Most Turbulent Flight Routes in the World

2026 ranking · 11,148 routes scored against every six hours of 2025 upper-air wind data · Updated October 25, 2026

World's most turbulent route

Shanghai – Xi'anSHA ↔ XIY · rough-air conditions at cruise 16.7% of the time · worst in February

Boston – DetroitBumpiest US route

Atlanta – DublinBumpiest transatlantic

FebruaryRoughest month in the US

EuropeCalmest major region

Key findings

East Asia has the roughest skies on Earth. Shanghai – Xi'an tops the world ranking: moderate-or-worse clear-air turbulence conditions along the route 16.7% of the time in 2025. Every one of the top routes sits under the East Asian or Australian subtropical jet stream, the fastest on the planet.
Australia's east coast is rougher than the North Atlantic. Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sydney and Canberra routes take six of the world's top ten spots, peaking in the southern winter (June–July). Brisbane – Sydney: 15.9%.
In the US, the Northeast in February is the bumpiest place to fly. Boston – Detroit leads the US list (7.4%). Across US routes, rough air is about 49× more common in February than in July.
Transatlantic flights are bumpiest in March, when the jet stream over the North Atlantic is strongest. Atlanta – Dublin ranks highest (6.1%); New York – London: 5.7%.
Europe is the calmest major region at cruise altitude. Even its bumpiest route, Athens – Heraklion, sees rough-air conditions only 2.6% of the time, about 1/6 of Shanghai – Xi'an.

The 20 most turbulent flight routes in the world

Share of 2025 with moderate-or-worse clear-air turbulence conditions along the cruise part of the route. One route per city pair.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Shanghai – Xi'anSHA ↔ XIY · 1,228 km16.7%February 2Shanghai – WuhanSHA ↔ WUH · 680 km16.5%March 3Gold Coast – PerthOOL ↔ PER · 3,619 km16.5%June 4Wuhan – Xi'anWUH ↔ XIY · 653 km16.3%February 5Brisbane – PerthBNE ↔ PER · 3,608 km16.3%June 6Gold Coast – SydneyOOL ↔ SYD · 680 km16.0%July 7Canberra – Gold CoastCBR ↔ OOL · 892 km16.0%July 8Brisbane – CanberraBNE ↔ CBR · 956 km16.0%July 9Fukuoka – ShanghaiFUK ↔ PVG · 856 km15.9%March 10Brisbane – SydneyBNE ↔ SYD · 753 km15.9%July 11Adelaide – Gold CoastADL ↔ OOL · 1,604 km15.7%July 12Adelaide – BrisbaneADL ↔ BNE · 1,620 km15.6%November 13Chengdu – ShanghaiCTU ↔ PVG · 1,704 km15.6%March 14Osaka – ShanghaiKIX ↔ PVG · 1,307 km15.2%March 15Jeju – FukuokaCJU ↔ FUK · 367 km15.1%December 16Brisbane – MelbourneBNE ↔ MEL · 1,381 km14.9%July 17Seoul – ShanghaiICN ↔ PVG · 822 km14.9%February 18Changsha – Xi'anCSX ↔ XIY · 814 km14.8%February 19Chengdu – Xi'anCTU ↔ XIY · 625 km14.8%February 20Melbourne – Gold CoastMEL ↔ OOL · 1,330 km14.8%July

Smooth <2%Light 2–5%Bumpy 5–12%Rough 12%+

How turbulent is your route?

Search 9,845 routes by city or airport code. Ranked 1 (roughest) to 9,845 (smoothest).

How bumpy are the most popular routes?

The 30 routes our visitors check most, from roughest to smoothest.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Dallas – New YorkDFW ↔ LGA · 2,231 km6.4%February 2New York – LondonJFK ↔ LHR · 5,540 km5.7%March 3Boston – San FranciscoBOS ↔ SFO · 4,341 km5.7%February 4Boston – LondonBOS ↔ LHR · 5,240 km5.7%March 5New York – San FranciscoJFK ↔ SFO · 4,152 km5.6%February 6Paris – New YorkCDG ↔ JFK · 5,834 km5.5%March 7Amsterdam – New YorkAMS ↔ JFK · 5,848 km5.5%March 8Mumbai – DelhiBOM ↔ DEL · 1,137 km5.4%February 9New York – Los AngelesJFK ↔ LAX · 3,974 km5.4%February 10Frankfurt – New YorkFRA ↔ JFK · 6,189 km5.3%March 11Tokyo – San FranciscoNRT ↔ SFO · 8,227 km5.3%March 12London – TorontoLHR ↔ YYZ · 5,707 km5.3%March 13Tokyo – VancouverNRT ↔ YVR · 7,503 km5.1%November 14Chicago – San FranciscoORD ↔ SFO · 2,964 km5.1%February 15Los Angeles – TokyoLAX ↔ NRT · 8,753 km5.1%March 16Seattle – TampaSEA ↔ TPA · 4,051 km5.0%January 17Rome – New YorkFCO ↔ JFK · 6,866 km4.9%March 18Denver – Los AngelesDEN ↔ LAX · 1,385 km4.1%February 19Bengaluru – DelhiBLR ↔ DEL · 1,709 km3.7%February 20Los Angeles – SydneyLAX ↔ SYD · 12,061 km3.3%January 21San Diego – MauiSAN ↔ OGG · 4,084 km3.1%February 22Honolulu – Los AngelesHNL ↔ LAX · 4,108 km3.0%February 23Frankfurt – Los AngelesFRA ↔ LAX · 9,322 km2.7%December 24Amsterdam – LondonAMS ↔ LHR · 370 km1.9%October 25Paris – LondonCDG ↔ LHR · 348 km1.9%January 26Barcelona – LondonBCN ↔ LHR · 1,148 km1.7%January 27London – MadridLHR ↔ MAD · 1,244 km1.7%January 28Manchester – Gran CanariaMAN ↔ LPA · 3,024 km1.7%January 29Istanbul – LondonIST ↔ LHR · 2,487 km1.6%March 30London – Palma de MallorcaLHR ↔ PMI · 1,348 km1.6%January

Most turbulent US domestic routes

Between major US airports. The Northeast and Great Lakes in winter dominate.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Boston – DetroitBOS ↔ DTW · 1,015 km7.4%February 2Detroit – Portland (Maine)DTW ↔ PWM · 1,073 km7.3%February 3Columbus – Portland (Maine)CMH ↔ PWM · 1,117 km7.3%February 4Boston – ClevelandBOS ↔ CLE · 903 km7.3%February 5Buffalo – Portland (Maine)BUF ↔ PWM · 686 km7.3%February 6Detroit – ProvidenceDTW ↔ PVD · 987 km7.3%February 7Indianapolis – Portland (Maine)IND ↔ PWM · 1,395 km7.3%February 8Rochester – Portland (Maine)ROC ↔ PWM · 598 km7.3%February 9Cincinnati – Portland (Maine)CVG ↔ PWM · 1,301 km7.2%February 10Boston – ChicagoBOS ↔ ORD · 1,391 km7.2%February

Most turbulent transatlantic routes

North America ↔ Europe. Rough air peaks in March over the North Atlantic jet.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Atlanta – DublinATL ↔ DUB · 6,323 km6.1%March 2Washington – DublinIAD ↔ DUB · 5,464 km6.0%March 3Philadelphia – DublinPHL ↔ DUB · 5,253 km6.0%March 4Dublin – New YorkDUB ↔ JFK · 5,103 km6.0%March 5Charlotte – DublinCLT ↔ DUB · 5,974 km6.0%March 6Boston – DublinBOS ↔ DUB · 4,804 km5.9%March 7Atlanta – LondonATL ↔ LGW · 6,790 km5.8%March 8New York – ManchesterJFK ↔ MAN · 5,362 km5.8%March 9Washington – LondonIAD ↔ LHR · 5,902 km5.7%March 10Charlotte – LondonCLT ↔ LHR · 6,409 km5.7%March

Most turbulent routes in Europe

Europe is the calmest major region at cruise altitude; the British Isles and Aegean see the most rough air.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Athens – HeraklionATH ↔ HER · 309 km2.6%June 2Dublin – EdinburghDUB ↔ EDI · 336 km2.5%December 3Dublin – LondonDUB ↔ LHR · 449 km2.4%December 4Edinburgh – LondonEDI ↔ LHR · 534 km2.3%October 5Glasgow – Ponta DelgadaGLA ↔ PDL · 2,563 km2.2%December 6Edinburgh – Ponta DelgadaEDI ↔ PDL · 2,618 km2.2%December 7Amsterdam – DublinAMS ↔ DUB · 750 km2.2%December 8Paris – DublinCDG ↔ DUB · 786 km2.2%January 9Brussels – DublinBRU ↔ DUB · 784 km2.2%December 10Newcastle – Ponta DelgadaNCL ↔ PDL · 2,637 km2.1%December

Most turbulent routes in Asia

Eastern China, Korea and Japan sit under the world's strongest winter jet stream.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Shanghai – Xi'anSHA ↔ XIY · 1,228 km16.7%February 2Shanghai – WuhanSHA ↔ WUH · 680 km16.5%March 3Wuhan – Xi'anWUH ↔ XIY · 653 km16.3%February 4Fukuoka – ShanghaiFUK ↔ PVG · 856 km15.9%March 5Chengdu – ShanghaiCTU ↔ PVG · 1,704 km15.6%March 6Osaka – ShanghaiKIX ↔ PVG · 1,307 km15.2%March 7Jeju – FukuokaCJU ↔ FUK · 367 km15.1%December 8Seoul – ShanghaiICN ↔ PVG · 822 km14.9%February 9Changsha – Xi'anCSX ↔ XIY · 814 km14.8%February 10Chengdu – Xi'anCTU ↔ XIY · 625 km14.8%February

Most turbulent transpacific routes

Asia ↔ North America.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Hong Kong – San FranciscoHKG ↔ SFO · 11,128 km6.1%March 2Hong Kong – Los AngelesHKG ↔ LAX · 11,664 km6.0%March 3Seattle – OkinawaSEA ↔ OKA · 9,260 km6.0%December 4Vancouver – OkinawaYVR ↔ OKA · 9,103 km5.9%December 5Guangzhou – Los AngelesCAN ↔ LAX · 11,618 km5.9%March 6Hong Kong – Los CabosHKG ↔ SJD · 13,099 km5.9%March 7Hong Kong – MazatlánHKG ↔ MZT · 13,347 km5.9%March 8Hong Kong – Puerto VallartaHKG ↔ PVR · 13,619 km5.8%March 9Houston – OkinawaIAH ↔ OKA · 12,272 km5.7%December 10Hong Kong – IxtapaHKG ↔ ZIH · 14,141 km5.6%March

Most turbulent routes in Australia & Oceania

Australian domestic routes are among the roughest anywhere, peaking in the southern winter (June–August).

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Gold Coast – PerthOOL ↔ PER · 3,619 km16.5%June 2Brisbane – PerthBNE ↔ PER · 3,608 km16.3%June 3Gold Coast – SydneyOOL ↔ SYD · 680 km16.0%July 4Brisbane – SydneyBNE ↔ SYD · 753 km15.9%July 5Adelaide – Gold CoastADL ↔ OOL · 1,604 km15.7%July 6Adelaide – BrisbaneADL ↔ BNE · 1,620 km15.6%November 7Brisbane – MelbourneBNE ↔ MEL · 1,381 km14.9%July 8Melbourne – Gold CoastMEL ↔ OOL · 1,330 km14.8%July 9Perth – SydneyPER ↔ SYD · 3,277 km13.9%July 10Adelaide – PerthADL ↔ PER · 2,116 km13.6%June

Most turbulent routes in Latin America

Southern Brazil and northern Argentina lead. Andes crossings are rougher than this shows: see Limitations.

#RouteRough-air timeWorst month

1Foz do Iguaçu – Porto AlegreIGU ↔ POA · 588 km6.6%April 2Florianópolis – Porto AlegreFLN ↔ POA · 363 km6.5%April 3Curitiba – Porto AlegreCWB ↔ POA · 534 km6.5%April 4Florianópolis – Foz do IguaçuFLN ↔ IGU · 634 km6.2%April 5Hermosillo – MonterreyHMO ↔ MTY · 1,141 km6.2%March 6Córdoba – São PauloCOR ↔ GRU · 1,955 km6.2%June 7Florianópolis – SantiagoFLN ↔ SCL · 2,217 km6.1%April 8Buenos Aires – FlorianópolisEZE ↔ FLN · 1,237 km6.0%November 9Córdoba – Rio de JaneiroCOR ↔ GIG · 2,275 km6.0%June 10Buenos Aires – São PauloEZE ↔ GRU · 1,723 km5.9%April

When is turbulence worst? Month by month

Average rough-air time across each region's routes in 2025. The red bar is the worst month.

US domesticPeak: February

TransatlanticPeak: March

AsiaPeak: February

TranspacificPeak: December

EuropePeak: January

Australia & OceaniaPeak: July

Latin AmericaPeak: April

JFMAMJJASOND

The smoothest long-haul flights

Routes over 2,000 km between major airports with the least rough air at cruise, excluding routes over high mountains. Mostly tropical, far from the jet streams.

#RouteRough-air timeDistance

1Hong Kong – NadiHKG ↔ NAN · 8,220 km0.1%8,220 km 2Bangkok – ManilaBKK ↔ MNL · 2,188 km0.1%2,188 km 3Manila – VientianeMNL ↔ VTE · 2,007 km0.1%2,007 km 4Cebu – VientianeCEB ↔ VTE · 2,459 km0.1%2,459 km 5Bangkok – CebuBKK ↔ CEB · 2,553 km0.1%2,553 km 6Caracas – Santa CruzCCS ↔ VVI · 3,169 km0.1%3,169 km 7Hong Kong – PapeeteHKG ↔ PPT · 11,382 km0.1%11,382 km 8Cebu – Chiang MaiCEB ↔ CNX · 2,848 km0.1%2,848 km 9Phuket – ManilaHKT ↔ MNL · 2,574 km0.1%2,574 km 10Cebu – Phnom PenhCEB ↔ PNH · 2,093 km0.1%2,093 km

Methodology

Data. NOAA NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis 1: global winds and heights at 300, 250 and 200 hPa (about FL300, FL340 and FL390), every six hours from January 1 to December 31, 2025 (1,460 snapshots, 2.5° grid).

Turbulence model. Clear-air turbulence is driven mainly by vertical wind shear around jet streams. For each snapshot we computed the vector wind shear (knots per 1,000 ft) in two layers, FL300–FL340 and FL340–FL390, and boosted it near strong jets. This is the same formula and the same thresholds the Turbulence Forecast app uses for its live forecasts. "Rough-air time" is the share of snapshots in which the shear reached the moderate-turbulence threshold, averaged over both layers.

Routes. We scored 11,148 airport pairs from our route database along the great-circle path, sampled every 50 km, leaving out the first and last 100 km (climb and descent). The ranking keeps one route per city pair (for example, one London – New York entry) and only routes over 300 km, 9,845 in total. Regional lists use major airports only.

Limitations. This ranking measures clear-air turbulence at cruise altitude. It does not capture mountain-wave turbulence, such as over the Andes, Rockies, Alps or Himalayas, or turbulence inside thunderstorms. Routes crossing high mountains, like Santiago – Mendoza or Denver – Jackson Hole, can be rougher than their score suggests, especially near the airports. Real flights also change altitude and route to avoid rough air, so a high score means "more often bumpy", not "dangerous". The 2.5° grid smooths out small-scale features, so read scores as relative rankings rather than exact probabilities.

Use this data

Journalists, bloggers and researchers are welcome to cite, chart or republish these rankings. Please credit with a link:

Source: Turbulence Forecast, <a href="https://turbulence-forecast.com/most-turbulent-flights/">Most Turbulent Flight Routes</a>, based on NOAA NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis 2025 data.

Download all 9,845 routes (CSV)

Licensed CC BY 4.0. NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis data provided by the NOAA PSL, Boulder, Colorado, USA.

The worst turbulence incidents in history

Routes tell you how often the air is rough. For the worst single days, from BOAC 911 at Mount Fuji to Singapore Airlines SQ321, see 23 sourced cases.

Read: the worst turbulence incidents →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most turbulent flight route in the world?

In our 2025 data, Shanghai – Xi'an (SHA–XIY) had the highest share of time with moderate-or-worse clear-air turbulence conditions at cruise altitude (16.7%). Routes across eastern China, between Japan, Korea and Shanghai, and along Australia's east coast fill the rest of the top 20.

What is the most turbulent flight route in the US?

Boston – Detroit ranks first among US domestic routes between major airports (7.4% of the time). Routes across the Great Lakes and New England dominate the US list, with February the roughest month.

Which month has the most turbulence?

In the Northern Hemisphere, clear-air turbulence peaks in winter, December to March, when jet streams are strongest. US routes peak in February, transatlantic routes in March, Asian routes in February. Summer brings smoother air at cruise altitude but more thunderstorm turbulence, which this ranking does not measure.

What are the smoothest long flights?

Tropical routes far from the jet streams. Among long-haul routes between major airports, Hong Kong – Nadi and Bangkok – Manila had almost no rough-air conditions at cruise in 2025, though tropical routes can still meet thunderstorms.

Is turbulence dangerous?

For a seat-belted passenger, very rarely. Commercial aircraft are built to withstand far stronger forces than turbulence produces. Nearly all turbulence injuries happen to people who are not wearing a seat belt, so keep it fastened whenever you are seated.

How is this ranking calculated?

We took NOAA's NCEP/NCAR reanalysis for every six hours of 2025 (1,460 snapshots) and computed vertical wind shear between 30,000 and 39,000 ft, the main driver of clear-air turbulence. We used the same thresholds our app uses for forecasts. For each of 11,148 airport pairs we sampled the great-circle path every 50 km, skipping climb and descent. The score is the share of time conditions along the route reached the moderate level.

Can I use this data?

Yes. You're welcome to cite, chart or republish the rankings and the CSV, with a link to this page as the source.

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