About ClearToFly
ClearToFly is a free, high-resolution weather visualization tool for manned VFR aviation — general aviation pilots (Motorflug), glider pilots (Segelflug, vol à voile), and ultralight pilots flying in Central Europe.
What ClearToFly gives you
Maps
- Significant Weather — dominant weather phenomenon per cell (fog, drizzle, rain, snow, thunderstorms, freezing precipitation). The single most useful layer for marginal-VFR decisions. How to read it →
- Ceiling — cloud base height above ground, coloured on a GAFOR-like scheme (red below 1,000 ft, yellow 1,000–3,000 ft, green above 5,000 ft). How to read it →
- Visibility — horizontal surface visibility in km. How to read it →
- Temperature — 2 m temperature for density-altitude and icing planning. How to read it →
- Radar (simulated) — simulated dBZ reflectivity from the forecast atmosphere. How to read it →
- Storms (KONRAD3D) — live DWD radar-observation of convective cells plus a 60-minute forecast track for each. Complements the ICON-D2 simulated radar with actual near-real-time observation. How to read it →
- Precipitation — surface precipitation rate. How to read it →
- Convection (CAPE) — thunderstorm fuel. How to read it →
- Wind — surface + 850 / 700 / 500 hPa, direction barbs plus speed. How to read it →
- Thermals — soaring-specific: climb rate, top of climb, Cu base, bumpiness. How to read it →
Local forecasts
- Meteograms for 1,886 airfields (1,623 with runway data for crosswind) and 4,296 cities with population above ~15,000. Up to 5-day forecast, cloud structure over 28 vertical layers. How to read a meteogram →
- 15-Day Outlook — a daily forecast card per day for any airfield or city: temperature, wind and gusts, precipitation and cloud. Days 1–5 from ICON-D2/EU, days 6–15 extended with the ECMWF global model. How to read the outlook →
- Cross-Section — vertical profile along your route from surface to FL100 with 48 hours of animation; cloud-cover heatmap, ceiling / 0 °C isotherm / thermal-top overlays, wind barbs at 8 altitudes, optional significant-weather map overlay, head/tailwind analysis, and an AI-generated route brief delivered by email. How to read a cross-section →
- Route Planner with multi-waypoint editing, draggable map markers, PDF export.
- AI Synopsis — AI-generated regional weather briefing spanning 5 days in morning / afternoon / evening timeblocks, per aviation zone. Updated once per day when the ICON-EU 12Z run lands. How the AI Synopsis works →
Beyond the browser
- ClearToFly for Garmin — a Fenix 6 Pro watch face that shows GAFOR, ceiling, visibility, crosswind and cloud layers, updated every 30 minutes from the same ICON-D2 data.
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Progressive Web App — installed to your home screen, ClearToFly opens fullscreen without browser chrome and caches the last forecast for offline access. The mobile PWA layout collapses the side panels so the map claims the whole screen.
How to install (iPhone / Android) →
iPhone (Safari): open ClearToFly, tap the Share icon ↑, then Add to Home Screen. Confirm the name and hit Add.
Android (Chrome): open ClearToFly, tap the ⋮ menu, then Add to Home Screen or Install App. Some Android browsers show an install banner directly.
Once installed, the app icon on your home screen launches ClearToFly without browser chrome — the PWA is the fastest way to briefly-check-the-forecast from the airfield.
PWA on iPhone. The compact mobile layout drops the side panels; the map claims the full screen, and everything a pilot needs at the airfield (airfield popup with radios, live wind, runway details, direct links to meteogram and AIP) is a single tap away.
Data sources
ClearToFly combines DWD ICON-D2 with two lower-resolution models to extend the forecast horizon:
For clubs and flight schools
Put your airfield's weather on your own website for free: a compact card with current wind, crosswind, visibility, ceiling and QNH plus a GAFOR-scale outlook for the next 21 hours (tap a 3-hour window for its details), refreshed every 15 minutes. Open your airfield in the meteogram viewer, click Show this forecast on your club website, and copy the code.
As heard on
Privatpilotenlounge #149 — "Wetter entscheidet — warum VFR-Piloten häufiger falsch liegen". Long-form discussion of how VFR pilots underestimate weather and how tools like ClearToFly close the gap between DWD raw model data and cockpit decisions.
Who builds this
ClearToFly is a one-person project by Jan Schaffner, a private pilot based in Germany. The service is free. If you find it useful, you can buy me a coffee. Feedback is welcome — see the ⓘ button in the top-right of any map page. Legal / company details: Impressum.
ClearToFly is for manned aviation — general aviation, ultralight, and gliding. Unrelated to the US drone-flight app of the same name and to any aerospace MRO business.