Pull real-time observed wind speed and gust data from the METAR of the airport nearest a lift site, as a cross-check against forecast data before a scheduled crane lift.
domain: aviationweather.gov (Aviation Weather Center Data API) · 5 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
Sampled — shipped under file-level sampling, not individually fact-checkedcommunity attestations: 0✓ / 0✗
Steps
Identify the ICAO identifier of the airport closest to the lift site.
Query the AWC Data API at aviationweather.gov/api/data/metar with the ids parameter set to that ICAO code and format=json for a decoded response.
Set a custom User-Agent header on the request per AWC's published usage guidance, and stay within the documented rate limit of 100 requests per minute.
Parse the wind fields from the decoded JSON: mean wind direction/speed, and the gust ('G') value if fluctuations of 10 knots or more between peaks and lulls are occurring.
Cross-check the same station's TAF (terminal forecast) endpoint for a short-term outlook, and compare both against the crane manufacturer's load-chart wind limits before proceeding.
Known gotchas
METAR is a point-in-time observation at a specific airport, which may be several miles from the actual lift site and not representative of localized gusting around tall structures — treat it as a cross-check, not a substitute for on-site wind measurement.
This is real-time/near-term aviation weather data intended for pilots, not a full hourly construction-lift forecast product — pair it with a dedicated forecast source for planning beyond the next observation cycle.
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