Go or No Go: coastal California flight

It's not a long flight, and it's the type of mission that makes your Cessna 182 such a valuable asset to your business: a dash down the coast of California from Santa Barbara (KSBA) to your home airport of Montgomery Field in San Diego (KMYF). A four hour drive turns into a one hour flight, but will the weather cooperate?

Go or No Go: battling a Nor’easter?

As a corporate pilot, you watch your phone continuously - if it rings, you're probably going flying. Today, you're really hoping it doesn't ring, because there's a nasty weather system parked across the eastern US - right where you often fly. So of course Murphy's Law is in effect and the boss calls.

Go or No Go: is there any way through this line?

Your 1981 Piper Aztec and you have been through a lot in 10 years and 3000 hours, including plenty of single pilot IFR trips. But today is going to be a test for both of you - your proposed trip home from Shreveport, Louisiana to Amarillo, Texas is filled with rain, low ceilings and some convective activity.

Go or No Go: VFR under the ice?

Today you're not the one flying the trip - a friend who is a relatively low time pilot has called and asked for your advice. You pull out your iPad and review the weather below. What's your advice for your friend - go or no go?

Go or No Go: fall cold front

As you stare at your iPad in the pilots' lounge at Rochester, New York, you find yourself wishing for the warm days of summer. Your plan tonight is to fly from your business meeting in Rochester (ROC) to your home outside Columbus, Ohio (OSU). Will the weather cooperate?

Go or No Go: a legal alternate?

You've been looking forward to this trip for months, as you and some buddies are headed to beautiful Bandon, Oregon for a long weekend of golf. But coastal Oregon is famous for two things when it comes to weather: overcast skies and gusty winds. Can you make the flight legally? How about safely?

Go or no go: NORDO?

Your trip today is all fun, as you flew from your home base in Delaware, Ohio (DLZ) up to Put-in-Bay, Ohio (3W2), a beautiful island airport in Lake Erie. It was a fun day on the water and a great lunch, but now it's time to head home. Is it a go or no go?

Go or No Go: Texas storms

After spending a nice Easter weekend at home, tonight you'll be flying from Wichita Falls, TX (CWC) to Wichita, KS (ICT) for a presentation at a big conference. The only question is (as usual), will the weather cooperate?

Go or no go – en route decision

Richard Collins has famously said there's really no such thing as a single go/no go decision. Rather, weather flying can be seen as a series of "continue flying or land short" decisions. Tonight is a perfect example. After a long weekend with friends in Hilton Head, SC (HXD), you're headed home to suburban Atlanta (RYY).

To grandmother’s house we go or no go?

Ah, the holidays. A fun time for relaxing with family, right? Maybe, but first you have to get to grandmother's house for the big turkey dinner. And by looking out the window, it's clear that the weather stinks. Are you flying your Baron or staying home?

Real Life Go/No Go: Air Facts reader shares his decision

A long time client in Leavenworth, Kansas, has invited you to a meeting to show your newest product. The key decision-makers are only available from 11 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. You scheduled a flight in your Cessna Turbo 182RG, equipped with a Stormscope, XM weather and S-TEC 55 autopilot.

Go or No Go: storms in the panhandle?

After a productive day of meetings in Savannah, GA, (KSAV) your plan is to return home to New Orleans, LA (KNEW) tonight in time for dinner with your family. Here's the weather picture that greets you as you sit down at the FBO computer in Savannah. Read the details, then tell us if you're making the trip or spending the night.

Go or No Go: home from the Bahamas

After a relaxing week of vacation in the Out Islands of the Bahamas, it's now time to head home. The good news is your Cirrus SR22 is a capable machine, and you should be landing in Ft. Pierce to clear customs about an hour and a half after takeoff. The bad news is your secluded beachfront villa is totally disconnected from the outside world.

Go or No Go: marginal VFR?

You're headed to Minneapolis today to pick up your daughter from college and bring her home to Milwaukee for a family wedding. Since winter is starting to recede, it looks like a good chance to dust off your 1978 Cessna 172 and make the 2 1/2 hour flight. Read the weather briefing, then decide if you're making the trip or not.

Go or No Go: game time

Your friend got you tickets to the Super Bowl to see your beloved Baltimore Ravens play. To make an adventure out of it, you've decided to fly your 1995 A36 Bonanza to New Orleans for the game. But will you be able to make it?

Go or no go: heading north

Talk about "get-home-itis." Your trip today is the final leg of a marathon freight dog run, with over 1 billion legs in the logbook so far. The flight has gone flawlessly, but you're dead tired and would really like to get home to the Mrs. (Claus, that is). But just because you're the big red man doesn't mean you can skip the weather briefing, so you take one last glance at your iPad before takeoff.

Go or No Go: home for the holidays

It's the week of Thanksgiving, and your mission today is critical for staying married: you'll be flying with your wife from your home outside San Francisco to visit the in-laws in Seattle for turkey day. Your flight is scheduled to depart in an hour. Read the weather briefing here, then decide if you're flying or driving.
Site radar

Go or No Go: Florida build-ups

Today's flight is a quick one, from the Atlantic coast of Florida (West Palm Beach, PBI) to the Gulf Coast (Tampa, TPA). The weather doesn't look too bad as you drive to the airport around noon, but the afternoon is yet to come. In Florida, you've learned to expect the unexpected, as conditions change quickly. Read the weather report below, then decide if you're going or not going.
Route of flight

Go or No Go: Northeast freight run

The weather isn't pretty today, but that's why you get paid the big bucks as a charter pilot. Your job tonight is to fly from Rockland, ME (KRKD) to Providence, RI (KPVD) to get those packages where they need to be. It's time for a weather briefing, then you decide if you would fly the flight or cancel.
Flying route on ForeFlight

Go or No Go: get to the beach

The flight today is from your home in Knoxville, Tennessee (KTYS) to Kiawah Island in South Carolina (KJZI), which should take just over 2 hours. Your 1980 Cessna is well-maintained, with a fancy new Garmin GTN 750 WAAS GPS and XM Weather on board. It looks like you'll need that XM Weather--and maybe your instrument rating--for the trip today.