Louisville Muhammad Ali International to Columbia Metro Airport SDF → CAE
339 nautical miles (390 statute miles) southeast on a straight line, true course 137°, about 142° magnetic at the departure end (variation 5W). At 120 knots that is 2 h 17 min at the quickest height in today's winds (11,500 ft, a 28-knot tailwind), arriving about 12:02 am EDT (04:02 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: 607 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 SIERRA 3E: low cloud or poor visibility (IFR conditions) (due to ceilings below 1,000 ft, visibility below 3 miles, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 50 to 159 nm out.
- AIRMET SIERRA 4E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Over the route from 90 to 229 nm out.
- AIRMET TANGO 5W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) up to 8,000 ft. Over the route from 189 to 279 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 SDF.
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 20:00–03:00 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 4 forecast points nearest it (LOU, TYS, GSP, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,500 ft | 300° at 19 kt | −18 kt | 138 kt | 2 h 27 min | 12:12 am EDT (04:12 UTC) | |
| 5,500 ft | 320° at 22 kt | −21 kt | 141 kt | 2 h 24 min | 12:09 am EDT (04:09 UTC) | |
| 7,500 ft | 320° at 23 kt | −23 kt | 10 °C | 143 kt | 2 h 22 min | 12:07 am EDT (04:07 UTC) |
| 9,500 ft | 320° at 25 kt | −25 kt | 7 °C | 145 kt | 2 h 20 min | 12:05 am EDT (04:05 UTC) |
| 11,500 ft | 320° at 28 kt | −28 kt | 5 °C | 148 kt | 2 h 17 min | 12:02 am EDT (04:02 UTC) |
| 13,500 ft | 310° at 29 kt | −29 kt | 1 °C | 149 kt | 2 h 17 min | 12:02 am EDT (04:02 UTC) |
| 15,500 ft | 310° at 30 kt | −29 kt | -2 °C | 149 kt | 2 h 17 min | 12:02 am EDT (04:02 UTC) |
| 17,500 ft | 300° at 31 kt | −29 kt | -6 °C | 149 kt | 2 h 17 min | 12:02 am EDT (04:02 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 300° at 31 kt | −29 kt | -7 °C | 149 kt | 2 h 17 min | 12:02 am EDT (04:02 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 290° at 32 kt | −26 kt | -18 °C | 146 kt | 2 h 19 min | 12:04 am EDT (04:04 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 270° at 35 kt | −21 kt | -33 °C | 141 kt | 2 h 24 min | 12:09 am EDT (04:09 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 260° at 37 kt | −19 kt | -39 °C | 139 kt | 2 h 26 min | 12:11 am EDT (04:11 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 260° at 36 kt | −16 kt | -49 °C | 136 kt | 2 h 30 min | 12:15 am EDT (04:15 UTC) |
Based on data from the 11th at 18:00 UTC; valid on the 12th at 00:00 UTC for use 20:00 to 03:00 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LOU | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 320/15 | 340/24 14° | 330/28 9° | 340/34 4° | 340/37 -9° | 340/42 -20° | 320/39 -35° | 320/45 -39° | 330/40 -47° |
| TYS | used from 100 nm out; 50 nm from the line | 290/19 | 310/22 11° | 330/25 7° | 330/34 3° | 320/37 -7° | 300/37 -18° | 300/37 -34° | 280/29 -39° | 270/29 -48° |
| GSP | used from 199 nm out; 36 nm from the line | 300/22 | 310/22 11° | 300/22 7° | 290/28 5° | 270/36 -5° | 250/42 -18° | 230/54 -31° | 230/59 -40° | 230/65 -50° |
| CAE | used from 299 nm out; 20 nm from the line | 260/27 | 310/26 11° | 280/31 9° | 270/36 7° | 250/39 -4° | 230/57 -16° | 220/74 -30° | 220/83 -40° | 220/73 -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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SDF Louisville, KY | departure | no report just now | 500 ft | ||||
| BRY Bardstown, KY | 20 nm out, 7 nm south of the line | no report just now | 669 ft | ||||
| DVK Danville, KY | 60 nm out, 10 nm northeast of the line | no report just now | 1,021 ft | ||||
| BYL Williamsburg, KY | 110 nm out, 2 nm south of the line | no report just now | 1,177 ft | ||||
| MOR Morristown, TN | 169 nm out, 6 nm north of the line | no report just now | 1,312 ft | ||||
| GCY Greeneville, TN | 179 nm out, 25 nm northeast of the line | no report just now | 1,607 ft | ||||
| AVL Asheville, NC | 229 nm out, 7 nm north of the line, tower | no report just now | 2,163 ft | ||||
| GSP Greer, SC | 259 nm out, 4 nm southwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 963 ft | ||||
| EOE Newberry, SC | 309 nm out, 7 nm west of the line | no report just now | 570 ft | ||||
| CAE Columbia, SC | destination | no report just now | 235 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 2,163 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, 12:02 am EDT (04:02 UTC)
CAE 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 SDF 7:09 pm EDT (23:09 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: Louisville Muhammad Ali International, Columbia Metro Airport.