Kansas City Downtown/Wheeler Field to Lubbock Preston Smith International MKC → LBB
479 nautical miles (551 statute miles) southwest on a straight line, true course 229°, about 228° magnetic at the departure end (variation 1E). At 120 knots that is 4 h 45 min at the quickest height in today's winds (12,500 ft, a 19-knot headwind), arriving about 5:06 am CDT (10:06 UTC), after sunset at the destination. Right now MKC is VFR, wind from the south (190°) at 11 knots, gusting to 20; LBB is VFR, wind from the south (180°) at 18 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: 2 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 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 first 339 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 MKC.
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 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 5 forecast points nearest it (MKC, ICT, GAG, AMA, LBB). 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 | 220° at 38 kt | +38 kt | 19 °C | 82 kt | 5 h 50 min | 6:11 am CDT (11:11 UTC) |
| 6,500 ft | 230° at 33 kt | +33 kt | 18 °C | 87 kt | 5 h 30 min | 5:51 am CDT (10:51 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 230° at 25 kt | +25 kt | 15 °C | 95 kt | 5 h 03 min | 5:24 am CDT (10:24 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 240° at 21 kt | +21 kt | 11 °C | 99 kt | 4 h 50 min | 5:11 am CDT (10:11 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 240° at 20 kt | +19 kt | 6 °C | 101 kt | 4 h 45 min | 5:06 am CDT (10:06 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 240° at 21 kt | +20 kt | 2 °C | 100 kt | 4 h 47 min | 5:08 am CDT (10:08 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 240° at 21 kt | +21 kt | -2 °C | 99 kt | 4 h 50 min | 5:11 am CDT (10:11 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 240° at 22 kt | +21 kt | -6 °C | 99 kt | 4 h 50 min | 5:11 am CDT (10:11 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 240° at 33 kt | +32 kt | -18 °C | 88 kt | 5 h 27 min | 5:48 am CDT (10:48 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 250° at 59 kt | +54 kt | -29 °C | 66 kt | 7 h 15 min | 7:36 am CDT (12:36 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 260° at 55 kt | +48 kt | -38 °C | 72 kt | 6 h 39 min | 7:00 am CDT (12:00 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 270° at 51 kt | +39 kt | -49 °C | 81 kt | 5 h 55 min | 6:16 am CDT (11:16 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
| Point | From | 3,000 | 6,000 | 9,000 | 12,000 | 18,000 | 24,000 | 30,000 | 34,000 | 39,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MKC | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 220/44 | 250/28 18° | 250/18 13° | 240/12 6° | 280/24 -6° | 240/34 -18° | 260/47 -30° | 260/51 -40° | 270/58 -50° |
| ICT | used from 100 nm out; 41 nm from the line | 200/48 | 230/39 19° | 240/24 14° | 240/20 8° | 240/22 -6° | 250/31 -18° | 250/61 -29° | 260/58 -38° | 270/54 -49° |
| GAG | used from 249 nm out; 47 nm from the line | 220/40 19° | 230/28 14° | 240/23 8° | 230/21 -6° | 240/31 -19° | 250/66 -29° | 260/58 -38° | 260/47 -49° | |
| AMA | used from 349 nm out; 71 nm from the line | 210/38 | 230/29 14° | 240/29 7° | 220/27 -5° | 240/37 -18° | 240/66 -28° | 250/59 -37° | 260/47 -49° | |
| LBB | used from 399 nm out; 55 nm from the line | 200/36 18° | 220/19 15° | 240/20 8° | 230/24 -4° | 240/37 -16° | 250/57 -28° | 250/51 -38° | 270/47 -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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MKC Kansas City, MO | departure | VFR | from the south (190°) at 11 knots, gusting to 20 | 10+ mi | none | 756 ft | 11:54 pm CDT (04:54 UTC) |
| IXD Olathe, KS | 20 nm out, 5 nm south of the line, tower | VFR | from the south (180°) at 10 knots | 10+ mi | none | 1,087 ft | 04:53 UTC |
| UKL Burlington, KS | 70 nm out, 3 nm south of the line | VFR | from the south (190°) at 13 knots, gusting to 19 | 10+ mi | none | 1,174 ft | 05:15 UTC |
| EQA El Dorado, KS | 130 nm out, 9 nm northwest of the line | VFR | from the south (190°) at 14 knots, gusting to 18 | 10+ mi | none | 1,379 ft | 05:15 UTC |
| BEC Wichita, KS | 150 nm out, 18 nm northwest of the line, tower | VFR | from the south (180°) at 14 knots, gusting to 19 | 10+ mi | none | 1,408 ft | 05:15 UTC |
| WDG Enid, OK | 219 nm out, 21 nm southeast of the line, tower | VFR | from the south (190°) at 10 knots | 10+ mi | none | 1,167 ft | 05:15 UTC |
| JWG Watonga, OK | 269 nm out, 23 nm southeast of the line | no report just now | 1,551 ft | ||||
| CSM Burns Flat, OK | 319 nm out, 19 nm southeast of the line, tower | VFR | from the south (170°) at 17 knots | 10+ mi | none | 1,922 ft | 04:53 UTC |
| CDS Childress, TX | 389 nm out, 21 nm southeast of the line | VFR | from the south (190°) at 17 knots, gusting to 26 | 10+ mi | none | 1,953 ft | 04:53 UTC |
| PVW Plainview, TX | 449 nm out, 18 nm northwest of the line | VFR | from the south (180°) at 12 knots | 10+ mi | none | 3,374 ft | 04:55 UTC |
| LBB Lubbock, TX | destination | VFR | from the south (180°) at 18 knots | 10+ mi | none | 3,282 ft | 11:53 pm CDT (04:53 UTC) |
The highest airport on this list sits at 3,374 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At LBB when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 5:06 am CDT (10:06 UTC)
Wind from the south at 15 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies VFR
The whole forecast for LBB
- From Mon 1:00 am CDT (06:00 UTC): wind from the south at 15 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
The forecast for MKC, the departure
- From Mon 1:00 am CDT (06:00 UTC): wind from the south at 10 knots, gusting to 18, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 9:00 am CDT (14:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 15 knots, gusting to 25, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 6:00 pm CDT (23:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 10 knots, gusting to 18, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 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 MKC 6:44 pm CDT (23:44 UTC), at LBB 7:16 pm CDT (00:16 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:41 pm CDT (00:41 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at LBB is before sunrise there (7:49 am CDT (12:49 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: Kansas City Downtown/Wheeler Field, Lubbock Preston Smith International.