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Flightradar24 – how it works

habr.com

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Re: Flightradar24 – how it works

#3

Post by fergbrain »

“Every civilian airliner is equipped with a special device — the so-caller ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast) transponder”

Not true actually: in the US, ADS-B isn’t required until January 1, 2020 [1].

Also, FR24 uses radar data in the US (probably because not all aircraft has ADS-B) [2].

There are also sites, such as ADS-B Exchange [3] that provide unfiltered flight data...very helpful for tracking military flights and such.

[1] https://www.faa.gov/nextgen/programs/adsb/faq/#g2

[2] https://www.flightradar24.com/how-it-works

[3] https://www.adsbexchange.com

Re: Flightradar24 – how it works

#5

Post by diggan »

Worth nothing that if you're in a area with poor coverage, Flightradar24 might be willing to send you a free receiver https://www.flightradar24.com/add-coverage

Page above also have a similar guide to this submission.

I mainly started contributing with data only because you'll be able to get a free business account with Flightradar24 if you contribute, which gives you longer history to view, and bunch of more map layers to use.

Re: Flightradar24 – how it works

#7

Post by aw3c2 »

Is there a site that offers truly open data, as in a download of all their collected historic data under a open license and without other restrictions (like having to query an API)?

Re: Flightradar24 – how it works

#8

Post by anyfoo »

jalgos_eminator wrote: post #4

I started checking Flightradar24 after seeing a few planes circle above my office building one day. Never knew that transponder data was so accessible!

Check opennav.com whether there’s a waypoint at your location. There probably is, as a reference point for the hold pattern (if it was a hold). Just enter a nearby airport and then scroll down to the waypoint map.

Re: Flightradar24 – how it works

#9

Post by billh »

a2tech wrote: post #2

Interesting tidbit from the article—apparently flightradar24 doesn’t show business jets or military planes.

If you're interested in that data, https://www.adsbexchange.com will show it. They also have filters available to only show things like Military or "Interesting" aircraft.
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