Flight track BWI-SAN
#3
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I am going to guess the weather. If you zoom out on that pic, you can see some more bad weather to the south.
Shows similar path on Flightaware
Shows similar path on Flightaware
#4
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: BWI
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A normal BWI-SAN route would cross over central to south-central Ohio on the way out, going over Wheeling WV and near Columbus OH and it would look like it departs directly west from BWI. So NE Ohio was likely a weather or traffic diversion as was speculated before.
#6
Join Date: Oct 2018
Posts: 35
The Jet stream flows generally from West to East but can move up or down as it tracks. On that date it may have been flowing against the more normal great circle route (great circle is the shortest route with curvature of the Earth Great Circle Mapper). Sometimes flying a ton more miles saves more fuel and time than bucking a 125+ knot headwind. SAN-BWI OTOH would want to take advantage of it.saving fuel and time. I can't find a source for past jetstream maps there's probably one out there somewhere.
https://www.wunderground.com/maps/wind/jet-stream
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_stream
https://www.wunderground.com/maps/wind/jet-stream
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_stream
#7
Join Date: Oct 2018
Posts: 35
You bring up a good point that's a busy time of day there may have been ATC flow control for a storm line that long. Keep filing flight plans until they accept one without delay? But I'm going with my first guess avoiding jetstream since the flight arrived ontime or rather 10 minutes late which is DOT ontime. Hit that 15 min mark and it's late.
#9
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Traveling the World
Posts: 6,068
#10
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Traveling the World
Posts: 6,068
You bring up a good point that's a busy time of day there may have been ATC flow control for a storm line that long. Keep filing flight plans until they accept one without delay? But I'm going with my first guess avoiding jetstream since the flight arrived ontime or rather 10 minutes late which is DOT ontime. Hit that 15 min mark and it's late.