How to Read a METAR: A Pilot's Complete Plain-English Guide

The METAR — Meteorological Aerodrome Report — is the standard format for surface aviation weather observations worldwide. Every pilot needs to be able to decode a METAR quickly and accurately during preflight planning. In this guide I'll walk through every element of a real METAR using plain English, so you can go from a raw string of abbreviations to a complete weather picture in under a minute.

What Is a METAR?

A METAR is an observation of current surface weather conditions at a specific airport, generated either by a human weather observer or an automated station. In the United States, METARs are issued hourly (at 53–58 minutes past the hour) and as special observations (SPECI) when conditions change significantly between scheduled reports. You can find current METARs at aviationweather.gov, through ForeFlight, Garmin Pilot, or any other EFB.

A Real METAR Decoded

Let's decode this example METAR from San Diego International:

METAR — Report Type

The first element identifies the report type. METAR is a routine hourly observation. SPECI is a special observation issued when conditions change significantly — a rapidly dropping ceiling, sudden wind shift, or thunderstorm onset.

KSAN — Station Identifier

The four-letter ICAO airport identifier. In the US, all identifiers begin with K. KSAN is San Diego International (Lindbergh Field). International airports use two-letter country codes — EGLL is London Heathrow, LFPG is Paris Charles de Gaulle.

141553Z — Date and Time

Day of the month followed by time in UTC (Zulu). 14 is the 14th day of the month. 1553Z is 15:53 UTC. Always convert to local time using your time zone offset. In California (PDT, UTC−7), 1553Z is 8:53 AM local time.

27012KT — Wind

Wind direction and speed. 270 is the direction the wind is coming FROM in degrees true. 12KT is the speed in knots. So this is a 12-knot wind from the west. Gusts are reported as G followed by the gust speed — 27012G22KT means winds from 270 at 12 knots gusting to 22. Variable winds below 6 knots are reported as VRB. Calm winds are 00000KT.

10SM — Visibility

Prevailing visibility in statute miles. 10SM means 10 statute miles — the maximum reportable visibility in US METARs. P6SM means "plus 6 statute miles," used when visibility exceeds 6 SM. Low visibility is reported as a fraction: 1/4SM, 1/2SM, etc. VFR minimums for most airspace require at least 3 statute miles visibility.

FEW025 BKN250 — Sky Condition

Cloud layers are reported from lowest to highest. Each layer shows coverage and height above ground level (AGL) in hundreds of feet:

• FEW — 1 to 2 oktas (eighths) of sky coverage — few clouds
• SCT — 3 to 4 oktas — scattered clouds
• BKN — 5 to 7 oktas — broken clouds (counts as ceiling)
• OVC — 8 oktas — overcast (counts as ceiling)

So FEW025 means a few clouds at 2,500 feet AGL. BKN250 means broken clouds at 25,000 feet AGL. The ceiling is the lowest broken or overcast layer — here 25,000 feet, which is perfectly flyable VFR. CB (cumulonimbus) or TCU (towering cumulus) may be appended: FEW030CB means a few cumulonimbus at 3,000 feet — always a significant weather indicator.

22/14 — Temperature and Dewpoint

Temperature and dewpoint in degrees Celsius, separated by a slash. 22 is the temperature (22°C / 72°F). 14 is the dewpoint (14°C / 57°F). Temperatures below zero use M for minus — M05/M10 is −5°C temperature, −10°C dewpoint.

The temperature/dewpoint spread is important for VFR pilots: a small spread means higher relative humidity and fog or low clouds are more likely. A spread of 3°C or less is a warning sign for possible fog formation, especially overnight or in the morning.

A2992 — Altimeter Setting

The current altimeter setting in inches of mercury (inHg). A2992 means set your altimeter to 29.92 inHg. International METARs use Q followed by QNH in hectopascals — Q1013 is 1013 hPa (approximately standard pressure). Always set your altimeter to the current setting before departure and update it throughout your flight.

The Remarks Section (RMK)

Everything after RMK is additional information not captured in the coded body. The remarks section contains some of the most operationally useful information in the METAR.

AO2 — Station Type

AO1 means automated station without precipitation discriminator. AO2 means automated station with precipitation discriminator — it can distinguish between rain, snow, and freezing precipitation. Most modern AWOS and ASOS stations are AO2.

SLP132 — Sea Level Pressure

Sea level pressure in hectopascals. To decode: if the first digit after SLP is 9, prepend 9. If it's 0 or 1, prepend 10. SLP132 → 1013.2 hPa. SLP982 → 998.2 hPa. Useful for weather analysis but not operationally critical for most GA flights.

TSB32RA32 — Precipitation Begin/End Times

This is one of the most misunderstood remark codes. It means thunderstorms began at 32 minutes past the hour (TSB32) and rain began at 32 minutes past the hour (RA32). Multiple phenomena can be concatenated in a single code — the pattern is always weather type followed by B (began) or E (ended) followed by the time in minutes past the hour or as a 4-digit HHMM time.