The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Plan a flight · Mon 4:01 am EDT (08:01 UTC)

Tri-Cities Airport to Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport TRI → CHO

214 nautical miles (246 statute miles) northeast on a straight line, true course 061°, about 068° magnetic at the departure end (variation 7W). At 120 knots that is 1 h 26 min at the quickest height in today's winds (34,000 ft, a 30-knot tailwind), arriving about 5:27 am EDT (09:27 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: 1 flights in the DOT's last twelve reported months, the route's page.

The return flight

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, fog). Over the whole route.
  • AIRMET TANGO 5W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) from 29,000 ft to 40,000 ft. Over the first 39 nm of the route.
  • AIRMET SIERRA 4E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Over the first 194 nm of the route.
  • AIRMET TANGO 5W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) up to 10,000 ft. Over the last 165 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 TRI.

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 02:00–09:00 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 3 forecast points nearest it (TRI, ROA, RIC). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.

HeightAverage windHead- or tailwindTemperatureGround speedTime en routeArrival
3,500 ft310° at 28 kt−10 kt130 kt1 h 39 min5:40 am EDT (09:40 UTC)
5,500 ft320° at 27 kt−3 kt11 °C123 kt1 h 44 min5:45 am EDT (09:45 UTC)
7,500 ft330° at 27 kt−1 kt10 °C121 kt1 h 46 min5:47 am EDT (09:47 UTC)
9,500 ft330° at 26 kt06 °C120 kt1 h 47 min5:48 am EDT (09:48 UTC)
11,500 ft330° at 25 kt−2 kt4 °C122 kt1 h 45 min5:46 am EDT (09:46 UTC)
13,500 ft320° at 26 kt−5 kt0 °C125 kt1 h 43 min5:44 am EDT (09:44 UTC)
15,500 ft310° at 27 kt−8 kt-3 °C128 kt1 h 40 min5:41 am EDT (09:41 UTC)
17,500 ft310° at 30 kt−11 kt-7 °C131 kt1 h 38 min5:39 am EDT (09:39 UTC)
18,000 ft FL180310° at 30 kt−12 kt-8 °C132 kt1 h 37 min5:38 am EDT (09:38 UTC)
24,000 ft FL240300° at 30 kt−18 kt-21 °C138 kt1 h 33 min5:34 am EDT (09:34 UTC)
30,000 ft FL300290° at 31 kt−22 kt-32 °C142 kt1 h 30 min5:31 am EDT (09:31 UTC)
34,000 ft FL340270° at 36 kt−30 kt-38 °C150 kt1 h 26 min5:27 am EDT (09:27 UTC)
39,000 ft FL390280° at 33 kt−27 kt-47 °C147 kt1 h 27 min5:28 am EDT (09:28 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
PointFrom3,0006,0009,00012,00018,00024,00030,00034,00039,000
TRIused from 0 nm out; 24 nm from the line330/22 11°330/29 7°330/32 3°330/36 -8°320/34 -19°320/36 -34°320/43 -39°320/46 -47°
ROAused from 49 nm out; 55 nm from the line310/29330/31 13°340/28 7°330/25 3°310/32 -8°300/32 -22°290/32 -31°270/35 -38°270/32 -47°
RICused from 194 nm out; 71 nm from the line270/23280/19 11°270/18 8°240/22 4°230/39 -7°220/55 -18°220/75 -30°230/83 -39°230/64 -50°

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

AirportWhereConditionsWindVisibilityCeilingElevationReported
TRI Bristol/Johnson/Kingsport, TN departure no report just now 1,518 ft
VJI Abingdon, VA 19 nm out, 3 nm north of the line no report just now 2,087 ft
MKJ Marion/Wytheville, VA 58 nm out, 3 nm south of the line no report just now 2,558 ft
ROA Roanoke, VA 126 nm out, 11 nm southeast of the line, tower no report just now 1,175 ft
HSP Hot Springs, VA 146 nm out, 20 nm north of the line no report just now 3,792 ft
SHD Staunton/Waynesboro/Harrisonburg, VA 194 nm out, 17 nm north of the line no report just now 1,201 ft
CHO Charlottesville, VA destination no report just now 640 ft

The highest airport on this list sits at 3,792 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.

At CHO when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 5:27 am EDT (09:27 UTC)

CHO 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 TRI 6:57 pm EDT (22:57 UTC), at CHO 6:40 pm EDT (22:40 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:07 pm EDT (23:07 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at CHO is before sunrise there (7:19 am EDT (11:19 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

Radar now, the lower Mississippi valley
Radar now, the lower Mississippi valley · loop National Weather Service
Radar now, the Southeast
Radar now, the Southeast · loop National Weather Service
Radar, the whole country
Radar, the whole country · loop National Weather Service
Surface analysis now
Surface analysis now Weather Prediction Center
Forecast chart, 12 hours ahead
Forecast chart, 12 hours ahead Weather Prediction Center
Forecast chart, 24 hours ahead
Forecast chart, 24 hours ahead Weather Prediction Center

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: Tri-Cities Airport, Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport.