Raleigh-Durham International to George Bush Intcntl/Houston Airport RDU → IAH
905 nautical miles (1,041 statute miles) west on a straight line, true course 252°, about 261° magnetic at the departure end (variation 9W). At 120 knots that is 7 h 56 min at the quickest height in today's winds (6,500 ft, a 6-knot headwind), arriving about 6:02 am CDT (11:02 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: 2,509 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 5W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) up to 10,000 ft. Over the route from 70 to 109 nm out.
- AIRMET SIERRA 4E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 209 to 298 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 RDU.
Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first
- CRJ9 at 32,000 ft, 40 nm south, 10:00 pm EDT (02:00 UTC): moderate chop turbulence, remarks: ZTLFD-22. 338 nm along the route, 40 nm south of the line.
as filed, and in English
ATL UA /OV ATL240035/TM 0200/FL320/TP CRJ9/TB OCNL MOD CHOP /RM ZTLFD-22
- Report
- a routine report filed through ATL
- Where
- 35 nm southwest (240°) of ATL
- Time
- 02:00 UTC
- Height
- at 32,000 ft
- Aircraft
- CRJ9
- Turbulence
- occasional moderate chop
- Remarks
- ZTLFD-22
- E170 at 33,000 ft, 12 nm southeast, 9:53 pm EDT (01:53 UTC): light chop turbulence, remarks: ZTLFD-22. 348 nm along the route, 12 nm southeast of the line.
as filed, and in English
ATL UA /OV ATL280045/TM 0153/FL330/TP E170/TB CONS LGT CHOP /RM ZTLFD-22
- Report
- a routine report filed through ATL
- Where
- 45 nm west (280°) of ATL
- Time
- 01:53 UTC
- Height
- at 33,000 ft
- Aircraft
- E170
- Turbulence
- continuous light chop
- Remarks
- ZTLFD-22
- C510 at 41,000 ft, 5 nm southeast, 10:18 pm EDT (02:18 UTC): no turbulence, clear from 41,000 ft to 60,000 ft. 676 nm along the route, 5 nm southeast of the line.
as filed, and in English
HEZ UA /OV HEZ /TM 0218 /FL410 /TP C510 /SK SKC /TB NEG
- Report
- a routine report filed through HEZ
- Where
- over HEZ
- Time
- 02:18 UTC
- Height
- at 41,000 ft
- Aircraft
- C510
- Sky
- clear
- Turbulence
- none
- E75L at 27,000 ft, 44 nm southeast, 8:20 pm EDT (00:20 UTC): remarks: zhu. 795 nm along the route, 44 nm southeast of the line.
as filed, and in English
LCH UA /OV LCH08510/TM 0020/FL270/TP E75L/TB CONS CHOP/RM ZHU
- Report
- a routine report filed through LCH
- Where
- LCH08510
- Time
- 00:20 UTC
- Height
- at 27,000 ft
- Aircraft
- E75L
- Turbulence
- continuous chop
- Remarks
- zhu
- B39M at 27,000 ft, 2 nm south, 8:42 pm EDT (00:42 UTC): light chop turbulence, remarks: zhu. At the destination end, 2 nm south of the line.
as filed, and in English
IAH UA /OV IH340035/TM 0042/FL270/TP B39M/TB LT CHOP DURC/RM ZHU
- Report
- a routine report filed through IAH
- Where
- IH340035
- Time
- 00:42 UTC
- Height
- at 27,000 ft
- Aircraft
- B39M
- Turbulence
- lt chop during the climb
- Remarks
- zhu
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 7 forecast points nearest it (RDU, GSP, ATL, BHM, JAN, LCH, HOU). 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 | 290° at 10 kt | +8 kt | 112 kt | 8 h 05 min | 6:11 am CDT (11:11 UTC) | |
| 6,500 ft | 310° at 11 kt | +6 kt | 15 °C | 114 kt | 7 h 56 min | 6:02 am CDT (11:02 UTC) |
| 8,500 ft | 310° at 14 kt | +8 kt | 12 °C | 112 kt | 8 h 05 min | 6:11 am CDT (11:11 UTC) |
| 10,500 ft | 310° at 15 kt | +8 kt | 8 °C | 112 kt | 8 h 05 min | 6:11 am CDT (11:11 UTC) |
| 12,500 ft | 310° at 17 kt | +8 kt | 5 °C | 112 kt | 8 h 05 min | 6:11 am CDT (11:11 UTC) |
| 14,500 ft | 300° at 18 kt | +11 kt | 2 °C | 109 kt | 8 h 18 min | 6:24 am CDT (11:24 UTC) |
| 16,500 ft | 300° at 20 kt | +13 kt | -3 °C | 107 kt | 8 h 27 min | 6:33 am CDT (11:33 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 290° at 22 kt | +15 kt | -5 °C | 105 kt | 8 h 37 min | 6:43 am CDT (11:43 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 290° at 25 kt | +19 kt | -16 °C | 101 kt | 8 h 58 min | 7:04 am CDT (12:04 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 300° at 33 kt | +18 kt | -31 °C | 102 kt | 8 h 52 min | 6:58 am CDT (11:58 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 310° at 35 kt | +17 kt | -40 °C | 103 kt | 8 h 47 min | 6:53 am CDT (11:53 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 320° at 34 kt | +11 kt | -51 °C | 109 kt | 8 h 18 min | 6:24 am CDT (11:24 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RDU | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 280/33 | 300/23 11° | 300/28 8° | 290/28 4° | 260/41 -6° | 240/52 -18° | 230/66 -31° | 230/76 -39° | 240/52 -49° |
| GSP | used from 99 nm out; 54 nm from the line | 320/22 | 340/19 13° | 320/18 8° | 310/24 5° | 300/34 -7° | 300/36 -18° | 290/30 -33° | 300/32 -39° | 320/42 -49° |
| ATL | used from 249 nm out; 46 nm from the line | 320/30 | 330/37 16° | 340/44 11° | 330/35 7° | 310/33 -6° | 300/38 -18° | 330/58 -33° | 330/48 -40° | 320/34 -49° |
| BHM | used from 348 nm out; 45 nm from the line | 310/19 | 330/20 17° | 320/28 11° | 340/21 6° | 310/22 -7° | 330/33 -17° | 330/50 -32° | 330/57 -41° | 330/41 -50° |
| JAN | used from 497 nm out; 79 nm from the line | 230/10 | 270/13 18° | 270/11 12° | 310/11 6° | 300/15 -4° | 300/22 -16° | 310/33 -31° | 320/37 -41° | 330/41 -52° |
| LCH | used from 696 nm out; 92 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° |
| HOU | used from 845 nm out; 46 nm from the line | 160/22 | 150/27 19° | 180/16 14° | 250/7 9° | 270/10 -5° | 270/16 -13° | 310/23 -29° | 310/26 -40° | 330/20 -52° |
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 | no report just now | 435 ft | ||||
| VUJ Albemarle, NC | 70 nm out, 5 nm south of the line, tower | no report just now | 609 ft | ||||
| GSP Greer, SC | 179 nm out, 1 nm east of the line, tower | no report just now | 963 ft | ||||
| GMU Greenville, SC | 189 nm out, 4 nm east of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,048 ft | ||||
| RYY Atlanta, GA | 308 nm out, 8 nm southeast of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,040 ft | ||||
| BHM Birmingham, AL | 418 nm out, 8 nm north of the line, tower | no report just now | 650 ft | ||||
| TCL Tuscaloosa, AL | 467 nm out, 7 nm north of the line, tower | no report just now | 169 ft | ||||
| JAN Jackson, MS | 596 nm out, 8 nm northwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 346 ft | ||||
| HEZ Natchez, MS | 676 nm out, 5 nm southeast of the line | no report just now | 272 ft | ||||
| AEX Alexandria, LA | 736 nm out, 8 nm northwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 88 ft | ||||
| JAS Jasper, TX | 815 nm out, 18 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 212 ft | ||||
| IAH Houston, TX | destination | no report just now | 95 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 1,048 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At IAH when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 6:02 am CDT (11:02 UTC)
IAH has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
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 RDU 6:43 pm EDT (22:43 UTC), at IAH 6:54 pm CDT (23:54 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:18 pm CDT (00:18 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at IAH is before sunrise there (7:21 am CDT (12:21 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, George Bush Intcntl/Houston Airport.