Raleigh-Durham International to Columbia Metro Airport RDU → CAE
163 nautical miles (188 statute miles) southwest on a straight line, true course 225°, about 234° magnetic at the departure end (variation 9W). At 120 knots that is 1 h 18 min at the quickest height in today's winds (4,500 ft, a 6-knot tailwind), arriving about 6:20 am EDT (10:20 UTC), after sunset at the destination. Right now RDU is VFR, wind from the west-southwest (240°) at 6 knots; CAE is VFR, wind from the west (260°) at 4 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: 84 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 RDU.
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 (RDU, FLO, CAE). 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 | 330° at 20 kt | −6 kt | 126 kt | 1 h 18 min | 6:20 am EDT (10:20 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 330° at 19 kt | −6 kt | 12 °C | 126 kt | 1 h 18 min | 6:20 am EDT (10:20 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 320° at 22 kt | −4 kt | 9 °C | 124 kt | 1 h 19 min | 6:21 am EDT (10:21 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 320° at 26 kt | −2 kt | 6 °C | 122 kt | 1 h 20 min | 6:22 am EDT (10:22 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 310° at 30 kt | 0 | 3 °C | 120 kt | 1 h 22 min | 6:24 am EDT (10:24 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 320° at 32 kt | −1 kt | -1 °C | 121 kt | 1 h 21 min | 6:23 am EDT (10:23 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 320° at 35 kt | −2 kt | -5 °C | 122 kt | 1 h 20 min | 6:22 am EDT (10:22 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 320° at 36 kt | −2 kt | -8 °C | 122 kt | 1 h 20 min | 6:22 am EDT (10:22 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 300° at 34 kt | +6 kt | -19 °C | 114 kt | 1 h 26 min | 6:28 am EDT (10:28 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 300° at 33 kt | +9 kt | -32 °C | 111 kt | 1 h 28 min | 6:30 am EDT (10:30 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 310° at 31 kt | +2 kt | -40 °C | 118 kt | 1 h 23 min | 6:25 am EDT (10:25 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 310° at 36 kt | +2 kt | -48 °C | 118 kt | 1 h 23 min | 6:25 am EDT (10:25 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RDU | used from 0 nm out; 24 nm from the line | 330/30 | 340/24 12° | 330/26 7° | 320/30 3° | 330/39 -8° | 310/30 -20° | 300/33 -33° | 310/34 -39° | 310/41 -47° |
| FLO | used from 48 nm out; 51 nm from the line | 330/17 | 330/17 12° | 320/21 9° | 310/29 4° | 310/36 -8° | 300/36 -19° | 290/34 -32° | 300/29 -40° | 310/34 -48° |
| CAE | used from 144 nm out; 10 nm from the line | 340/17 | 330/15 12° | 320/22 9° | 320/31 5° | 330/35 -7° | 320/33 -19° | 340/40 -32° | 350/43 -39° | 320/35 -49° |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RDU Raleigh/Durham, NC | departure | VFR Sky: a few clouds at 1,500 feet, a few clouds at 10,000 feet | from the west-southwest (240°) at 6 knots | 10+ mi | none | 435 ft | 4:51 am EDT (08:51 UTC) |
| TTA Sanford, NC | 19 nm out, 4 nm south of the line | VFR Sky: scattered clouds at 900 feet | from the west-southwest (240°) at 4 knots | 10+ mi | none | 246 ft | 08:35 UTC |
| SOP Pinehurst/Southern Pines, NC | 48 nm out, 6 nm southeast of the line | VFR | from the west-southwest (250°) at 5 knots | 10+ mi | none | 459 ft | 08:56 UTC |
| PYG Pageland, SC | 106 nm out, 7 nm north of the line | no report just now | 574 ft | ||||
| CDN Camden, SC | 125 nm out, 7 nm south of the line | VFR | from the west-southwest (240°) at 4 knots | 10+ mi | none | 302 ft | 08:55 UTC |
| CAE Columbia, SC | destination | VFR | from the west (260°) at 4 knots | 10+ mi | none | 235 ft | 4:56 am EDT (08:56 UTC) |
The highest airport on this list sits at 574 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At CAE when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 6:20 am EDT (10:20 UTC)
Wind from the west-southwest at 5 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies VFR
The whole forecast for CAE
- From Mon 2:00 am EDT (06:00 UTC): wind from the west-southwest at 5 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
- From Mon 10:00 am EDT (14:00 UTC): wind from the northwest at 9 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
- From Mon 8:00 pm EDT (00:00 UTC): wind light and variable, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
The forecast for RDU, the departure
- From Mon 2:00 am EDT (06:00 UTC): wind from the west-southwest at 10 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 2,500 feet, a broken layer at 4,000 feet and more above
- From Mon 10:00 am EDT (14:00 UTC): wind from the northwest at 11 knots, gusting to 19, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 3,000 feet, a broken layer at 4,500 feet
- At times between Mon 10:00 am EDT (14:00 UTC) and 1:00 pm EDT (17:00 UTC): wind from the northwest at 12 knots, gusting to 22, a broken layer at 3,000 feet
- From Mon 5:30 pm EDT (21:30 UTC): wind from the northwest at 3 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 25,000 feet
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
- 6/8713 Maxton, NC, Friday, October 16, 2026 through Sunday, October 18, 2026 UTC 21 nm from the route, 67 nm along the route · air shows/sports · starts Friday 16 October · ZDC
Daylight
Sunset at RDU 6:43 pm EDT (22:43 UTC), at CAE 6:54 pm EDT (22:54 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:19 pm EDT (23:19 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at CAE is before sunrise there (7:26 am EDT (11:26 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: Raleigh-Durham International, Columbia Metro Airport.