Montrose Regional to Lake Charles Regional MTJ → LCH
883 nautical miles (1,016 statute miles) southeast on a straight line, true course 120°, about 108° magnetic at the departure end (variation 12E). At 120 knots that is 5 h 49 min at the quickest height in today's winds (34,000 ft, a 32-knot tailwind), arriving about 6:55 am CDT (11:55 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
- 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 first 139 nm of the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 18,000 ft to 38,000 ft. Over the first 79 nm of the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 18,000 ft. Over the first 248 nm of the route.
- AIRMET SIERRA 1E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Near the route, at the departure end.
- AIRMET TANGO 2W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 35,000 ft to 45,000 ft. Over the route from 89 to 208 nm out.
- 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 route from 258 to 278 nm out.
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 MTJ.
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 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 8 forecast points nearest it (GJT, ALS, TCC, AMA, SPS, DAL, CLL, LCH). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.
| Height | Average wind | Head- or tailwind | Temperature | Ground speed | Time en route | Arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,500 ft | 200° at 29 kt | +6 kt | 114 kt | 7 h 45 min | 8:51 am CDT (13:51 UTC) | |
| 7,500 ft | 210° at 26 kt | +1 kt | 14 °C | 119 kt | 7 h 25 min | 8:31 am CDT (13:31 UTC) |
| 9,500 ft | 220° at 23 kt | −4 kt | 12 °C | 124 kt | 7 h 07 min | 8:13 am CDT (13:13 UTC) |
| 11,500 ft | 230° at 24 kt | −8 kt | 8 °C | 128 kt | 6 h 54 min | 8:00 am CDT (13:00 UTC) |
| 13,500 ft | 230° at 24 kt | −8 kt | 4 °C | 128 kt | 6 h 54 min | 8:00 am CDT (13:00 UTC) |
| 15,500 ft | 230° at 25 kt | −7 kt | -1 °C | 127 kt | 6 h 57 min | 8:03 am CDT (13:03 UTC) |
| 17,500 ft | 230° at 27 kt | −6 kt | -5 °C | 126 kt | 7 h | 8:06 am CDT (13:06 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 230° at 27 kt | −6 kt | -6 °C | 126 kt | 7 h | 8:06 am CDT (13:06 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 240° at 34 kt | −14 kt | -17 °C | 134 kt | 6 h 35 min | 7:41 am CDT (12:41 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 250° at 49 kt | −30 kt | -28 °C | 150 kt | 5 h 53 min | 6:59 am CDT (11:59 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 260° at 46 kt | −32 kt | -37 °C | 152 kt | 5 h 49 min | 6:55 am CDT (11:55 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 260° at 38 kt | −30 kt | -49 °C | 150 kt | 5 h 53 min | 6:59 am CDT (11:59 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GJT | used from 0 nm out; 71 nm from the line | 210/43 7° | 230/45 1° | 220/49 -12° | 220/62 -22° | 220/59 -28° | 230/60 -33° | 220/55 -45° | ||
| ALS | used from 50 nm out; 41 nm from the line | 230/37 4° | 220/54 -9° | 230/62 -22° | 240/77 -26° | 240/74 -33° | 230/59 -45° | |||
| TCC | used from 198 nm out; 84 nm from the line | 210/42 | 230/33 14° | 230/32 6° | 220/35 -6° | 230/49 -19° | 240/72 -27° | 250/62 -36° | 250/52 -48° | |
| AMA | used from 298 nm out; 35 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° | |
| SPS | used from 446 nm out; 62 nm from the line | 200/39 | 220/28 17° | 230/27 12° | 240/15 9° | 250/15 -4° | 250/24 -15° | 260/45 -28° | 270/43 -39° | 280/45 -51° |
| DAL | used from 595 nm out; 22 nm from the line | 190/29 | 220/23 17° | 220/17 13° | 250/18 8° | 230/18 -5° | 240/18 -15° | 270/34 -29° | 280/33 -39° | 300/36 -51° |
| CLL | used from 694 nm out; 80 nm from the line | 170/22 | 170/26 18° | 200/15 14° | 240/13 8° | 240/15 -5° | 260/17 -13° | 290/27 -29° | 290/22 -40° | 320/30 -51° |
| LCH | used from 794 nm out; 64 nm from the line | 160/21 | 160/18 18° | 180/13 12° | 230/6 8° | 280/10 -4° | 260/13 -14° | 310/29 -30° | 320/32 -40° | 330/33 -53° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MTJ Montrose, CO | departure | no report just now | 5,758 ft | ||||
| GUC Gunnison, CO | 40 nm out, 24 nm northeast of the line | no report just now | 7,679 ft | ||||
| RCV Del Norte, CO | 89 nm out, 4 nm southwest of the line | no report just now | 7,955 ft | ||||
| RTN Raton, NM | 188 nm out, 8 nm south of the line | no report just now | 6,352 ft | ||||
| DHT Dalhart, TX | 298 nm out, 9 nm north of the line | no report just now | 3,991 ft | ||||
| AMA Amarillo, TX | 357 nm out, 9 nm southwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 3,606 ft | ||||
| SPS Wichita Falls, TX | 526 nm out, 22 nm northeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,019 ft | ||||
| FTW Fort Worth, TX | 615 nm out, 2 nm south of the line, tower | no report just now | 710 ft | ||||
| GKY Arlington, TX | 635 nm out, 2 nm west of the line, tower | no report just now | 628 ft | ||||
| PSN Palestine, TX | 724 nm out, 3 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 422 ft | ||||
| JAS Jasper, TX | 823 nm out, 10 nm northeast of the line | no report just now | 212 ft | ||||
| LCH Lake Charles, LA | destination | no report just now | 14 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 7,955 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At LCH when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 6:55 am CDT (11:55 UTC)
LCH has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
- 6/8646 Arlington, TX, Thursday, October 15, 2026 through Friday, October 16, 2026 UTC 5 nm from the route, 625 nm along the route · drones kept away from a public gathering · starts Thursday 15 October · ZFW
- 9/2934 DALLAS, TX 18 nm from the route, 635 nm along the route · a VIP movement · ZFW
Daylight
Sunset at MTJ 6:36 pm MDT (00:36 UTC), at LCH 6:45 pm CDT (23:45 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:09 pm CDT (00:09 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at LCH is before sunrise there (7:12 am CDT (12:12 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: Montrose Regional, Lake Charles Regional.