Pierre Regional to Scottsbluff/Western Nebraska Rgnl/Wm B Heilig Field PIR → BFF
209 nautical miles (241 statute miles) southwest on a straight line, true course 225°, about 217° magnetic at the departure end (variation 8E). At 120 knots that is 2 h 02 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 17-knot headwind), arriving about 7:37 am MDT (13:37 UTC). Right now PIR is low IFR, wind from the east-northeast (060°) at 10 knots; BFF is low IFR, wind from the east-northeast (070°) at 7 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: 3 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
- SIGMET C17C: thunderstorms (a convective SIGMET) up to 36,000 ft, moving from the southwest at 40 knots, until 7:55 am CDT (12:55 UTC). Near the route, at the departure end.
as issued
WSUS32 KKCI 121055 MKCC WST 121055 CONVECTIVE SIGMET 17C VALID UNTIL 1255Z SD ND FROM 20NW BIS-60E BIS-20WNW PIR-20SW DPR-20NW BIS AREA TS MOV FROM 22040KT. TOPS TO FL360.
- 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 first 179 nm of the route.
- 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 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 PIR.
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 08:00–15:00 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 3 forecast points nearest it (PIR, RAP, BFF). 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 | 250° at 20 kt | +17 kt | 15 °C | 103 kt | 2 h 02 min | 7:37 am MDT (13:37 UTC) |
| 6,500 ft | 250° at 21 kt | +19 kt | 15 °C | 101 kt | 2 h 04 min | 7:39 am MDT (13:39 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 250° at 26 kt | +24 kt | 13 °C | 96 kt | 2 h 11 min | 7:46 am MDT (13:46 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 240° at 27 kt | +26 kt | 9 °C | 94 kt | 2 h 13 min | 7:48 am MDT (13:48 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 230° at 27 kt | +27 kt | 4 °C | 93 kt | 2 h 15 min | 7:50 am MDT (13:50 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 220° at 29 kt | +29 kt | -2 °C | 91 kt | 2 h 18 min | 7:53 am MDT (13:53 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 210° at 32 kt | +31 kt | -6 °C | 89 kt | 2 h 21 min | 7:56 am MDT (13:56 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 210° at 34 kt | +32 kt | -10 °C | 88 kt | 2 h 22 min | 7:57 am MDT (13:57 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 210° at 48 kt | +46 kt | -22 °C | 74 kt | 2 h 49 min | 8:24 am MDT (14:24 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 230° at 50 kt | +49 kt | -32 °C | 71 kt | 2 h 57 min | 8:32 am MDT (14:32 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 230° at 49 kt | +48 kt | -36 °C | 72 kt | 2 h 54 min | 8:29 am MDT (14:29 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 240° at 54 kt | +51 kt | -46 °C | 69 kt | 3 h 02 min | 8:37 am MDT (14:37 UTC) |
Based on data from the 12th at 06:00 UTC; valid on the 12th at 12:00 UTC for use 08:00 to 15:00 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIR | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 230/15 15° | 220/22 14° | 220/24 6° | 200/32 -10° | 210/48 -22° | 240/45 -33° | 240/43 -37° | 250/55 -46° | |
| RAP | used from 100 nm out; 77 nm from the line | 250/28 16° | 260/31 10° | 240/25 4° | 210/35 -10° | 200/45 -23° | 230/47 -31° | 230/47 -36° | 230/51 -46° | |
| BFF | used from 149 nm out; 35 nm from the line | 280/28 | 260/39 11° | 240/34 5° | 210/38 -11° | 210/52 -22° | 230/61 -31° | 230/61 -36° | 240/56 -45° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIR Pierre, SD | departure | low IFR Sky: overcast at 400 feet Weather: mist | from the east-northeast (060°) at 10 knots | 2 mi | 400 ft | 1,744 ft | 6:29 am CDT (11:29 UTC) |
| GRN Gordon, NE | 129 nm out, 9 nm east of the line | low IFR Sky: overcast at 300 feet Weather: mist | from the east-northeast (070°) at 3 knots | 5 mi | 300 ft | 3,562 ft | 11:15 UTC |
| AIA Alliance, NE | 179 nm out, 19 nm southeast of the line | low IFR Sky: overcast at 200 feet Weather: mist | from the northeast (050°) at 3 knots | 1 mi | 200 ft | 3,930 ft | 11:27 UTC |
| BFF Scottsbluff, NE | destination | low IFR Sky: overcast at 400 feet | from the east-northeast (070°) at 7 knots | 7 mi | 400 ft | 3,967 ft | 4:53 am MDT (10:53 UTC) |
The highest airport on this list sits at 3,967 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At BFF when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 7:37 am MDT (13:37 UTC)
Wind light and variable, visibility 5 miles, mist, overcast at 300 feet low IFR
The whole forecast for BFF
- From Mon 6:00 am MDT (12:00 UTC): wind light and variable, visibility 5 miles, mist, overcast at 300 feet
- From Mon 9:00 am MDT (15:00 UTC): wind from the west-northwest at 10 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
- From Mon 3:00 pm MDT (21:00 UTC): wind from the north-northeast at 14 knots, gusting to 23, visibility more than 6 miles, showers nearby, a broken layer at 10,000 feet
- From Mon 6:00 pm MDT (00:00 UTC): wind from the northeast at 10 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, showers nearby, a broken layer at 11,000 feet
- From Tue 2:00 am MDT (08:00 UTC): wind from the northeast at 8 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, overcast at 800 feet
The forecast for PIR, the departure
- From Mon 7:00 am CDT (12:00 UTC): wind from the north-northeast at 6 knots, visibility 4 miles, mist, overcast at 400 feet
- From Mon 1:00 pm CDT (18:00 UTC): wind from the northwest at 9 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, overcast at 900 feet
- From Mon 3:00 pm CDT (20:00 UTC): wind from the northwest at 14 knots, gusting to 22, visibility more than 6 miles, overcast at 1,800 feet
- From Mon 9:00 pm CDT (02:00 UTC): wind from the north-northwest at 11 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, overcast at 1,800 feet
- From Tue 5:00 am CDT (10:00 UTC): wind from the north at 10 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 1,500 feet, a broken layer at 5,000 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 PIR 7:00 pm CDT (00:00 UTC), at BFF 6:16 pm MDT (00:16 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:44 pm MDT (00:44 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: Pierre Regional, Scottsbluff/Western Nebraska Rgnl/Wm B Heilig Field.