Grab this map with your mouse and move to your local area to see what's flying LIVE....click on any aircraft to see what it is, where it's going and where it's from.......
How it works......Flightradar24 is a flight tracker that shows live air traffic from around the world. Flightradar24 combines data from several data sources including ADS-B, MLAT and FAA. The ADS-B, MLAT and FAA data is aggregated together with schedule and flight status data from airlines and airports to create a unique flight tracking experience on www.flightradar24.com and in Flightradar24 apps.
ADS-BThe primary technology that we use to receive flight information is called automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B). The ADS-B technology itself is best explained by the image to the right.
Flightradar24 has a network of about 2000 ADS-B receivers around the world that receives plane and flight information from aircraft with ADS-B transponders and sends this information to our servers. Due to the high frequency used (1090 MHz) the coverage from each receiver is limited to about 250-400 km (150-250 miles) in all directions depending on location. The farther away from the receiver an aircraft is flying, the higher it must fly to be covered by the receiver. The distance limit makes it very hard to get ADS-B coverage over oceans.
About 99% of Europe is covered with ADS-B receivers. There is also good ADS-B coverage in USA, Canada, Caribbean, Brazil, Russia, Middle East, India, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. In other parts of the world the ADS-B coverage varies.
MLATIn some regions with coverage from several FR24-receivers we also calculate positions of aircraft with the help of Multilateration (MLAT), by using a method known as Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA). By measuring the difference in time to receive the signal from aircraft with an older ModeS-transponder, it's possible to calculate the position of these aircraft. Four FR24-receivers or more, receiving signals from the same aircraft, are needed to make MLAT work. That means that MLAT coverage can only be achieved above about 10000-20000 feet as the probability that signal can be received by four or more receivers increases with increased altitude.
MLAT coverage is today limited to some parts of Europe and North America, but expanding fast.
FAAIn addition to ADS-B and MLAT data, we also get data from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States. Unlike the ADS-B and MLAT data that is presented real-time, the FAA data is delayed by roughly 5 minutes due to FAA regulations. On the Flightradar24 map, all aircraft based on FAA data are orange.
FAA data is based on radar data (i.e. not just planes with ADS-B transponders) and includes most scheduled and commercial air traffic in US and Canadian air space + parts of Atlantic and Pacific Ocean.
ADS-BThe primary technology that we use to receive flight information is called automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B). The ADS-B technology itself is best explained by the image to the right.
- Aircraft gets its location from a GPS navigation source (satellite)
- The ADS-B transponder on aircraft transmits signal containing the location (and much more)
- ADS-B signal is picked up by a receiver connected to Flightradar24
- Receiver feeds data to Flightradar24
- Data is shown on www.flightradar24.com and in Flightradar24 apps
Flightradar24 has a network of about 2000 ADS-B receivers around the world that receives plane and flight information from aircraft with ADS-B transponders and sends this information to our servers. Due to the high frequency used (1090 MHz) the coverage from each receiver is limited to about 250-400 km (150-250 miles) in all directions depending on location. The farther away from the receiver an aircraft is flying, the higher it must fly to be covered by the receiver. The distance limit makes it very hard to get ADS-B coverage over oceans.
About 99% of Europe is covered with ADS-B receivers. There is also good ADS-B coverage in USA, Canada, Caribbean, Brazil, Russia, Middle East, India, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. In other parts of the world the ADS-B coverage varies.
MLATIn some regions with coverage from several FR24-receivers we also calculate positions of aircraft with the help of Multilateration (MLAT), by using a method known as Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA). By measuring the difference in time to receive the signal from aircraft with an older ModeS-transponder, it's possible to calculate the position of these aircraft. Four FR24-receivers or more, receiving signals from the same aircraft, are needed to make MLAT work. That means that MLAT coverage can only be achieved above about 10000-20000 feet as the probability that signal can be received by four or more receivers increases with increased altitude.
MLAT coverage is today limited to some parts of Europe and North America, but expanding fast.
FAAIn addition to ADS-B and MLAT data, we also get data from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States. Unlike the ADS-B and MLAT data that is presented real-time, the FAA data is delayed by roughly 5 minutes due to FAA regulations. On the Flightradar24 map, all aircraft based on FAA data are orange.
FAA data is based on radar data (i.e. not just planes with ADS-B transponders) and includes most scheduled and commercial air traffic in US and Canadian air space + parts of Atlantic and Pacific Ocean.
