On the map a coloured line shows the route of the aircraft. Purple colours indicate cruising altitudes. White colours indicate the plane is on the ground. As a plane takes off, the colours change from white, to yellow, to green, to light blue, to dark blue and finally to purple.
Red: When an aircraft is displayed as red that means that you are currently following that specific aircraft on the map or that the aircraft's transponder is squawking an emergency code. These codes are 7500 (Hijack), 7600 (Communication Equipment Failure), 7700 (General Emergency)
A note about Estimated coverage: when you see a dashed or gray line behind an aircraft, that's estimated coverage. Colored lines indicate actual positions. When an aircraft is out of coverage, we estimate based on great circle routes to destination.
In most cases, our receiver network is no longer receiving a signal from the aircraft. This tends to be more common when an aircraft is flying over large bodies of water. It can also be a technical problem somewhere. FR24 has not a global coverage.
Squawking 7700 in an emergencyThe most well know of these is the code 7700. This is used to indicate an emergency of any kind. A pilot will enter this when in an emergency situation - either instructed by ATC after declaring an emergency or without communication if there is no time.
Arrival and Departure boards list flight status and the On Ground page lists aircraft currently at the airport. All users see the last 60 minutes of on ground activity, Silver subscribers see the past 7 days, Gold subscribers see the last 30 days, and Business subscribers see the last 90 days.
The position is calculated based on many different parameters and in most cases it's quite accurate, but for long flights the position can in worst cases be up to about 100 km (55 miles) off. In settings there is an option to set for how long time you want to see estimated aircraft on map.
Websites such as ADSBExchange.com, FlightRadar24.com and FlightAware.com aggregate flight data in the United States and abroad using a mix of commercial and citizen-owned sensors that capture the movements of commercial, civilian and military aircraft in real time, 24 hours a day.
Flightradar24 is a global flight tracking service that provides you with real-time information about thousands of aircraft around the world. Our service is currently available online and for your iOS (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch) or Android device.
Does FlightRadar show private planes? Yes, it does, but the data is limited. If an operator doesn't want their personal details published, FlightRadar will block out that information or even omit showing the aircraft directly related to high-profile individuals, like Air Force One.
Restricted aircraftOperators of private or sensitive aircraft may request their tracking details be restricted or not displayed. Generally, aircraft requesting that they not be displayed on Flightradar24 are military aircraft. Some military aircraft, such as various transport aircraft, are visible.
Each color indicates a different flight status. Below are the meanings behind these colors: Gray: The flight is scheduled and there isn't an additional status available. Green: The flight is estimated to be on time or arrived at time. Orange: The flight is estimated to be delayed or was delayed.
If a crew resets their transponder to the emergency code of 7700 (squawking 7700), all air traffic control facilities in the area are immediately alerted that the aircraft has an emergency situation.
The second emergency squawk code is 7600, showing ATC that the aircraft has lost verbal communication. This could mean that it can still hear ATC and yet not respond, in which case the ATC will direct the pilot to speak with them through the Ident button.