KPLU METAR Pierce County-Thun Field

Puyallup, WashingtonElevation 538 ftSmall airport

CURRENT STATUS

VFR12 min old

Ceiling 9,500 ft, visibility 7 SM.

FLIGHT CATEGORY

VFR

ceiling & visibility

WIND

Calm

no steady wind

VISIBILITY

7 SM

11.3 km

CEILING

9,500 ft

lowest BKN/OVC

DENSITY ALT

-78 ft

-616 ft vs field

CURRENT METAR

Decoded observation

Observed 0335Z (8:35 PM local) · 12 min old

KPLU is currently VFR. Winds are calm. Visibility is 7 statute miles. The ceiling is 9,500 feet AGL. Reported weather: light drizzle.

WIND

Calm

No steady wind.

VISIBILITY

7 statute miles

11.3 km, good.

CEILING & SKY

Ceiling 9,500 ft

Lowest broken or overcast layer.

TEMP / DEWPOINT

9°C / 9°C

48°F / 48°F. 0°C spread.

ALTIMETER

29.95 inHg

1014.2 hPa, near standard.

WEATHER & HAZARDS

No significant hazards

No precipitation or obscuration reported.

Codes in this report: AUTO FEW OVC RMK AO2

Hover or tap any group for a plain-English explanation.

REMARKS: DECODED

AO2

automated station with a precipitation discriminator (can tell rain from snow)

SUGGESTED RISK · TRAINING USE

Suggested risk level: Low

›No TAF available for this airport.

A suggested risk level for training and situational awareness only, not a go/no-go authority. Verify with official sources and apply your personal minimums.

FORECAST & PILOT NOTES · SUPPLEMENTAL

Extended forecast and pilot notes

Current aviation conditions show flight category VFR, wind calm, visibility 7 SM, ceiling 9,500 ft. Forecast suggests tonight chance light rain, low near 41F, 40% chance of precipitation. Key risks: thunderstorms in the forecast.

PILOT WEATHER NOTES

Thunderstorms in the forecastWeather.gov

Wednesday: Showers And Thunderstorms. Watch for developing convection and plan alternates.

Day	Conditions	Temp F	Wind	Gusts	Precip	Pilot note
Tonight	Chance Light Rain	41	ENE 1 kt	–	40%
Monday	Chance Light Rain	57/42	SSW 1 kt	–	42%
Tuesday	Light Rain Likely	57/40	SSW 8 kt	–	97%
Wednesday	Showers And Thunderstorms	53/36	S 8 kt	–	96%	Thunderstorms in the forecast
Thursday	Light Rain	52/34	SSE 3 kt	–	79%
Friday	Chance Light Rain	53/32	NNE 2 kt	–	25%
Saturday	Mostly Sunny	54/33	N 1 kt	–	7%
Sunday	Partly Sunny	56	N 1 kt	–	9%

Source: National Weather Service (office SEW). Forecast issued 0346Z.

Radar

Radar data: NOAA/NWS MRMS composite reflectivity. For situational awareness only, not a substitute for an official weather briefing.

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RUNWAYS & WIND

1 runway · crosswind ranking

WIND USED

Wind calm or variable

Crosswind ranking is unavailable until the wind has a steady direction.

Components are estimates from the current METAR wind and runway heading. Verify with the Chart Supplement and NOTAMs.

RUNWAYS

Runway detail & declared distances

1 runway · longest 3,651 ft

17/35

Dimensions

3,651 x 60 ft

Surface

Asphalt (good)

Edge lights

MED

RWY 17180°T

REILYes

VGSIPAPI (P4L)

Traffic patternLeft

RWY 350°T

REILYes

VGSIPAPI (P4R)

Traffic patternLeft

Runway data from the FAA NASR dataset (effective 2026-06-11). Verify with the current Chart Supplement and NOTAMs.

FIELD CONDITIONS

Performance & density altitude

Density altitude

-78 ft

Pressure altitude

508 ft

Field elevation

538 ft MSL

Temperature

9°C (48°F)

Dewpoint

9°C (48°F)

Altimeter

29.95 inHg

Density altitude estimates how the aircraft performs versus standard atmosphere. Higher density altitude reduces climb performance and increases takeoff distance.

DAYLIGHT & NIGHT

Sun & logging windows

Sunset

0104Z 6:04 PM

Sunrise

1443Z 7:43 AM

Loggable night

0135Z (6:35 PM local) → 1411Z (7:11 AM local)

end of evening to start of morning civil twilight

Position lights required

0104Z (6:04 PM local) → 1443Z (7:43 AM local)

sunset to sunrise (91.209)

Night passenger currency

0204Z (7:04 PM local) → 1343Z (6:43 AM local)

1 hr after sunset to 1 hr before sunrise (61.57(b))

FAA definitions, shown in Zulu with airport-local time. Verify for your operation.

AIRPORT INFORMATION

Facility & services

Pierce County-Thun Field is in Puyallup, Washington. Field elevation 538 ft MSL. Airport facts are drawn from OurAirports and the FAA NASR dataset.

OPERATIONS & CONTACT

OwnershipPublicly owned

UseOpen to the public

TypeSmall airport

ManagerDENNIS SMITH

Manager phone253-798-8551

AttendedDaily, 0800–1400

CHARTS & AIRSPACE

ICAO / IATAKPLU

SectionalSEATTLE

Center (ARTCC)SEATTLE

Flight service (AFSS)SEATTLE

RegionWashington

CountryUnited States

Coordinates47.1039, -122.2870

Distance from city5 NM S

SERVICES & LIGHTING

Fuel100LL

Control towerNon-towered

Field lightingSee remarks

BeaconSunset to sunrise · White-green (lighted land airport)

CTAF122.700

UNICOM122.700

FREQUENCIES

Communications

122.700

CTAF

122.700

UNICOM

Not all tower/ground/approach frequencies are in our datasets. Verify with the FAA Chart Supplement.

AIRCRAFT ACTIVITY

KPLU traffic patterns

2026-06-12 to 2026-10-23, 39 days observed · data 2026-10-23

Medium confidence

TRAFFIC VOLUME (30-DAY)

AVG LANDINGS/DAY

1.3

AVG OPS/DAY

2.5

Operations trend (6 days)

Busiest day: Thu · Busiest month: Jul

FLEET MIX

Piston single 59%Unknown 35%Helicopter 3%Twin 1%

Mostly small piston aircraft.

TOP AIRCRAFT TYPES

›C172 (Piston single) · ~89 landings/mo

›C150 (Piston single) · ~12 landings/mo

›CRUZ (Unknown) · ~12 landings/mo

›C182 (Piston single) · ~10 landings/mo

›P28R (Unknown) · ~8 landings/mo

LIKELY BASED AIRCRAFT

Low-confidence estimate

Aircraft likely based near this airport (estimate), mostly single-engine piston aircraft.

›C172 (Piston single)

›C182 (Piston single)

›P28R (Unknown)

›RV4 (Unknown)

›FOX (Unknown)

This is an estimate based on repeated flight patterns, not registration data. Do not rely on it to identify specific aircraft or owners.

Data limitations (4)

›ADS-B coverage is incomplete; counts are an observed lower bound, not official totals.

›Some aircraft do not transmit usable ADS-B and are not counted.

›Aircraft types and based estimates are inferred and may be wrong.

›This is not official ATC, FAA, or airport data.

NEARBY AIRPORTS

Weather reference stations

Current flight category at nearby reporting stations.

KTCM McChord Air Force Base

8 NM W

VFR

KGRF Gray Army Air Field

12 NM W

VFR

KTIW Tacoma Narrows Airport

15 NM NW

VFR

KSEA Seattle–Tacoma International Airport

21 NM N

VFR

KRNT Renton Municipal Airport

24 NM N

VFR

KBFI King County International Airport - Boeing Field

25 NM N

VFR

AIRPORT REMARKS

Operational remarks

›ESTABD PRIOR TO 15 MAY 1959.

›ACTVT REIL RWYS 17 & 35; PAPI RWYS 17 & 35 AND MIRL RWY 17/35 -CTAF.

›FUEL AVBL 24 HOURS WITH CREDIT CARD.

›FOR CD CTC SEATTLE APCH AT 206-214-4723.

›PILOTS BRING OWN TIE-DOWNS.

›NOISE SENSITIVE ALL QUADRANTS.

›ULTRALIGHTS PROHIBITED.

OFFICIAL LINKS & SOURCES

↗Search NOTAMs (official FAA NOTAM Search)

↗Official airport website

↗Wikipedia

↗KPLU on OurAirports

FREQUENTLY ASKED

Does KPLU have a METAR?

Yes. KPLU has a current METAR observation, decoded into plain English on this page.

Does KPLU have a TAF?

When KPLU issues a TAF, its decoded forecast timeline loads live on this page; otherwise use the nearest TAF-issuing field as a planning reference.

What is the field elevation at KPLU?

KPLU sits at 538 ft MSL, which factors into the density-altitude estimate on this page.

Is this an official preflight weather briefing for KPLU?

No. wxdecoder.com is for education and situational awareness only. It is not an official weather briefing or a substitute for official sources, NOTAM review, and pilot judgment.

This app is for aviation weather education, training, and situational awareness only. It is not a substitute for an official weather briefing, approved flight-planning software, flight service, dispatch procedures, current FAA regulations, or pilot judgment. Always verify weather with official sources before flight.