Anybody using the Windy.com Trip Planner?

Seems like it could be helpful on a cross country.

I refer to Windy often to get an idea of winds aloft and the most advantageous altitude at which to fly. Have not investigated the Trip Planner option though.

The graphic wind-speed/direction is pretty nifty. I don't know how they can figure the winds for locations just 10 or 20 miles apart when ground-based weather reporting stations are a few hundred miles apart in this neck of the woods. I'd like to know about that.

Here is an example.

https://www.windy.com/distance/vfr/30.94,-101.87;37.94,-87.56;39.61,-79.97?2020-12-02-16,30.468,-87.319,5

I didn't know it even had trip planning features, but I have definitely used it planning longer cross country trips. Its accuracy in predicting future winds accurately is uncanny. Not just 6 hours in advance but next Tuesday at noon kind of stuff.

Windy.com gets their WX feeds info. from NWS. (like most other sites) The Government Super Computers are used more on WX, than any other Gov program. The NWS forecasting has really become very good and accurate. I can remember “Many Moons Ago”, flying making radio calls to the FSS stations, trying to get a read on the WX ahead of me in flight. Sometimes transmitting on one Freq. listing on a remote VOR Freq., reception was scratchy and buzzy. The WX info. we have now, sent up by GPS, is beyond belief sometimes. We can get the METARS and TAF’s for an airport we are flying into, evaluate the WX, make changes in our flight plans. Much safer and less time getting grounded, waiting the WX to improve. We watch our GPS WX connected I-Pads, check storm movements, delay or advance our departures, to take advantage of better WX. Yes, Windy.Com is a kewl site...refer to often. Dave B.

Apparently they use the network of personal weather stations also. I have Davis weather station in Iraan and one down on the Rio Grande at our fishing camp. If I have Iraan selected and look at nearest weather stations, my internet connected station in Iraan shows up. The one South of Dryden will show up, if I select a location near there.

I use both Windy and another app called WindAlert, both are good and have their place.

Cool site. I’ve used it for a while. Any tips you can share? Are you using the free version or paid subscription? What does paid subscription unlock?

Premium version gets rid of adds and allows commercial use.

I do use the premium version, just to eliminate the ads.

I tried to load a screenshot to show difference, but it got blocked.
Just click on the Menu Select next to the Search bar, and then the Windy Premium tab to see the comparison.

I often use it for planning 1-3 days in advance. I usually try to plan a trip on one day and give myself a plus or minus day window for departure to pick the best winds and weather.

The other great thing is the "low clouds" under the cloud tab.

Tim

I wonder how sites like this get around the patent troll who claimed a patent for online flight planning and sued some other sites out of existence about 8-9 years ago? I don't even remember their name, that's how well they've done with that.

Zzz wrote:I wonder how sites like this get around the patent troll who claimed a patent for online flight planning and sued some other sites out of existence about 8-9 years ago? I don't even remember their name, that's how well they've done with that.

Flightprep
Is this the same company http://www.flightprep.com/

What ever happened to the lawsuits?