North Little Rock Municipal to Des Moines International ORK → DSM
408 nautical miles (469 statute miles) north on a straight line, true course 351°, about 349° magnetic at the departure end (variation 2E). At 120 knots that is 3 h 03 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 14-knot tailwind), arriving about 1:33 am CDT (06:33 UTC), after sunset at the destination. Right now ORK is VFR, wind from the southwest (220°) at 4 knots; DSM is VFR, wind from the south (190°) at 8 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 last 60 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 ORK.
Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first
- C750 at 43,000 ft, 9 nm northeast, 7:50 pm CDT (00:50 UTC): light to moderate chop turbulence above 43,000 ft, remarks: zme. At the departure end, 9 nm northeast of the line.
as filed, and in English
LIT UA /OV LIT360025/TM 0050/FL430/TP C750/TB CONS LGT-MOD CHOP 430/RM ZME
- Report
- a routine report filed through LIT
- Where
- 25 nm north (360°) of LIT
- Time
- 00:50 UTC
- Height
- at 43,000 ft
- Aircraft
- C750
- Turbulence
- continuous light to moderate chop at 43,000 ft
- Remarks
- zme
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 (LIT, SGF, COU, MKC, DSM). 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 | 230° at 29 kt | −14 kt | 134 kt | 3 h 03 min | 1:33 am CDT (06:33 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 240° at 25 kt | −10 kt | 15 °C | 130 kt | 3 h 08 min | 1:38 am CDT (06:38 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 250° at 20 kt | −4 kt | 13 °C | 124 kt | 3 h 17 min | 1:47 am CDT (06:47 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 250° at 17 kt | −3 kt | 9 °C | 123 kt | 3 h 19 min | 1:49 am CDT (06:49 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 250° at 15 kt | −2 kt | 5 °C | 122 kt | 3 h 21 min | 1:51 am CDT (06:51 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 260° at 17 kt | −1 kt | 1 °C | 121 kt | 3 h 22 min | 1:52 am CDT (06:52 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 260° at 19 kt | −1 kt | -3 °C | 121 kt | 3 h 22 min | 1:52 am CDT (06:52 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 260° at 21 kt | 0 | -6 °C | 120 kt | 3 h 24 min | 1:54 am CDT (06:54 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 260° at 27 kt | +1 kt | -17 °C | 119 kt | 3 h 26 min | 1:56 am CDT (06:56 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 270° at 39 kt | +9 kt | -31 °C | 111 kt | 3 h 41 min | 2:11 am CDT (07:11 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 280° at 47 kt | +14 kt | -40 °C | 106 kt | 3 h 51 min | 2:21 am CDT (07:21 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 290° at 50 kt | +21 kt | -51 °C | 99 kt | 4 h 07 min | 2:37 am CDT (07:37 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LIT | used from 0 nm out; 31 nm from the line | 220/21 | 230/17 16° | 250/24 12° | 260/15 7° | 260/13 -5° | 280/25 -16° | 290/35 -30° | 300/42 -40° | 300/40 -52° |
| SGF | used from 99 nm out; 41 nm from the line | 230/33 | 230/28 15° | 250/20 13° | 240/18 7° | 250/20 -6° | 250/24 -17° | 280/42 -31° | 280/49 -40° | 290/46 -51° |
| COU | used from 199 nm out; 41 nm from the line | 230/31 | 230/30 15° | 260/16 11° | 270/14 6° | 260/24 -6° | 270/27 -18° | 270/37 -32° | 280/49 -41° | 290/56 -51° |
| MKC | used from 298 nm out; 84 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° |
| DSM | used from 348 nm out; 35 nm from the line | 230/40 | 250/33 17° | 250/18 12° | 240/17 5° | 260/28 -8° | 270/34 -19° | 260/41 -33° | 260/55 -41° | 270/62 -51° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORK North Little Rock, AR | departure | VFR Sky: scattered clouds at 5,000 feet | from the southwest (220°) at 4 knots | 10+ mi | none | 545 ft | 10:15 pm CDT (03:15 UTC) |
| HBZ Heber Springs, AR | 40 nm out, 18 nm east of the line | no report just now | 632 ft | ||||
| CCA Clinton, AR | 50 nm out, 4 nm southwest of the line | VFR | calm | 10+ mi | none | 513 ft | 03:15 UTC |
| FLP Flippin, AR | 90 nm out, 2 nm west of the line | VFR | calm | 10+ mi | none | 719 ft | 02:56 UTC |
| AOV Ava, MO | 129 nm out, 1 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 1,311 ft | ||||
| LBO Lebanon, MO | 169 nm out, 8 nm east of the line | VFR | from the south-southwest (200°) at 5 knots | 10+ mi | none | 1,320 ft | 03:15 UTC |
| DMO Sedalia, MO | 239 nm out, 7 nm southwest of the line | VFR | from the south-southwest (200°) at 4 knots | 10+ mi | none | 909 ft | 02:53 UTC |
| MHL Marshall, MO | 259 nm out, 4 nm west of the line | VFR | from the south (190°) at 3 knots | 10+ mi | none | 778 ft | 03:15 UTC |
| CHT Chillicothe, MO | 298 nm out, 11 nm west of the line | VFR | from the south (170°) at 5 knots | 10+ mi | none | 783 ft | 03:15 UTC |
| LWD Lamoni, IA | 358 nm out, 20 nm west of the line | VFR | from the south (180°) at 8 knots | 10+ mi | none | 1,130 ft | 02:53 UTC |
| CNC Chariton, IA | 378 nm out, 9 nm east of the line | VFR | from the south (180°) at 9 knots | 10+ mi | none | 1,050 ft | 03:15 UTC |
| DSM Des Moines, IA | destination | VFR Sky: a broken layer at 23,000 feet | from the south (190°) at 8 knots | 10+ mi | 23,000 ft | 957 ft | 9:54 pm CDT (02:54 UTC) |
The highest airport on this list sits at 1,320 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At DSM when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 1:33 am CDT (06:33 UTC)
Wind from the south at 9 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, low-level wind shear, scattered clouds at 25,000 feet VFR
The whole forecast for DSM
- From Sun 7:00 pm CDT (00:00 UTC): wind from the south at 12 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a broken layer at 25,000 feet
- From Sun 10:00 pm CDT (03:00 UTC): wind from the south at 9 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, low-level wind shear, scattered clouds at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 9:00 am CDT (14:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 12 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 25,000 feet
- From Mon 12:00 pm CDT (17:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 12 knots, gusting to 19, 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 ORK 6:38 pm CDT (23:38 UTC), at DSM 6:38 pm CDT (23:38 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:06 pm CDT (00:06 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at DSM is before sunrise there (7:23 am CDT (12:23 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: North Little Rock Municipal, Des Moines International.