm northeast, 8:29 pm EDT (00:29 UTC): no turbulence, remarks: smooth. At the departure end, 42 nm northeast of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
IKK UA /OV CGT/TM 0029/FL350/TP B39M/TB NEG/RM SMOOTH
```
Report
a routine report filed through IKK
Where
over CGT
Time
00:29 UTC
Height
at 35,000 ft
Aircraft
B39M
Turbulence
none
Remarks
smooth
BE20 at 14,000 ft, 1 nm north, 8:20 pm EDT (00:20 UTC): light turbulence. 499 nm along the route, 1 nm north of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
FSD UA /OV FSD340035/TM 0020/FL140/TP BE20/TB CONS LGT/ NEG 120
```
Report
a routine report filed through FSD
Where
35 nm north (340°) of FSD
Time
00:20 UTC
Height
at 14,000 ft
Aircraft
BE20
Turbulence
continuous light no at 12,000 ft
B39M at 35,000 ft, 31 nm north, 7:28 pm EDT (23:28 UTC): light chop turbulence. 589 nm along the route, 31 nm north of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
ABR UA /OV ABR230015/TM 2328/FL350/TP B39M/TB LGT CHOP
```
Report
a routine report filed through ABR
Where
15 nm southwest (230°) of ABR
Time
23:28 UTC
Height
at 35,000 ft
Aircraft
B39M
Turbulence
light chop
PC12 at 100 ft, 43 nm southwest, 6:34 pm EDT (22:34 UTC): no icing. 628 nm along the route, 43 nm southwest of the line.
as filed, and in English
```
PIR UA /OV PIR/TM 2234/FL001/TP PC12/SK BASE030-TOP045/IC NEG
```
Report
a routine report filed through PIR
Where
over PIR
Time
22:34 UTC
Height
at 100 ft
Aircraft
PC12
Sky
BASE030-TOP045
Icing
none

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 13 forecast points nearest it (JOT, DBQ, MCW, FSD, ABR, PIR, DIK, MLS, BIL, GTF, GPI, GEG, SEA). 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	120° at 5 kt	−6 kt	4 °C	126 kt	12 h 35 min	6:40 am PDT (13:40 UTC)
6,500 ft	150° at 2 kt	−3 kt	8 °C	123 kt	12 h 54 min	6:59 am PDT (13:59 UTC)
8,500 ft	210° at 5 kt	0	5 °C	120 kt	13 h 13 min	7:18 am PDT (14:18 UTC)
10,500 ft	220° at 8 kt	+3 kt	1 °C	117 kt	13 h 33 min	7:38 am PDT (14:38 UTC)
12,500 ft	230° at 12 kt	+5 kt	-1 °C	115 kt	13 h 47 min	7:52 am PDT (14:52 UTC)
14,500 ft	230° at 15 kt	+8 kt	-5 °C	112 kt	14 h 10 min	8:15 am PDT (15:15 UTC)
16,500 ft	230° at 18 kt	+10 kt	-9 °C	110 kt	14 h 25 min	8:30 am PDT (15:30 UTC)
18,000 ft FL180	230° at 21 kt	+12 kt	-12 °C	108 kt	14 h 41 min	8:46 am PDT (15:46 UTC)
24,000 ft FL240	240° at 27 kt	+17 kt	-23 °C	103 kt	15 h 24 min	9:29 am PDT (16:29 UTC)
30,000 ft FL300	240° at 36 kt	+24 kt	-36 °C	96 kt	16 h 31 min	10:36 am PDT (17:36 UTC)
34,000 ft FL340	250° at 41 kt	+33 kt	-43 °C	87 kt	18 h 14 min	12:19 pm PDT (19:19 UTC)
39,000 ft FL390	260° at 50 kt	+45 kt	-48 °C	75 kt	21 h 09 min	3:14 pm PDT (22:14 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
JOT	used from 0 nm out; 64 nm from the line	230/11	290/12 16°	300/19 10°	320/19 4°	300/17 -9°	330/31 -20°	320/49 -37°	320/53 -45°	320/67 -49°
DBQ	used from 150 nm out; 38 nm from the line	220/23	240/22 16°	240/24 10°	260/18 5°	270/16 -8°	290/27 -19°	310/42 -35°	320/55 -44°	300/71 -52°
MCW	used from 249 nm out; 56 nm from the line	200/35	240/33 18°	250/20 10°	260/10 6°	270/18 -8°	260/28 -19°	280/30 -34°	290/49 -43°	280/70 -54°
FSD	used from 399 nm out; 60 nm from the line	200/16	220/20 17°	240/26 13°	230/19 6°	240/25 -9°	240/28 -20°	250/39 -33°	250/44 -43°	260/63 -52°
ABR	used from 549 nm out; 45 nm from the line	030/24	220/5 16°	230/18 12°	230/32 5°	240/38 -10°	250/37 -20°	240/40 -35°	240/56 -44°	250/72 -52°
PIR	used from 599 nm out; 47 nm from the line		L/V 17°	230/13 12°	220/22 6°	250/31 -9°	250/34 -21°	240/50 -35°	230/61 -43°	240/62 -51°
DIK	used from 698 nm out; 82 nm from the line		110/15 6°	200/17 5°	230/31 1°	240/47 -10°	240/52 -20°	230/52 -36°	240/57 -45°	250/67 -51°
MLS	used from 848 nm out; 27 nm from the line		120/22 5°	170/18 4°	200/33 1°	230/49 -10°	230/58 -21°	220/54 -37°	230/64 -44°	250/74 -49°
BIL	used from 998 nm out; 80 nm from the line		080/24	130/14 -1°	180/33 0°	210/43 -10°	220/58 -21°	200/55 -36°	220/75 -44°	240/83 -48°
GTF	used from 1047 nm out; 60 nm from the line		070/21	080/18 -6°	120/5 -5°	180/30 -14°	200/53 -24°	210/80 -38°	220/83 -44°	230/68 -46°
GPI	used from 1197 nm out; 39 nm from the line		060/19 -3°	110/11 -8°	130/6 -8°	200/40 -19°	190/58 -28°	200/101 -39°	220/73 -43°	230/41 -43°
GEG	used from 1347 nm out; 46 nm from the line		050/18 -2°	060/19 -8°	L/V -11°	160/11 -24°	190/17 -31°	200/19 -35°	220/14 -37°	250/11 -41°
SEA	used from 1496 nm out; 93 nm from the line	360/9	350/10 1°	010/10 -5°	030/20 -11°	020/60 -17°	010/86 -26°	360/90 -40°	010/68 -42°	360/31 -43°

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
LAF Lafayette, IN	departure	VFR	calm	10+ mi	none	605 ft	8:54 pm EDT (00:54 UTC)
DTG Dwight, IL	80 nm out, 3 nm north of the line	no report just now				632 ft
ALO Waterloo, IA	279 nm out, 5 nm south of the line, tower	VFR	from the south (170°) at 10 knots	10+ mi	none	873 ft	00:54 UTC
PQN Pipestone, MN	469 nm out, 1 nm south of the line	VFR Sky: overcast at 17,000 feet	calm	9 mi	17,000 ft	1,736 ft	00:55 UTC
BKX Brookings, SD	499 nm out, 8 nm northeast of the line	VFR	from the north (360°) at 6 knots	10+ mi	none	1,647 ft	00:56 UTC
HEI Hettinger, ND	768 nm out, 12 nm northeast of the line	low IFR Sky: overcast at 300 feet Weather: mist	from the northeast (050°) at 12 knots	2 mi	300 ft	2,705 ft	00:53 UTC
MLS Miles City, MT	898 nm out, 8 nm southwest of the line	IFR Sky: a broken layer at 800 feet, overcast at 1,300 feet Weather: light rain	from the east-northeast (060°) at 11 knots	10+ mi	800 ft	2,634 ft	00:53 UTC
LWT Lewistown, MT	1047 nm out, 13 nm southwest of the line	no report just now				4,170 ft
GTF Great Falls, MT	1137 nm out, 8 nm southeast of the line, tower	low IFR Sky: a few clouds at 400 feet, overcast at 800 feet Weather: light snow, mist	from the north-northeast (030°) at 12 knots	0.75 mi	800 ft	3,680 ft	00:53 UTC
SZT Sandpoint, ID	1347 nm out, 1 nm north of the line	VFR Sky: scattered clouds at 9,000 feet, a broken layer at 11,000 feet	from the northeast (050°) at 12 knots, gusting to 17	10+ mi	11,000 ft	2,131 ft	00:55 UTC
OMK Omak, WA	1466 nm out, 7 nm south of the line	VFR Sky: overcast at 9,000 feet	from the north (360°) at 8 knots	10+ mi	9,000 ft	1,304 ft	00:53 UTC
BLI Bellingham, WA	destination	VFR	from the northwest (310°) at 6 knots	10+ mi	none	171 ft	5:53 pm PDT (00:53 UTC)

The highest airport on this list sits at 4,170 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.

At BLI when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 6:40 am PDT (13:40 UTC)

Wind light and variable, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies VFR

The whole forecast for BLI

From Sun 5:00 pm PDT (00:00 UTC): wind from the north at 12 knots, gusting to 18, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
From Sun 7:00 pm PDT (02:00 UTC): wind from the north at 6 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
From Sun 11:00 pm PDT (06:00 UTC): wind light and variable, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
From Mon 3:00 pm PDT (22:00 UTC): wind from the south-southeast at 6 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies

The forecast for LAF, the departure

From Sun 8:00 pm EDT (00:00 UTC): wind calm, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 feet
From Mon 10:00 am EDT (14:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 8 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 20,000 feet
From Mon 2:00 pm EDT (18:00 UTC): wind from the southwest at 11 knots, gusting to 19, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 20,000 feet

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

6/6654 28NM W TWISP, WA, Thursday, October 1, 2026 through Thursday, October 15, 2026 UTC 17 nm from the route, 1516 nm along the route · a hazard on the ground (fire-fighting, a chemical spill, rescue work) · until 15 October · ZSE

Daylight

Sunset at LAF 7:12 pm EDT (23:12 UTC), at BLI 6:26 pm PDT (01:26 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:58 pm PDT (01:58 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at BLI is before sunrise there (7:25 am PDT (14:25 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 central Great Lakes · loop National Weather Service

Radar now, the upper Mississippi valley · loop National Weather Service

Radar now, the northern Rockies · loop National Weather Service

Radar, the whole country · loop National Weather Service

Surface analysis now Weather Prediction Center

Forecast chart, 12 hours ahead Weather Prediction Center

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: Purdue University Airport, Bellingham International.