PAIW/WAA METAR Wales Airport

Wales, AlaskaElevation 22 ftSmall airport

CURRENT STATUS

MVFR55 min old

Ceiling 2,400 ft, visibility 9 SM, rain.

FLIGHT CATEGORY

MVFR

ceiling & visibility

WIND

150@14

gust 19 kt

VISIBILITY

9 SM

14.5 km

CEILING

2,400 ft

lowest BKN/OVC

DENSITY ALT

-800 ft

-822 ft vs field

ACTIVE NWS ALERTS

Active weather alerts

High Wind WatchSevere · Future · Possible

27 0000Z to 28 0000Z

Shishmaref; Bering Strait Coast; St Lawrence Island

* WHAT...South to southeast winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph possible. * WHERE...Bering Strait Coast and St Lawrence Island. * WHEN...From Monday afternoon through Tuesday afternoon. * IMPACTS...High winds may move loose debris, damage property and cause power outages. Travel could be difficult.

Monitor the latest forecasts and warnings for updates.

High Surf AdvisoryMinor · Expected · Likely

25 2106Z to 28 1200Z

Bering Strait Coast

* WHAT...Large breaking waves between 2 and 4 feet above the normal high tide line are possible. * WHERE...Bering Strait Coast. * WHEN...Until 4 AM AKDT Wednesday. * IMPACTS...Localized beach erosion may occur. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...South to southwest winds will continue to gust up to 40 mph through the end of the weekend. Strong winds continue into early next week.

Precautions should be taken to protect property.

Alerts from the National Weather Service. For situational awareness only; always confirm against an official briefing.

CURRENT METAR

Decoded observation

Observed 0156Z (5:56 PM local) · 55 min old

PAIW is currently MVFR. Winds are from the southeast at 14 knots gusting 19. Visibility is 9 statute miles. The ceiling is 2,400 feet AGL. Reported weather: light rain. The main issue is ceiling 2400 ft agl (mvfr).

WIND

150° at 14 kt, gust 19

Gusts 5 kt above the steady wind.

VISIBILITY

9 statute miles

14.5 km, good.

CEILING & SKY

Ceiling 2,400 ft

Lowest broken or overcast layer.

TEMP / DEWPOINT

4°C / 2°C

39°F / 36°F. 2°C spread.

ALTIMETER

29.44 inHg

997 hPa, below standard.

WEATHER & HAZARDS

RA, LOW CIG

Rain reported.

Codes in this report: AUTO SCT BKN 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)

RAB50

rain began at :50 past the hour

SLP968

sea-level pressure 996.8 hPa

P0000

0.00 inches of precipitation in the last hour

T00390017

precise temperature 3.9°C, dew point 1.7°C

SUGGESTED RISK · TRAINING USE

Suggested risk level: Moderate

›Conditions are MVFR.

›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 MVFR, wind from 150° at 14 kt, gusting 19 kt, visibility 9 SM, ceiling 2,400 ft. Forecast suggests tonight rain and snow, low near 35F, 99% chance of precipitation. Key risks: strong winds in the forecast.

PILOT WEATHER NOTES

Strong winds in the forecastWeather.gov

Tuesday: winds up to 52 kt. Re-check crosswind components closer to departure.

Day	Conditions	Temp F	Wind	Gusts	Precip	Pilot note
Tonight	Rain And Snow	35	S 22 kt	–	99%
Monday	Chance Light Rain then Cloudy	39/36	W 17 kt	–	98%
Tuesday	Light Rain	41/36	S 30 kt	52 kt	98%	Strong winds in the forecast
Wednesday	Rain Likely then Slight Chance Rain And Snow	40/34	SW 26 kt	–	59%
Thursday	Rain And Snow	39/34	SE 22 kt	–	81%
Friday	Rain And Snow	38/32	NE 22 kt	–	81%
Saturday	Rain And Snow Likely	35/29	N 30 kt	–	59%
Sunday	Chance Rain And Snow	33	N 13 kt	–	32%

Source: National Weather Service (office AFG). Forecast issued 0251Z.

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RUNWAYS & WIND

1 runway · crosswind ranking

ON-FIELD METAR

READING THE BARB · SWIPE FOR MORE →

Calm

5 kt

10 kt

15 kt

20 kt

25 kt

30 kt

35 kt

40 kt

45 kt

50 kt

65 kt

75 kt

100 kt

105 kt

Half feather = 5 kt, full = 10 kt, filled pennant = 50 kt; add them up. The staff points the direction the wind blows from.

WIND USED

150° at 14 kt, gust 19

Components computed from the current on-field METAR wind.

RECOMMENDED

RWY 1811 kt headwind · 9 kt crosswind

RUNWAYS BY WIND · best end

HEAD

11 kt

CROSS

9 kt L

BEST

HEAD

11 kt tail

CROSS

9 kt R

X-WIND

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 3,990 ft

18/36

Dimensions

3,990 x 75 ft

Surface

Gravel (good)

Edge lights

MED

RWY 18188°T

REILYes

VGSIPAPI (P4L)

Traffic patternLeft

RWY 368°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

-800 ft

Pressure altitude

502 ft

Field elevation

22 ft MSL

Temperature

4°C (39°F)

Dewpoint

2°C (36°F)

Altimeter

29.44 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

0310Z 7:10 PM

Sunrise

1844Z 10:44 AM

Loggable night

0404Z (8:04 PM local) → 1749Z (9:49 AM local)

end of evening to start of morning civil twilight

Position lights required

0310Z (7:10 PM local) → 1844Z (10:44 AM local)

sunset to sunrise (91.209)

Night passenger currency

0410Z (8:10 PM local) → 1744Z (9:44 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

Wales Airport is in Wales, Alaska. Field elevation 22 ft MSL. Airport facts are drawn from OurAirports and the FAA NASR dataset.

OPERATIONS & CONTACT

OwnershipPublicly owned

UseOpen to the public

TypeSmall airport

Airline serviceYes

ManagerGEORGE KOST

Manager phone907-443-3431

AttendedUNATNDD

CHARTS & AIRSPACE

ICAO / IATAPAIW / WAA

SectionalNOME

Center (ARTCC)ANCHORAGE

Flight service (AFSS)NOME

RegionAlaska

CountryUnited States

Coordinates65.6226, -168.0950

Distance from city1 NM NW

SERVICES & LIGHTING

Control towerNon-towered

Field lightingSee remarks

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

CTAF123.000

FREQUENCIES

Communications

123.000

CTAF

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

AIRCRAFT ACTIVITY

Traffic patterns

Aircraft activity data is not available for this airport yet.

NEARBY AIRPORTS

Weather reference stations

Current flight category at nearby reporting stations.

PFKT Brevig Mission Airport

PASH Shishmaref Airport

VFR

AIRPORT REMARKS

Operational remarks

›WX CAMERA AVBL ON INTERNET AT HTTPS://WEATHERCAMS.FAA.GOV

›COLD TEMPERATURE AIRPORT. ALTITUDE CORRECTION REQUIRED AT OR BELOW -26C.

›HIGH TERRAIN SE THRU E.

›EASTERLY WINDS MAY CAUSE SEVERE TURBULENCE IN VICINITY OF RWY.

›ACTVT MIRL RY 18/36; PAPI AND REIL RYS 18 & 36 - CTAF.

›WIND SOCK LGT MAY BE OTS.

›SEVERAL RWY LIGHTS BROKEN.

›WIND SOCK LIGHTING INOPERATIVE, WIND SOCK MAY BE MISSING

›RY CONDITIONS NOT MONITORED; RECOMMEND VISUAL INSPECTION PRIOR TO LANDING.

OFFICIAL LINKS & SOURCES

↗Official METAR on AviationWeather.gov

↗Search NOTAMs (official FAA NOTAM Search)

↗Wikipedia

↗PAIW on OurAirports

FREQUENTLY ASKED

Does PAIW have a METAR?

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

Does PAIW have a TAF?

When PAIW 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 PAIW?

PAIW sits at 22 ft MSL, which factors into the density-altitude estimate on this page.

Is this an official preflight weather briefing for PAIW?

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.