Tucson International to Kansas City Downtown/Wheeler Field TUS → MKC
900 nautical miles (1,036 statute miles) northeast on a straight line, true course 058°, about 049° magnetic at the departure end (variation 9E). At 120 knots that is 4 h 46 min at the quickest height in today's winds (30,000 ft, a 69-knot tailwind), arriving about 6:34 am CDT (11:34 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 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 1E: mountains obscured by cloud (due to mountains obscured by clouds, precipitation, mist). Near the route, 99 nm along the route.
- AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft up to 18,000 ft. Over the route from 148 to 415 nm out.
- AIRMET TANGO 2W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft from 35,000 ft to 45,000 ft. Over the route from 356 to 376 nm out.
- AIRMET TANGO 3W: 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 435 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 TUS.
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 8 forecast points nearest it (TUS, ABQ, TCC, AMA, GAG, ICT, SLN, MKC). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.
| Height | Average wind | Head- or tailwind | Temperature | Ground speed | Time en route | Arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,500 ft | 220° at 33 kt | −31 kt | 15 °C | 151 kt | 5 h 58 min | 7:46 am CDT (12:46 UTC) |
| 7,500 ft | 220° at 29 kt | −28 kt | 14 °C | 148 kt | 6 h 05 min | 7:53 am CDT (12:53 UTC) |
| 9,500 ft | 220° at 28 kt | −27 kt | 11 °C | 147 kt | 6 h 07 min | 7:55 am CDT (12:55 UTC) |
| 11,500 ft | 220° at 28 kt | −27 kt | 7 °C | 147 kt | 6 h 07 min | 7:55 am CDT (12:55 UTC) |
| 13,500 ft | 220° at 29 kt | −28 kt | 3 °C | 148 kt | 6 h 05 min | 7:53 am CDT (12:53 UTC) |
| 15,500 ft | 220° at 31 kt | −30 kt | -1 °C | 150 kt | 6 h | 7:48 am CDT (12:48 UTC) |
| 17,500 ft | 230° at 33 kt | −32 kt | -6 °C | 152 kt | 5 h 55 min | 7:43 am CDT (12:43 UTC) |
| 18,000 ft FL180 | 230° at 34 kt | −33 kt | -7 °C | 153 kt | 5 h 53 min | 7:41 am CDT (12:41 UTC) |
| 24,000 ft FL240 | 230° at 46 kt | −45 kt | -19 °C | 165 kt | 5 h 27 min | 7:15 am CDT (12:15 UTC) |
| 30,000 ft FL300 | 240° at 69 kt | −69 kt | -27 °C | 189 kt | 4 h 46 min | 6:34 am CDT (11:34 UTC) |
| 34,000 ft FL340 | 250° at 66 kt | −67 kt | -37 °C | 187 kt | 4 h 49 min | 6:37 am CDT (11:37 UTC) |
| 39,000 ft FL390 | 250° at 56 kt | −56 kt | -48 °C | 176 kt | 5 h 07 min | 6:55 am CDT (11:55 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TUS | used from 0 nm out; 25 nm from the line | 210/13 13° | 200/35 9° | 210/40 5° | 220/50 -7° | 220/59 -18° | 230/79 -26° | 230/84 -35° | 230/84 -48° | |
| ABQ | used from 148 nm out; 110 nm from the line | 220/27 11° | 210/35 5° | 220/46 -9° | 230/62 -20° | 240/78 -25° | 240/80 -35° | 240/56 -47° | ||
| TCC | used from 346 nm out; 47 nm from the line | 210/42 | 230/33 14° | 230/32 6° | 220/35 -6° | 230/49 -19° | 240/72 -27° | 250/62 -36° | 250/52 -48° | |
| AMA | used from 495 nm out; 73 nm from the line | 210/38 | 230/29 14° | 240/29 7° | 220/27 -5° | 240/37 -18° | 240/66 -28° | 250/59 -37° | 260/47 -49° | |
| GAG | used from 544 nm out; 64 nm from the line | 220/40 19° | 230/28 14° | 240/23 8° | 230/21 -6° | 240/31 -19° | 250/66 -29° | 260/58 -38° | 260/47 -49° | |
| ICT | used from 643 nm out; 79 nm from the line | 200/48 | 230/39 19° | 240/24 14° | 240/20 8° | 240/22 -6° | 250/31 -18° | 250/61 -29° | 260/58 -38° | 270/54 -49° |
| SLN | used from 791 nm out; 67 nm from the line | 210/53 | 230/41 20° | 240/26 14° | 230/16 8° | 240/25 -7° | 240/35 -19° | 250/61 -30° | 260/65 -38° | 260/56 -49° |
| MKC | used from 841 nm out; 35 nm from the line | 220/44 | 250/28 18° | 250/18 13° | 240/12 6° | 280/24 -6° | 240/34 -18° | 260/47 -30° | 260/51 -40° | 270/58 -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
| Airport | Where | Conditions | Wind | Visibility | Ceiling | Elevation | Reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TUS Tucson, AZ | departure | no report just now | 2,643 ft | ||||
| SAD Safford, AZ | 79 nm out, 2 nm north of the line | no report just now | 3,178 ft | ||||
| CFT Clifton/Morenci, AZ | 99 nm out, 4 nm southeast of the line | no report just now | 3,797 ft | ||||
| ONM Socorro, NM | 237 nm out, 9 nm south of the line | no report just now | 4,875 ft | ||||
| SXU Santa Rosa, NM | 356 nm out, 15 nm southeast of the line | no report just now | 4,791 ft | ||||
| DHT Dalhart, TX | 475 nm out, 8 nm southeast of the line | no report just now | 3,991 ft | ||||
| GUY Guymon, OK | 544 nm out, 6 nm northwest of the line | no report just now | 3,125 ft | ||||
| PTT Pratt, KS | 682 nm out, 5 nm northeast of the line | no report just now | 1,952 ft | ||||
| HUT Hutchinson, KS | 732 nm out, 5 nm north of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,542 ft | ||||
| FOE Topeka, KS | 851 nm out, 10 nm northwest of the line, tower | no report just now | 1,077 ft | ||||
| MKC Kansas City, MO | destination | no report just now | 756 ft |
The highest airport on this list sits at 4,875 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.
At MKC when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 6:34 am CDT (11:34 UTC)
MKC has no terminal forecast; use the nearest airport that does.
Temporary flight restrictions on the line or within 25 nm of it
- 6/8722 ALAMOGORDO, NM, Tuesday, October 13, 2026 Local 20 nm from the route, 277 nm along the route · security · starts tomorrow · ZAB
Daylight
Sunset at TUS 5:55 pm MST (00:55 UTC), at MKC 6:44 pm CDT (23:44 UTC) (civil twilight ends 7:11 pm CDT (00:11 UTC)). At 120 knots the arrival at MKC is before sunrise there (7:24 am CDT (12:24 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: Tucson International, Kansas City Downtown/Wheeler Field.