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Crosswind & Headwind Component Calculator

Breaks reported wind into its crosswind and headwind parts for a given runway. You get crosswind from wind speed times the sine of the angle and headwind from the cosine, with reference limits for common aircraft.

How to use
  1. Enter the wind speed and pick knots, mph, or km/h.
  2. Enter the angle between the wind and the runway heading.
  3. Compare the crosswind against your aircraft's demonstrated limit.
Angle
Crosswind component
14.1 kt

20 kt wind at 45° to runway · light crosswind

Headwind
14.1 kt
Effective angle
45°
In knots (limit ref)
14.1 kt
Estimates for general information, verify important figures before relying on them.
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Worked examples

Wind speedAngleCrosswindHeadwind
20 kt30°10.0 kt17.3 kt
20 kt60°17.3 kt10.0 kt
20 kt90°20.0 kt0.0 kt

Common questions

What angle gives the worst crosswind?

A 90-degree wind is pure crosswind, with no headwind benefit. At 0 degrees the wind is all headwind and the crosswind is zero.

What is the crosswind limit for a Cessna 172?

The demonstrated crosswind component for a 172 is about 15 knots. The tool lists reference limits for the 737, A320, and 747 too.

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