Louis Armstrong New Orleans International to Waterloo Regional MSY → ALO
761 nautical miles (876 statute miles) north on a straight line, true course 353°, about 354° magnetic at the departure end (variation 1W). At 120 knots that is 6 h 08 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 4-knot tailwind), arriving about 1:56 am CDT (06:56 UTC), after sunset at the destination. 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
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 MSY.
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 8 forecast points nearest it (MSY, JAN, MEM, CGI, COU, BRL, DSM, MCW). 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 | 240° at 12 kt | −4 kt | 124 kt | 6 h 08 min | 1:56 am CDT (06:56 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 260° at 14 kt | 0 | 16 °C | 120 kt | 6 h 20 min | 2:08 am CDT (07:08 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 260° at 17 kt | −1 kt | 12 °C | 121 kt | 6 h 17 min | 2:05 am CDT (07:05 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 270° at 19 kt | +2 kt | 8 °C | 118 kt | 6 h 27 min | 2:15 am CDT (07:15 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 280° at 20 kt | +5 kt | 5 °C | 115 kt | 6 h 37 min | 2:25 am CDT (07:25 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 290° at 20 kt | +8 kt | 1 °C | 112 kt | 6 h 48 min | 2:36 am CDT (07:36 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 290° at 19 kt | +10 kt | -3 °C | 110 kt | 6 h 55 min | 2:43 am CDT (07:43 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 300° at 20 kt | +12 kt | -6 °C | 108 kt | 7 h 03 min | 2:51 am CDT (07:51 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 310° at 23 kt | +16 kt | -18 °C | 104 kt | 7 h 19 min | 3:07 am CDT (08:07 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 320° at 41 kt | +32 kt | -32 °C | 88 kt | 8 h 39 min | 4:27 am CDT (09:27 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 320° at 48 kt | +41 kt | -42 °C | 79 kt | 9 h 38 min | 5:26 am CDT (10:26 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 310° at 54 kt | +41 kt | -51 °C | 79 kt | 9 h 38 min | 5:26 am CDT (10:26 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSY | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | L/V | 020/6 18° | L/V 12° | 300/11 7° | 330/15 -4° | 320/22 -16° | 330/38 -32° | 350/47 -42° | 340/56 -52° |
| JAN | used from 49 nm out; 68 nm from the line | 260/6 | 310/14 17° | 280/13 12° | 290/19 6° | 310/22 -5° | 310/28 -17° | 320/44 -32° | 330/48 -41° | 320/52 -51° |
| MEM | used from 247 nm out; 58 nm from the line | 240/9 | 280/14 17° | 280/20 12° | 290/25 5° | 320/25 -6° | 330/31 -18° | 320/52 -32° | 330/58 -41° | 320/42 -50° |
| CGI | used from 396 nm out; 87 nm from the line | 250/10 | 290/12 17° | 290/18 11° | 300/22 5° | 320/25 -8° | 330/30 -18° | 320/53 -33° | 320/66 -42° | 320/56 -50° |
| COU | used from 445 nm out; 73 nm from the line | 210/16 | 220/19 15° | 240/33 10° | 250/29 7° | 280/21 -6° | 280/19 -18° | 300/34 -31° | 300/40 -42° | 300/60 -52° |
| BRL | used from 593 nm out; 51 nm from the line | 200/20 | 250/21 16° | 240/22 10° | 260/20 5° | 270/16 -7° | 290/22 -18° | 320/41 -34° | 320/56 -43° | 310/68 -53° |
| DSM | used from 692 nm out; 66 nm from the line | 200/32 | 240/27 17° | 260/19 10° | 260/16 5° | 260/19 -7° | 240/22 -19° | 270/20 -32° | 270/38 -42° | 290/58 -53° |
| MCW | used from 742 nm out; 62 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° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSY New Orleans, LA | departure | no report just now | 3 ft | ||||
| HDC Hammond, LA | 30 nm out, 5 nm northwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 46 ft | ||||
| HKS Jackson, MS | 138 nm out, 19 nm east of the line, tower | no report just now | 341 ft | ||||
| GLH Greenville, MS | 218 nm out, 11 nm southwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 130 ft | ||||
| FCY Forrest City, AR | 297 nm out, 12 nm east of the line | no report just now | 249 ft | ||||
| DRP Colt, AR | 307 nm out, 11 nm east of the line | no report just now | 238 ft | ||||
| CVK Ash Flat, AR | 386 nm out, 16 nm west of the line | no report just now | 717 ft | ||||
| JEF Jefferson City, MO | 524 nm out, 24 nm west of the line, tower | no report just now | 549 ft | ||||
| COU Columbia, MO | 534 nm out, 25 nm west of the line, tower | no report just now | 889 ft | ||||
| FFL Fairfield, IA | 672 nm out, 6 nm east of the line | no report just now | 800 ft | ||||
| TZT Belle Plaine, IA | 722 nm out, 2 nm south of the line | no report just now | 771 ft | ||||
| ALO Waterloo, IA | destination | no report just now | 873 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 889 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At ALO when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 1:56 am CDT (06:56 UTC)
ALO has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
- 6/7634 CENTRALIA, MO, Monday, October 12, 2026 UTC 17 nm from the route, 554 nm along the route · a hazard on the ground (fire-fighting, a chemical spill, rescue work) · today · ZKC
Daylight
Sunset at MSY 6:33 pm CDT (23:33 UTC), at ALO 6:32 pm CDT (23:32 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:00 pm CDT (00:00 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at ALO is before sunrise there (7:18 am CDT (12:18 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: Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, Waterloo Regional.