N E S W 194°
18 / 36
RWY 18/36
HDG 194°
LEN 5,896 ft
Sunshine Coast Airport

Runway 18 at YBSU

Runway 18/36 at Sunshine Coast Airport (YBSU) in Maroochydore is a 5,896 ft, lighted, asphalt runway oriented 194°/014°. The runway is 98 ft wide. SkyMeter has observed 8 landings and 0 departures on this runway over the last 30 days, with approximately 0.0% of arrivals resulting in a go-around.

Last 30 Days
8 Operations
0 Deps / 8 Arrs

Runway 18/36 at Sunshine Coast Airport (YBSU) in Maroochydore is a 5,896 ft, lighted, asphalt runway oriented 194°/014°. The runway is 98 ft wide. SkyMeter has observed 8 landings and 0 departures on this runway over the last 30 days, with approximately 0.0% of arrivals resulting in a go-around.

Runway at a Glance

Arrival Volume

8 landings observed on Runway 18 in the last 30 days, alongside 0 departures.

Limited Traffic Observed

SkyMeter has observed very few flights using Runway 18 in the last 30 days. Statistical breakdowns (go-around rate, crosswind averages) need more observations to be meaningful.

Peak Hour

Busiest landing window observed at 04:00 with 2 arrivals on the recent sample.

Prevailing Wind & Gust History

Over the past 365 days, winds at YBSU have prevailed from the south (180°), accounting for roughly 14% of windy observations. Average wind speed sits at 9.2 kt with peak gusts to 57 kt. Strong-wind days are infrequent here.

Hourly Landing Distribution

01:00 1 landings
03:00 1 landings
04:00 2 landings
06:00 1 landings
07:00 1 landings
21:00 1 landings
23:00 1 landings

Recent observed landings on Runway 18 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 18 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

04:00
160° at 17 kts, gusting 0 kts
17 kts
23:00
190° at 15 kts, gusting 0 kts
15 kts
01:00
180° at 19 kts, gusting 29 kts
19 kts
06:00
170° at 11 kts, gusting 0 kts
11 kts
03:00
130° at 10 kts, gusting 0 kts
10 kts
07:00
330° at 6 kts, gusting 0 kts
6 kts
21:00
300° at 5 kts, gusting 0 kts
5 kts
METAR
290° at 4 kts, gusting 0 kts
4 kts

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

Average Speed
12 kts
Peak Gust
18 kts
Prevailing Direction
194°
Avg Crosswind
8 kts

Related Pages

About This Data

This analysis covers 8 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.