N E S W 260°
26 / 08
RWY 26/08
HDG 260°
LEN 4,100 ft
Boulder Municipal Airport

Runway 26 at KBDU

Runway 26/08 at Boulder Municipal Airport (KBDU) in Boulder is a 4,100 ft, unlit, asph-g runway oriented 260°/080°. The runway is 75 ft wide. SkyMeter has observed 130 landings and 18 departures on this runway over the last 30 days, with approximately 0.0% of arrivals resulting in a go-around. Trace data shows an average final-approach slope of 4.4°, touchdowns averaging 4,197 ft past the threshold, a typical touchdown ground speed of 84 kt, a 4.7 kt average crosswind component, a 3.7 kt average tailwind.

Last 30 Days
148 Operations
18 Deps / 130 Arrs

Runway 26/08 at Boulder Municipal Airport (KBDU) in Boulder is a 4,100 ft, unlit, asph-g runway oriented 260°/080°. The runway is 75 ft wide. SkyMeter has observed 130 landings and 18 departures on this runway over the last 30 days, with approximately 0.0% of arrivals resulting in a go-around. Trace data shows an average final-approach slope of 4.4°, touchdowns averaging 4,197 ft past the threshold, a typical touchdown ground speed of 84 kt, a 4.7 kt average crosswind component, a 3.7 kt average tailwind.

Runway at a Glance

Arrival Volume

130 landings observed on Runway 26 in the last 30 days, alongside 18 departures.

Peak Hour

Busiest landing window observed at 15:00 with 11 arrivals on the recent sample.

Average Touchdown Zone

Aircraft touch down on average 4,197 ft from the threshold on Runway 26.

Prevailing Wind & Gust History

Over the past 365 days, winds at KBDU have prevailed from the west-southwest (240°), accounting for roughly 17% of windy observations. Average wind speed sits at 4.5 kt with peak gusts to 76 kt. Strong-wind days are infrequent here.

Light Crosswind Component

Average crosswind on landing is 4.7 kt at touchdown, measured against runway 26 alignment.

Approach Slope

Final-approach slope averages 4.4° on Runway 26, steeper than the standard 3°.

Landing Behavior and Touchdown Performance

The metrics below are computed from ADS-B trace data observed at Runway 26 over the last 30 days. Each value is shown only when at least 10 valid samples were available; sparse cells are hidden rather than estimated.

Avg approach slope
4.4°
Avg touchdown GS
84 kts
Avg touchdown zone
4,197 ft
Avg headwind
-3.7 kt

Hourly Landing Distribution

00:00 2 landings
01:00 4 landings
02:00 3 landings
04:00 1 landings
13:00 4 landings
14:00 1 landings
15:00 11 landings
16:00 6 landings
17:00 2 landings
18:00 1 landings
20:00 1 landings
21:00 8 landings
22:00 4 landings
23:00 2 landings

Recent observed landings on Runway 26 grouped by hour-of-day (UTC).

Approach Types and Categories

Aircraft approach runways using different procedures based on weather conditions, visibility, and available navigation equipment. An Instrument Landing System (ILS) approach provides precision horizontal and vertical guidance using ground-based radio signals, enabling aircraft to land in low visibility conditions. Visual approaches require pilots to maintain visual contact with the runway and surrounding terrain, typically used during clear weather. Area Navigation (RNAV) approaches use GPS technology to guide aircraft along specific flight paths.

Approach Categories Explained

Category (CAT) classifications define minimum visibility and decision height requirements for instrument approaches. Higher categories enable operations in lower visibility conditions.

CAT I
Decision Height: 200 ft
Visibility: 550m
CAT II
Decision Height: 100 ft
Visibility: 300m
CAT III
Decision Height: 0-50 ft
Visibility: 0-200m
Visual
Clear of Clouds
Visibility: 5 km

Wind and Environmental Factors

Wind conditions directly impact runway operations, influencing approach difficulty, landing performance, and runway selection. Runway 26 benefits from favorable wind alignment, with prevailing winds creating minimal crosswind components for most operations. Average wind speeds of 12 knots pose no operational constraints for commercial aircraft.

24-Hour Wind Pattern

16:00
79° at 5 kts, gusting 7 kts
5 kts
21:00
263° at 9 kts, gusting 11 kts
9 kts
22:00
308° at 6 kts, gusting 7 kts
6 kts
13:00
35° at 7 kts, gusting 7 kts
7 kts
15:00
38° at 6 kts, gusting 7 kts
6 kts
00:00
99° at 13 kts, gusting 10 kts
13 kts
01:00
127° at 9 kts, gusting 16 kts
9 kts
02:00
143° at 12 kts, gusting 19 kts
12 kts
14:00
37° at 6 kts, gusting 6 kts
6 kts
23:00
0° at 0 kts, gusting 0 kts
0 kts
17:00
107° at 5 kts, gusting 5 kts
5 kts
18:00
101° at 7 kts, gusting 5 kts
7 kts
04:00
80° at 5 kts, gusting 11 kts
5 kts
20:00
77° at 6 kts, gusting 11 kts
6 kts
METAR
250° at 3 kts, gusting 0 kts
3 kts

Wind patterns show typical diurnal variation with stronger winds during midday hours.

Average Speed
12 kts
Peak Gust
18 kts
Prevailing Direction
260°
Avg Crosswind
8 kts

Related Pages

About This Data

This analysis covers 148 operations recorded over the past 30 days, derived from global ADS-B flight broadcasts. Coverage may be incomplete in areas with limited ground-station reception, and statistics may vary with weather and traffic volume.