The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Plan a flight · Mon 4:06 am CDT (09:06 UTC)

Northwest Arkansas Ntl Airport to Phoenix Sky Harbor International XNA → PHX

887 nautical miles (1,021 statute miles) west on a straight line, true course 264°, about 263° magnetic at the departure end (variation 1E). At 120 knots that is 8 h 47 min at the quickest height in today's winds (8,500 ft, a 19-knot headwind), arriving about 10:53 am MST (17:53 UTC). Right now XNA is VFR, wind from the south (190°) at 7 knots; PHX is VFR, wind from the south-southeast (150°) at 7 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: 1,646 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 TANGO 2W: 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 first 419 nm of the route.
  • AIRMET TANGO 4W: moderate turbulence above 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) from 34,000 ft to 43,000 ft. Over the route from 499 to 808 nm out.
  • AIRMET TANGO 1W: moderate turbulence below 18,000 ft (due to mountain wave) up to 12,000 ft. Over the route from 688 to 858 nm out.
  • AIRMET TANGO 1W: 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 route from 698 to 798 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 XNA.

Pilot reports along the route within 50 nm of the line, last three hours, the serious ones first

No pilot reports within 50 nautical miles of the line in the last three hours.

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 7 forecast points nearest it (TUL, OKC, GAG, AMA, TCC, ABQ, PHX). A plus sign is a headwind, a minus sign a tailwind.

HeightAverage windHead- or tailwindTemperatureGround speedTime en routeArrival
4,500 ft230° at 27 kt+24 kt22 °C96 kt9 h 14 min11:20 am MST (18:20 UTC)
6,500 ft230° at 25 kt+22 kt16 °C98 kt9 h 03 min11:09 am MST (18:09 UTC)
8,500 ft220° at 22 kt+19 kt11 °C101 kt8 h 47 min10:53 am MST (17:53 UTC)
10,500 ft220° at 24 kt+19 kt8 °C101 kt8 h 47 min10:53 am MST (17:53 UTC)
12,500 ft220° at 26 kt+22 kt4 °C98 kt9 h 03 min11:09 am MST (18:09 UTC)
14,500 ft230° at 31 kt+27 kt0 °C93 kt9 h 32 min11:38 am MST (18:38 UTC)
16,500 ft230° at 36 kt+32 kt-4 °C88 kt10 h 05 min12:11 pm MST (19:11 UTC)
18,000 ft FL180230° at 40 kt+35 kt-7 °C85 kt10 h 26 min12:32 pm MST (19:32 UTC)
24,000 ft FL240240° at 51 kt+48 kt-18 °C72 kt12 h 19 min2:25 pm MST (21:25 UTC)
30,000 ft FL300240° at 72 kt+69 kt-28 °C51 kt17 h 24 min7:30 pm MST (02:30 UTC)
34,000 ft FL340240° at 67 kt+66 kt-37 °C54 kt16 h 26 min6:32 pm MST (01:32 UTC)
39,000 ft FL390250° at 62 kt+62 kt-49 °C58 kt15 h 18 min5:24 pm MST (00:24 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
PointFrom3,0006,0009,00012,00018,00024,00030,00034,00039,000
TULused from 0 nm out; 52 nm from the line230/42250/23 17°220/16 14°240/10 8°240/20 -6°260/28 -17°270/61 -29°280/52 -38°290/46 -50°
OKCused from 150 nm out; 35 nm from the line220/43230/31 17°260/13 16°270/11 7°240/20 -6°250/32 -17°260/60 -28°280/50 -37°290/45 -50°
GAGused from 199 nm out; 52 nm from the line240/35 22°240/27 14°230/25 6°240/38 -7°230/44 -19°250/73 -28°270/66 -37°270/58 -49°
AMAused from 299 nm out; 43 nm from the line230/32230/28 14°230/27 7°230/38 -6°230/50 -17°250/69 -28°260/62 -37°270/65 -49°
TCCused from 399 nm out; 34 nm from the line240/20230/22 13°230/27 6°230/40 -7°240/55 -18°240/74 -27°240/68 -37°250/64 -49°
ABQused from 548 nm out; 40 nm from the line220/19 9°220/35 3°230/50 -8°240/64 -19°230/83 -26°230/85 -36°230/80 -48°
PHXused from 748 nm out; 115 nm from the line190/15210/25 12°200/34 4°200/34 2°220/58 -9°220/75 -19°220/91 -28°220/100 -35°220/95 -47°

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
XNA Fayetteville/Springdale/Rogers, AR departure VFR from the south (190°) at 7 knots 10+ mi none 1,288 ft 3:53 am CDT (08:53 UTC)
TUL Tulsa, OK 80 nm out, 5 nm northeast of the line, tower VFR from the south (170°) at 10 knots 10+ mi none 677 ft 08:53 UTC
SWO Stillwater, OK 130 nm out, 10 nm northwest of the line, tower VFR from the south (170°) at 7 knots 10+ mi none 1,000 ft 08:53 UTC
JWG Watonga, OK 199 nm out, 2 nm west of the line no report just now 1,551 ft
PPA Pampa, TX 329 nm out, 5 nm north of the line VFR from the southwest (220°) at 14 knots 10+ mi none 3,245 ft 08:50 UTC
AMA Amarillo, TX 369 nm out, 13 nm southeast of the line, tower VFR Sky: overcast at 12,000 feet from the south-southwest (210°) at 17 knots, gusting to 24 10+ mi 12,000 ft 3,606 ft 08:53 UTC
SXU Santa Rosa, NM 509 nm out, 2 nm southwest of the line VFR Sky: overcast at 8,000 feet from the south (190°) at 4 knots 10+ mi 8,000 ft 4,791 ft 08:55 UTC
BRG Belen, NM 618 nm out, 6 nm northwest of the line VFR calm 10+ mi none 5,199 ft 08:55 UTC
JTC Springerville, AZ 748 nm out, 5 nm north of the line VFR from the south (190°) at 14 knots, gusting to 22 10+ mi none 7,055 ft 08:55 UTC
IWA Phoenix, AZ 868 nm out, 13 nm south of the line, tower VFR Sky: scattered clouds at 9,000 feet from the southeast (130°) at 7 knots 10+ mi none 1,384 ft 08:55 UTC
PHX Phoenix, AZ destination VFR Sky: scattered clouds at 6,000 feet, scattered clouds at 9,000 feet from the south-southeast (150°) at 7 knots 10+ mi none 1,134 ft 1:51 am MST (08:51 UTC)

The highest airport on this list sits at 7,055 ft; the ground between airports is higher still. Check the sectional chart for the terrain and the minimum safe heights along the line.

At PHX when you get there the forecast at the estimated arrival, 10:53 am MST (17:53 UTC)

Wind from the south at 11 knots, gusting to 20, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 4,000 feet, a broken layer at 7,000 feet VFR

The whole forecast for PHX
  • From Mon 2:00 am MST (09:00 UTC): wind from the east-southeast at 7 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, a few clouds at 4,000 feet, scattered clouds at 7,000 feet
  • From Mon 9:00 am MST (16:00 UTC): wind from the south at 11 knots, gusting to 20, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 4,000 feet, a broken layer at 7,000 feet
  • From Mon 1:00 pm MST (20:00 UTC): wind from the southwest at 14 knots, gusting to 23, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 5,000 feet, a broken layer at 7,000 feet
  • From Mon 6:00 pm MST (01:00 UTC): wind from the west at 9 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 5,000 feet, a broken layer at 7,000 feet
  • From Mon 10:00 pm MST (05:00 UTC): wind from the east-southeast at 7 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, showers nearby, scattered clouds at 5,000 feet, a broken layer at 7,000 feet
The forecast for XNA, the departure
  • From Mon 1:00 am CDT (06:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 6 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, low-level wind shear, a few clouds at 5,000 feet
  • From Mon 10:00 am CDT (15:00 UTC): wind from the south-southwest at 16 knots, gusting to 25, visibility more than 6 miles, clear skies
  • From Mon 7:00 pm CDT (00:00 UTC): wind from the south at 6 knots, visibility more than 6 miles, scattered clouds at 25,000 feet

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 XNA 6:45 pm CDT (23:45 UTC), at PHX 5:57 pm MST (00:57 UTC) (civil twilight ends 6:22 pm MST (01:22 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 southern Plains
Radar now, the southern Plains · loop National Weather Service
Radar now, the southern Rockies
Radar now, the southern Rockies · 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: Northwest Arkansas Ntl Airport, Phoenix Sky Harbor International.