If you’ve ever looked up in the sky and was curious where that plane you saw was going, or simply need to know what time to be at the airport to retrieve a relative, there’s an app for that. Want to taunt your friends by tweeting live flight tracking information for your flight to Hawaii so they can watch in agony as you cross the Pacific towards paradise? No problem. Plane spotting in St. Maarten and wondering what time the KLM 747 lands so you can have your camera ready? With the FlightAware mobile app you can do all of that, and more, for FREE! Let’s check it out-
FlightAware for iOS
Flights
The Flights menu gives you the ability to track by Flight Number, Tail Number, or by searching the Flight Route. This includes all regularly scheduled commercial flights and any general aviation aircraft traveling on a filed flight plan. If you’re looking for a code share flight you will want to search by the operating carrier name. For example, many United Express flights are operated by SkyWest and other carriers, so you’ll want to search using their name and the flight number instead of United. Once you find your flight, if you scroll to the bottom you will be able to see the filed route, “View Flight Map”, check out the “Flight Track Log” for speed and altitude information, “Track Inbound Flights” (helpful when you are stuck at the gate waiting for your plane to arrive), and track historical information. At the very bottom of the page you will find options to set up notifications, add the flight to your “My FlightAware” profile, and share with others via Facebook and Twitter.
United 1624
United 1624 (cont.)
My Flight Aware
My Flight Aware allows you to directly access any saved information on Aircraft, Airports, and Alerts that you’ve added via other portions of the app. Here you could keep a log of all the flights you’ve taken, set up a shortcut to see live information at a local/favorite airport, and manage any alerts and notifications you may have arranged. This is your part of the app to customize as you please.
Managing Alerts
Nearby
This is the feature you’ll use to track those planes you see up in the sky or hear flying over your house (or ski resort). Tap on any of the planes on the screen to produce a Flight/Tail number and an altitude. Click the arrow for more detailed information. You can toggle back and forth between the default blue radar style screen and a road map style view by tapping FA Base: ON/OFF button in the upper right corner.
Nearby- Sacramento Area
Southwest 1521
Airports
Here you can search for a specific airport by name or IATA code. There is also an option to “View Airport Delays” which will bring up a map of the entire country similar to what you would find on FlightAware.com. Once you find what you are looking for, you can view Arrivals, Departures, En Route, and Scheduled flights with a single tap. “View Flight Traffic” produces a map (similar to Nearby) showing the area’s activity. Planes shown in blue are associated with that particular airport. Green planes represent other traffic in the area.
ANC
Map of Anchorage
As you can see FlightAware is a powerful tool and an endless source of #avgeek entertainment. I’ve found the flight tracking capabilities to rival those of other paid apps. I’ve used to app to track family members’ incoming flights when I was picking them up at the airport and used it to keep them informed of my plans as well. I’ve been made aware of flight delays even before airport announcements were made. I can also thank FlightAware for my geekiest #avgeek moment ever. Like with any app that has so many different functions, the best way to get familiar with it is to just start playing with it on your phone or mobile device. So what are you waiting for? Embrace your inner #avgeek and download it today!