Flight Aware and Flight Following
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rbridges
En-Route
probably not unless it's a pretty long flight. Before my instrument rating, it was probably 1 out of 10 on vfr flights. It may also depend on where you are flying.
eman1200
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Bro do you even lift
I'm almost always on FA after getting FF.
jimmyjack
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Nick
Same. Even for 30 minute flights.
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If center issues a code starting with 0 or 1, those are "local"codes and almost never show up on Flight Aware....
Higher numbers like 5---, 6--- usually will show up..
Higher numbers like 5---, 6--- usually will show up..
To show up in FlightAware, you have to have a plan. A local code doesn't typically involve a plan (at least not one visible to FA). Even with such a plan, from discussion with some goofly observations with FA support, VFR FF plans often have "issues".
FBH the code allocation is here: http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Order/JO 7110.66D .pdf
It's not as simple as you describe. The local code blocks are 0000, 4200, 4300, 4500,
4600, 4700, 5100, 5200, 5300, and 5500. There are more external code blocks and a whole slew of special ones for various things like military, the FRZ, etc...
FBH the code allocation is here: http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Order/JO 7110.66D .pdf
It's not as simple as you describe. The local code blocks are 0000, 4200, 4300, 4500,
4600, 4700, 5100, 5200, 5300, and 5500. There are more external code blocks and a whole slew of special ones for various things like military, the FRZ, etc...
Hank S
En-Route
My longer XCs usually show up on FlightAware, and I've never filed a VFR flight plan. Now that I start with ATL center, I have to go further (transfer to someone else) to increase my chance of showing up. Burger runs one or two counties away? No. Traveling > 90 minutes? Frequently. Traveling > 2 hours? Usually. Filed IFR? Always.
JeffDG
Touchdown! Greaser!
My experience is that if you are on flight-following, and somewhere along the line you are handed off to another jurisdiction (ie. approach to centre), it will show up on Flightaware. If you're just tooling around in one centre or one approach airspace, they'll just give you a local transponder code and that will never make it into the feed. If they have to hand you off, you need to go into the system in some way that translates to the other jurisdiction, and that system seems to be what feeds Flightaware.
Now, I have no clue if this is really the case, just anecdotal observations on my part.
Now, I have no clue if this is really the case, just anecdotal observations on my part.
Unit74
Final Approach
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Unit74
Same same.... FF I always can look up my flight later.
simtech
En-Route
Sometimes mine shows up and sometimes not. Just this week I did a flight and started with approach and the flight was just over an hour. On the return trip started with memphis center and again just about an hour flight. Flight following both ways. Only my return trip was on flight aware.
ahkahn
Line Up and Wait
I believe it depends on whether or not the controller enters you into the ATC system. Sometimes they'll just give you a local squawk code and won't pass you along.
FWIW, I got squawk code 6666 today... and was like, "are you serious?"
FWIW, I got squawk code 6666 today... and was like, "are you serious?"
Badger
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jordane93
Touchdown! Greaser!
For me sometimes it shows up and sometimes it doesn't.
StinkBug
Cleared for Takeoff
I get flight following on almost every vfr flight I do that's outside the San Diego area. Almost NEVER do I show up on FA. When I picked up my plane in TX I filed VFR flight plans for both of my legs, only one showed up on FA. It's all in how the controller punches you into the system and there is no way to guarantee that you'll show up other than going IFR.
Zeldman
Touchdown! Greaser!
Once I received my IFR clearance in the air, and got squawk 3228.
hmmmm.... having a little trouble finding the 8 on my transponder...
Ok, try 3226 and see if that shows up...
Sometimes ATC can find humor in their own mistakes...
Brad Z
Final Approach
Just so you know, a VFR flight plan never leaves flight service (i.e. It doesn't go to ATC) so it should have no bearing on whether it shows up on flightaware or not.
FWIW, I suspect there are some proprietary algorithms in Flightaware designed to filter out noisy data that selectively include some but not all VFR operations under an ATC assigned beacon code. Sometimes my local flights show up, sometimes they don't. Flightaware's answer is that there's esssentially no rhyme or reason to VFR tracks.
SportPilotCO
Pre-takeoff checklist
You can ask for a NAS or (National AirSpace) code when you fly a cross country. With a NAS code, I find that my flights show up most of the time. When I met with the controllers at Colorado Springs approach they said either asking for a NAS code directly, or even better saying you want a code "all the way" to your destination will result in getting a NAS code most times.
Carl
Carl
KSCessnaDriver
Pattern Altitude
I got 6666 for a code last fall, on Friday the 13th.
StinkBug
Cleared for Takeoff
I mainly noted that in response to a previous post saying that you needed to "have a plan" which doesn't seem to have any bearing whatsoever on if you show up or not.
To show up in FA you need to have a plan in the National Airspace System. VFR plans aren't filed into the NAS and most controllers won't enter VFR flights into the NAS. So more likely than not, you won't show up on FA.
SbestCFII
Line Up and Wait
If they get your N# in correctly....usually, especially if your traverse ATC sectors. Even when fly IFR training mission in VMC, I like to use Flightaware to go back and look at the approaches, holding patterns, etc. It's a pretty good training tool (and free).
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Nsconductor
Pre-takeoff checklist
Not exactly 100% correct. If you have ADS-B out and someone besides the FAA is feeding data to FA, you will show up.
This happens all the time. I feed data to FA from my ADS-B receiver at home running on a Raspberry PI.
Thank a look at PI-Aware if you are really interested.
http://flightaware.com/adsb/
I have ADS-B and I've never seen that happen on a VFR flight. How is that even possible since FA wouldn't know the departure or destination airports? On IFR plans it provides additional tracking, but I'm very surprised if ADS-B alone makes VFR flights show up. As I said, that has not been my experience.
Nsconductor
Pre-takeoff checklist
Good point. I've never dug into it that far. Just cool seeing the data I'm sending show up in near real time. I'll look this morning as soon as Houston wakes up and see if it's only IFR traffic that I'm feeding showing up.
Edited - I stand corrected. From the FA website:
Can FlightAware track VFR flights? What about a VFR flight with a flight plan? (Back to top)
In the US and Europe, this is not officially supported although some VFR aircraft with flight following are available on the position maps but it is largely unreliable and arrival/departure/flight plan data is often not available. VFR flight plans are irrelevant and only used by FSS for search and rescue. We suggest ensuring that aircraft are on an IFR flight plan from wheels up to wheels down for proper tracking.
In Australia, VFR flights are supported by FlightAware as long as they have been assigned a transponder code.
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mkosmo
Pattern Altitude
It doesn't even take a 'plan' to get in to FA. If they put in a src/dest and you have a center code, you'll show up in the ASDI feed, sure. If they don't put in a plan and you have a center code, you'll still show up in ASDI. Only recently did FA start showing "position only" ASDI data, though. I see position only for my tail somehow but nobody else I've asked does... it's weird. And the last code I got that showed up was a local and showed up as position-only, so that threw me off a little bit.
I once got 5327 as my squawk code (My N number is 5327K). I don't know if it was a coincidence, 5300 is one of the local blocks.
StinkBug
Cleared for Takeoff
Some of them must.
http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N6719N/history
May 10th, from "near Oceanside" to SBA. I definitely didn't file any kind of plan there, nor on the way back, but it showed up. What doesn't show up are the dozen or so flights I did on Flight Following between then and now. The most recent flight shown is an IFR flight from CRQ to WHP, which in reality was immediately followed (about an hour later) by a flight to OAK then another flight back to CRQ, which was on FF but not FA.
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Ya whether controllers enter you into the NAS is really hit or miss. Did you file the IFR plan electronically or with a ground controller at your airport? If electronically through AFSS or DUATS for example, you'll automatically be in the NAS so you can find your flight on FA even before you takeoff and know that you'll be tracked. Otherwise, the chances are pretty slim.
Actually a good way to get around this for VFR is to file an IFR plan (for those who can) via DUATS or AFSS, but instead of picking up your clearance just ask for flight following. You'll still show up in FA because your squawk code will be linked to your tail number and the NAS / FA will be tricked into thinking you're on the IFR plan you filed earlier.
I've done this a number of times, or just cancelled ifr over the top and request ff, and have been tracked to my destination.
Indiana_Pilot
Line Up and Wait
I almost always show up also.. I am VERY ready to equip my 180 with ADS-b out when the prices drop some more.. I really wish they would release the Stratus ESG !
StinkBug
Cleared for Takeoff
In the example posted I was VFR, and didn't file any plan of any type. I wasn't even instrument rated at that point. When I do file IFR it's either done through DUATS or simply call C/D for Tower Enroute if it's somewhere in SoCal. Those always show up on FA.
Never thought about Filing and not activating, but I can say that's no guarantee either. That most recent flight to WHP was a Tower Enroute, but I had filed IFR from WHP to OAK electronically. When I was ready to depart WHP had a bunch of traffic and they were gonna have to hold me for a long time, so I departed VFR and picked up flight following to OAK. That leg was filed IFR, flown VFR on FF and doesn't show up on FA.
Clark1961
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If they don't notice your strip then you won't get the beacon code that FA is looking for. When you request FF just tell them that there should be a strip there for you. It helps them out because little data entry is required.
ahkahn
Line Up and Wait
Ha! You know someone was chuckling somewhere...
jordane93
Touchdown! Greaser!
Just got back from a short flight from FRG to N12 and we got flight following. The plane didn't show up on flightaware.
rocketflyer84
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RocketFlyer84
In my experience around that area you need to have been handed off to someone outside NY TRACON to show up on flight aware. Flights to Jersey that just stay with TRACON don't show up. Go to far eastern CT or western RI and get handed off to Providence approach and you'll show up.
When flying up to Hartford Brainard NY TRACON usually just dumps you since you'll contact the tower just a few miles outside their airspace. On the reverse trip Brainard tower gives out codes on the ground that come from Bradley approach, who quickly hands you off to NY TRACON shortly after departure. So if you fly FRG-HFD VFR one usually shows up on the return leg but not the outgoing.
There's lots of quirks like that which determine if you show up, but if VFR the main thing is to not get a "local only" squawk code.
jordane93
Touchdown! Greaser!
Yea we talked to McGuire for a few minutes then cancelled flight following. I guess it wasn't long enough for us to show up on FA.
EminiTrader
Cleared for Takeoff
In Florida my FF barely shows up. Yesterday I flew from Jacksonville down towards Miami and back. FF on the way down and IFR on the way back.. nothing on the way down..