Term

METAR — Meteorological Aerodrome Report

Daniel MarkFounder & Editor, Aviatopia
Published May 1, 2025Updated Nov 1, 20251 min read

METAR is a standardized format for reporting current weather observations at airports. Issued hourly, it provides pilots and controllers with temperature, wind, visibility, cloud, and pressure data.

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Quick Facts

Type
Weather Report
Definition
A standardized hourly weather observation report issued at airports, encoding...
Used By
Pilots, Dispatchers, ATC

Definition#

METAR stands for Meteorological Aerodrome Report (or, in French, Message d'observation météorologique régulière pour l'aviation). It is the international standard format for hourly surface weather observations at airports and airfields.

Purpose#

METARs provide a consistent, machine-readable snapshot of current weather conditions. They are used by:

  • Pilots for pre-flight planning and in-flight decision-making
  • Air traffic controllers for issuing clearances and sequencing traffic
  • Dispatchers for flight planning and fuel calculations
  • Meteorologists for weather analysis and forecasting

Format Overview#

A typical METAR contains these elements in order: station identifier, date/time, wind, visibility, weather phenomena, cloud layers, temperature/dewpoint, and altimeter setting.

KJFK 121856Z 31012G18KT 10SM FEW045 SCT250 24/14 A3002

Related Terms#

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