Developer preview

Flight data for your next idea.

Preview only — contact us for current access.

These are proposed endpoints and illustrative responses. Public API availability and paid plans are not confirmed. The playground runs simulated examples; please check with FlightTrackerLED support before building an integration.

A proposed JSON interface for overhead aircraft, individual flights, and airport departure boards. Explore the response shapes below, then contact us to discuss current access.

The design brings together aircraft positions and a route engine built in-house. Coverage, freshness, response contracts, and plan limits must be confirmed for your integration.

https://data.flighttrackerled.com/v1 · proposed endpoint · ask about access · data by airplanes.live × FlightTrackerLED
Quickstart — what’s overhead right now 

  






  
Authentication

  
The proposed service uses a bearer key in the Authorization header. Contact us to confirm key provisioning and access. This public preview accepts no keys and makes no live API requests.

  

    

      Authorization header
      

    

    
$ curl https://data.flighttrackerled.com/v1/flights/overhead \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $FTL_KEY"

  

  
Keys are shown once at creation. Treat them like passwords: call the API from your server, never from client-side code — a key in a browser bundle is a key you’ve published. A missing or revoked key returns 401 unauthorized.






  
Rate limits

  
The proposed Builder limit is 60 requests per minute. Overhead snapshots are rebuilt about every 5 seconds server-side, so polling faster just returns the same snapshot — a 5–10 second interval is the sweet spot.

  

    
X-RateLimit-LimitYour per-minute ceiling (60).

    
X-RateLimit-RemainingRequests left in the current window.

    
X-RateLimit-ResetUnix time the window resets.

  

  
Past the limit you get a 429 with retry_after in seconds. Need a higher ceiling? The Fleet plan lifts it to 300 requests per minute, pooled across your keys.






  
Proposed plans

  
Proposed plans are shown for discussion. Availability, pricing, limits, support, and key provisioning must be confirmed directly before purchase. There is no self-serve API subscription on this page.

  

    

      
Builder

      
$250 /month

      
    
        
  • Commercial license for one product
    • 
        
  • All endpoints — overhead, flights, departures
    • 
        
  • 60 requests / minute
    • 
        
  • 2 production keys
    • 
        
  • Email support
    • 
      

      Discuss Builder
    

    

      
Fleet

      
$500 /month

      
    
        
  • Everything in Builder
    • 
        
  • 300 requests / minute, pooled
    • 
        
  • Up to 10 keys across apps & environments
    • 
        
  • 99.9% uptime target
    • 
        
  • Priority support · new endpoints first
    • 
      

      Talk to us about Fleet
    

  

  
Building something bigger — resale, embedded hardware, or a use the plans don’t cover? Write us and we’ll work it out.






  
GET/v1/flights/overhead

  
Overhead scanner

  
The live aircraft over a point, exactly as the Mach 2 sees them. Give it a coordinate and a radius, get every aircraft inside the circle — ident, resolved route, altitude, ground speed, and distance from your point, nearest first.

  
Query parameters

  

    
NameTypeDescription

    
latnumberREQUIREDLatitude of the center point, −90 to 90.

    
lonnumberREQUIREDLongitude of the center point, −180 to 180.

    
radius_miintegeroptionalScan radius in statute miles, 1–100. Default 15.

    
alt_min_ftintegeroptionalIgnore aircraft below this barometric altitude.

    
alt_max_ftintegeroptionalIgnore aircraft above this altitude.

    
dirstringoptionalHeading filter, e.g. 240-300 — only aircraft tracking within the arc.

  

  
Response

  

    
countAircraft in the snapshot.

    
freshness_sAge of the snapshot in seconds — usually under 5.

    
flights[].identCallsign or registration.

    
flights[].routeResolved origin → destination, or local for pattern work.

    
flights[].alt_ftBarometric altitude, feet.

    
flights[].gs_ktGround speed, knots.

    
flights[].dist_miDistance from your point, statute miles.

    
flights[].sourcenetwork, or local_adsb when the reading came off your own receiver (v1.5.4+).

  

  

    

      GET /v1/flights/overhead
      

        
        
        
        
        
      

    

    

  






  
GET/v1/flights/{ident}

  
Track a flight

  
One flight, gate to gate. Pass a flight number (UA970, DL2214) or a tail number (N425PC) and follow it from pushback to arrival — schedule against actuals, live position, and how far along it is.

  
Response

  

    
identNormalized callsign.

    
statusscheduled · taxiing · enroute · landed · cancelled

    
aircraftICAO type designator, e.g. B77W.

    
originiata, scheduled and actual departure times.

    
destinationiata and current eta.

    
positionLat/lon, altitude, ground speed — live while enroute.

    
progress_pctHow far along the route, 0–100.

  

  
A flight that isn’t operating today returns 404 not_found — check the ident, or try the registration instead.

  

    

      GET /v1/flights/UA970
      

        
        
        
        
      

    

    

  






  
GET/v1/airports/{iata}/departures

  
Departure board

  
The Departure Board scene, as JSON: upcoming departures for an airport with schedule, gate, and live status — ready to render on anything from a dashboard to a lobby screen.

  
Query parameters

  

    
NameTypeDescription

    
airlinestringoptionalICAO airline filter, e.g. UAL.

    
limitintegeroptionalRows to return, 1–50. Default 10, soonest first.

  

  
Response

  

    
airportEchoed IATA code.

    
departures[].identFlight callsign.

    
departures[].destDestination IATA.

    
departures[].schedScheduled departure, airport-local time.

    
departures[].gateGate, when the airport publishes one.

    
departures[].statuson_time · boarding · delayed · departed · cancelled

  

  

    

      GET /v1/airports/ORD/departures
      

        
        
        
        
      

    

    

  






  
Playground

  
Explore a simulated overhead response. This preview does not call a live flight-data API. Contact FlightTrackerLED to confirm availability before integrating.

  

    

      

      

      

      
    

  

  
Whatever the playground returns also lights up the LED panel at the bottom of the page.

  

    

      Response
    

    
# Press “Run example” to see a simulated response.

  






  
Errors

  
Errors are JSON with a stable code and a human message; the HTTP status matches the code. Retry 429 and 503 after the wait — everything else means the request needs fixing.

  

    
HTTPCodeMeaning

    
400invalid_requestA parameter is missing or out of range — the message names it.

    
401unauthorizedMissing, malformed, or revoked API key.

    
404not_foundFlight not active today, or unknown airport code.

    
429rate_limitedOver 60 req/min — wait retry_after seconds.

    
503snapshot_unavailableThe upstream feed is rebuilding — retry in a few seconds.

  






  
Changelog

  

    

      
v1.5.4
Aug 2026

      
Added source on overhead aircraft — local_adsb entries come straight off your own receiver at ~1-second freshness.

    

    

      
v1.5.0
May 2026

      
New /airports/{iata}/departures endpoint with gate and status fields — the Departure Board, as JSON.

    

    

      
v1.4.2
Feb 2026

      
Heading filters (dir) on overhead scans; progress_pct on tracked flights.

    

  






  
  
2,048 pixels, same as the box on your desk — and it’s rendering the last API response on this page, the way a Mach 2 would. Run the playground and watch it pick up your flights; click the panel to cycle LED colors. Data by airplanes.live × FlightTrackerLED · © 2026