Central Gulf Coast Flying Weather
LA · MS · AL · FL · 2006–2025 · 60 eligible airports
Gulf moisture dominates year-round, keeping humidity and convective potential high in every season. Summer brings near-daily airmass thunderstorms and one of the most hurricane-landfall-prone coastlines in the country during the June-November season. The cold season features dense advection and radiation fog events along the coast and Mississippi Valley, plus the Dixie Alley severe regime — fast-moving, often nocturnal tornado outbreaks peaking March-May with a secondary November-December season. Best flying is typically October-November; worst is the August-September tropical peak and spring severe episodes.
- Daylight VFR
- 80.7%
- VFR days/yr
- 264
- Mean wind
- 5.0 kt
- Most VFR month
- July
- Fewest VFR month
- December
- VFR Score
- 49
Regional standouts
VFR conditions by month
Regional average across eligible airports
| Month | VFR % |
|---|---|
| Jan | 72.1% |
| Feb | 67.7% |
| Mar | 74.9% |
| Apr | 79.1% |
| May | 82.7% |
| Jun | 88.0% |
| Jul | 88.5% |
| Aug | 87.3% |
| Sep | 85.8% |
| Oct | 83.4% |
| Nov | 78.6% |
| Dec | 66.7% |
Average wind by month
Regional average sustained wind
| Month | Mean wind (kt) |
|---|---|
| Jan | 5.9 kt |
| Feb | 6.3 kt |
| Mar | 6.3 kt |
| Apr | 6.0 kt |
| May | 5.1 kt |
| Jun | 4.3 kt |
| Jul | 3.7 kt |
| Aug | 3.6 kt |
| Sep | 3.9 kt |
| Oct | 4.5 kt |
| Nov | 4.9 kt |
| Dec | 5.5 kt |
Every airport in Central Gulf Coast, ranked
Sort by any column. Best VFR Score first.
| KDRIBeauregard Regional Airport | DeRidder | 69.9 | 11.3 | 223 | 4 kt | 30 |
| KIYAAbbeville Chris Crusta Memorial Airport | Abbeville | 73.2 | 12.1 | 222 | 4 kt | 33 |
| KACPAllen Parish Airport | Oakdale | 65.9 | 15.1 | 236 | 0 kt | 34 |
| KLCHLake Charles Regional Airport | Lake Charles | 77.5 | 9.3 | 251 | 6 kt | 41 |
| KMOBMobile Regional Airport | Mobile | 79.4 | 8.8 | 255 | 5 kt | 41 |
| KLFTLafayette Regional Airport | Lafayette | 77.6 | 9.0 | 242 | 5 kt | 42 |
| KCMDCullman Regional Airport-Folsom Field | Cullman | 75.4 | 11.7 | 252 | 4 kt | 43 |
| KMCBMcComb-Pike County Airport / John E Lewis Field | McComb | 76.1 | 11.3 | 262 | 4 kt | 43 |
| KAEXAlexandria International Airport | Alexandria | 78.0 | 8.8 | 268 | 5 kt | 43 |
| KPNSPensacola International Airport | Pensacola | 80.7 | 9.6 | 253 | 6 kt | 44 |
| KOPLSt Landry Parish Ahart Field | Opelousas | 76.2 | 10.2 | 255 | 4 kt | 44 |
| KPTNHarry P Williams Memorial Airport | Patterson | 78.0 | 9.9 | 239 | 5 kt | 45 |
| KARAAcadiana Regional Airport | New Iberia | 79.7 | 8.7 | 262 | 6 kt | 46 |
| KECPNorthwest Florida Beaches International Airport | Panama City Beach | 80.5 | 9.3 | 256 | 5 kt | 46 |
| KBTRBaton Rouge Metropolitan Airport | Baton Rouge | 79.7 | 7.5 | 263 | 5 kt | 47 |
| KCEWBob Sikes Airport | Crestview | 76.6 | 10.6 | 263 | 3 kt | 47 |
| KRSNRuston Regional Airport | Ruston | 77.4 | 10.3 | 265 | 4 kt | 47 |
| KUOXUniversity Oxford Airport | Oxford | 80.1 | 8.4 | 262 | 4 kt | 48 |
| KPIBHattiesburg Laurel Regional Airport | Moselle | 75.8 | 11.1 | 265 | 4 kt | 48 |
| KNEWLakefront Airport | New Orleans | 83.4 | 5.6 | 263 | 8 kt | 48 |
| KREGLouisiana Regional Airport | Gonzales | 77.7 | 8.5 | 256 | 3 kt | 48 |
| KMDQMadison County Executive Airport-Tom Sharp Jr Field | Huntsville | 78.7 | 5.9 | 265 | 4 kt | 48 |
| KPQLTrent Lott International Airport | Pascagoula | 76.0 | 10.1 | 248 | 4 kt | 48 |
| KBFZAlbertville Regional Airport/Thomas J Brumlik Field | Albertville | 78.3 | 9.1 | 264 | 4 kt | 48 |
| KGPTGulfport Biloxi International Airport | Gulfport | 80.7 | 8.0 | 263 | 5 kt | 49 |
| KVPSDestin-Fort Walton Beach Airport | Valparaiso | 82.9 | 8.2 | 265 | 6 kt | 49 |
| KMLUMonroe Regional Airport | Monroe | 80.3 | 8.1 | 262 | 5 kt | 49 |
| KTCLTuscaloosa National Airport | Tuscaloosa | 80.6 | 6.0 | 271 | 4 kt | 49 |
| KGZHEvergreen Regional Airport/Middleton Field | Evergreen | 76.0 | 11.1 | 265 | 3 kt | 49 |
| KEETShelby County Airport | Alabaster | 79.8 | 8.2 | 267 | 3 kt | 49 |
| KDCUPryor Field Regional Airport | Decatur | 81.2 | 4.7 | 269 | 5 kt | 50 |
| KALXThomas C Russell Field | Alexander City | 78.0 | 10.0 | 269 | 3 kt | 50 |
| KSHVShreveport Regional Airport | Shreveport | 81.7 | 7.2 | 276 | 6 kt | 50 |
| KHKSHawkins Field | Jackson | 80.4 | 8.2 | 271 | 5 kt | 50 |
| KMEIKey Field / Meridian Regional Airport | Meridian | 79.7 | 8.8 | 271 | 4 kt | 50 |
| KHEZNatchez–Adams County Airport / Hardy-Anders Field | Natchez | 80.1 | 8.5 | 266 | 5 kt | 51 |
| KBFMMobile Downtown Airport | Mobile | 81.3 | 7.8 | 274 | 5 kt | 51 |
| KPMUPanola County Airport | Batesville | 77.2 | 8.1 | 265 | 3 kt | 51 |
| KHRTHurlburt Field | Mary Esther | 83.8 | 7.5 | 262 | 6 kt | 51 |
| KDHNDothan Regional Airport | Dothan | 82.2 | 9.1 | 271 | 5 kt | 51 |
| KGLHMid Delta Regional Airport | Greenville | 83.4 | 5.8 | 270 | 6 kt | 51 |
| KANBAnniston Regional Airport | Anniston | 80.1 | 4.8 | 271 | 4 kt | 51 |
| KTUPTupelo Regional Airport | Tupelo | 81.9 | 7.0 | 267 | 5 kt | 51 |
| KHSVHuntsville International Airport | Huntsville | 82.2 | 4.8 | 272 | 5 kt | 52 |
| KMSLNorthwest Alabama Regional Airport | Muscle Shoals | 80.6 | 5.7 | 268 | 5 kt | 52 |
| KMSYLouis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport | New Orleans | 84.2 | 5.3 | 283 | 6 kt | 52 |
| KASDSlidell Airport | Slidell | 80.7 | 8.3 | 260 | 4 kt | 52 |
| KBHMBirmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport | Birmingham | 82.8 | 5.6 | 274 | 5 kt | 52 |
| KJANJackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport | Jackson | 81.8 | 7.2 | 278 | 5 kt | 52 |
| KHBGHattiesburg Bobby L Chain Municipal Airport | Hattiesburg | 80.3 | 8.7 | 271 | 4 kt | 53 |
| KHDCHammond Northshore Regional Airport | Hammond | 80.1 | 8.3 | 266 | 3 kt | 53 |
| KUTATunica Municipal Airport | Tunica | 82.0 | 6.7 | 272 | 6 kt | 53 |
| KTOITroy Municipal Airport at N Kenneth Campbell Field | Troy | 80.3 | 9.1 | 274 | 4 kt | 53 |
| KSCDMerkel Field Sylacauga Municipal Airport | Sylacauga | 79.8 | 7.3 | 267 | 0 kt | 53 |
| KDTNShreveport Downtown Airport | Shreveport | 82.2 | 6.7 | 278 | 5 kt | 54 |
| KDTSDestin Executive Airport | Destin | 83.3 | 7.2 | 269 | 5 kt | 55 |
| KTVRVicksburg Tallulah Regional Airport | Tallulah | 81.4 | 6.0 | 279 | 5 kt | 55 |
| KGWOGreenwood–Leflore Airport | Greenwood | 82.7 | 6.0 | 275 | 5 kt | 55 |
| KMGMMontgomery Regional (Dannelly Field) Airport | Montgomery | 83.1 | 6.5 | 279 | 5 kt | 57 |
| KMAIMarianna Municipal Airport | Marianna | 84.9 | 6.9 | 283 | 4 kt | 59 |
The pattern in Central Gulf Coast
Across 2006–2025, the 60 eligible airports in Central Gulf Coast reported VFR conditions during about 80.7% of valid daytime observations, with an estimated 264 VFR flying days per year and a mean surface wind of 5.0 kt. KMSY (Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport) had the most VFR weather at 85.3%. KACP saw the most instrument conditions, at 15.1% IFR/LIFR. The lowest-ranked eligible field by VFR Score was KDRI (Beauregard Regional Airport).
Neighboring regions
How Central Gulf Coast is defined
Entire LA, MS, and AL. FL split (4 of 4): ONLY the 10 panhandle counties west of the Apalachicola River — Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, Bay, Jackson, Calhoun, Gulf. All other FL counties belong to north-florida, central-florida, or south-florida.
Educational use only. Historical weather rankings from ATIS Alerts are educational summaries of past observations — not a forecast, flight-planning tool, or safety rating. They do not replace current METARs, TAFs, NOTAMs, ATIS, or a weather briefing, and favorable history does not make any airport safe. Always check current conditions and use your own judgment before flight.