Crosswind Calculator
Headwind and crosswind components for any runway — enter the wind manually, or type any US airport to pull its live METAR wind and see components for every runway. This is the same runway-wind math that powers the wind check on all 2,100+ ATIS Alerts airport pages.
Wind is 30° off the runway heading.
⚠️ Not for operational use. Always verify with official FAA-approved preflight weather sources before flight.
What is a crosswind component?
The crosswind component is the portion of the wind blowing across the runway rather than down it. Wind rarely lines up with the runway, so pilots split it into two parts: the headwind component (along the runway, helping or hurting takeoff and landing distance) and the crosswind component (across the runway, pushing the airplane sideways). The math is simple trigonometry: crosswind = wind speed × sin(angle between wind and runway), headwind = wind speed × cos(angle). Worked example: wind 300° at 16 knots, landing runway 27 — the wind is 30° off the nose, so the crosswind is 16 × sin 30° = 8 knots and the headwind is 16 × cos 30° ≈ 14 knots.
The clock method: estimating crosswind without a calculator
In the cockpit, picture the angle between the wind and the runway as minutes on a clock face:
- 15° off → 15 minutes = quarter past → crosswind ≈ 1/4 of the wind speed
- 30° off → half past → crosswind ≈ 1/2 of the wind speed
- 45° off → three-quarters → crosswind ≈ 3/4 of the wind speed
- 60°+ off → treat all of it as crosswind
Same example as above: runway 27, wind 300° at 16 knots is 30° off — half of 16 is a ~8-knot crosswind. The clock method slightly over-estimates, which is the safe direction to be wrong in.
Maximum demonstrated crosswind for common trainers
“Maximum demonstrated crosswind” is nota limitation — it's the strongest crosswind a test pilot happened to demonstrate during certification. The airplane may handle more; you may reasonably want much less. Your POH/AFM and your personal minimums govern.
| Aircraft | Max demonstrated crosswind |
|---|---|
| Cessna 150 / 152 | 12 kt |
| Cessna 172S | 15 kt |
| Cessna 182T | 15 kt |
| Piper PA-28 Archer | 17 kt |
| Diamond DA40 | 20 kt |
| Cirrus SR20 | 20 kt |
Typical published values — always confirm against your specific aircraft's POH/AFM.
Headwind, tailwind, and gusts
A tailwind component is disqualifying long before a crosswind of the same size: it lengthens takeoff and landing rolls dramatically (roughly 10% more distance per 2 knots of tailwind for many light aircraft), and most POHs limit it to 10 knots. That's why the calculator highlights tailwind in red. For gusts, compute components at both the steady and gust speeds — plan around the gust number, fly the steady wind, and consider adding half the gust factor to your approach speed as many manufacturers recommend.
True vs magnetic: which numbers to enter
Winds in a written METAR are in true degrees. Winds read to you by the tower or on the ATIS are magnetic. Runway numbers are magnetic too. The rule is to pair like with like: tower wind against the runway number, or true wind against the true runway heading. This calculator's airport mode does the second automatically — it compares the true METAR wind against each runway's surveyed true heading, so the geometry is exact even where magnetic variation is large. In manual mode, enter the wind and runway in the same reference and the math works out; a few degrees of variation changes light-wind components by well under a knot.
Crosswind FAQ
How do I calculate a crosswind component?
Take the angle between the wind direction and the runway heading. Crosswind = wind speed × sin(angle); headwind = wind speed × cos(angle). A wind 30° off the runway at 16 knots gives roughly an 8-knot crosswind and a 14-knot headwind. This calculator does the trigonometry for you, including gusts.
What is the clock method for estimating crosswind?
Picture the angle off the runway as minutes on a clock face: 15° off means 15 minutes — a quarter of the wind is crosswind. 30° off = half, 45° off = three-quarters, and 60° or more = treat all of it as crosswind. It slightly over-estimates, which is the safe direction to err.
Do I use the steady wind or the gusts?
Compute both. A common technique is to plan around the gust value (that's the wind that will actually push you around in the flare) while flying your approach numbers for the steady wind. If the gust crosswind exceeds your personal limit, that's the number that matters.
Is 10 knots of crosswind a lot?
It depends on the airplane and the pilot. For a student in a Cessna 152 it's a serious workout; for a current pilot in a Cirrus it's routine. Most light trainers have maximum demonstrated crosswinds of 12–17 knots — and your personal limit should usually be well below the airplane's.
Are runway numbers magnetic or true?
Runway numbers are magnetic. Winds in a METAR are true; winds from the tower or ATIS are magnetic. Pair like with like: this calculator's airport mode compares true METAR wind against true runway headings, so the geometry is always consistent.
About this data
Live winds come from the FAA/NWS Aviation Weather Center (aviationweather.gov) METAR feed and refresh roughly every minute. Runway headings are surveyed true headings from the public OurAirports dataset. This tool is built by ATIS Alerts, a product of The Better Travelers, LLC — the same data feed that powers our US airport status pages and Telegram alerts.
Add live crosswinds for your airport to your website
Flight schools, FBOs, and flying clubs: drop a live runway-crosswind box for your home field onto your own site. It shows the head/tailwind and crosswind for every runway from the current METAR wind, highlights the favored runway, and updates itself — one copy-paste line, free.
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