What is the best way to block tail number keeping it hidden from public tracking?

You don't want the entire world's public (not just the US, but the entire WORLD) to know of your travels?
Already everyone in the world knows when you hop in a car and where you go, why should airplane travel be any different, Mister?
Oh, wait a second........

(obviously, I think this should be fixed)
 
LLC with someone else's name in the record. Might incur tax to transfer and have to pay a state fee etc. Only way to totally block it. Having said that, the FAA record would still have the prior owner (you) and might still be able to figure out who you are. Didn't work for Elon Musk. He has a guy that set up a website that basically tracks when his plane moves.
 
Change aircraft registration number weekly. Not only will the websites be chasing the registration number trail, there's a good chance the FAA won't even know what registration number goes to the aircraft after a few months of that, lol.
 
SoonerAviator said:
Change aircraft registration number weekly. Not only will the websites be chasing the registration number trail, there's a good chance the FAA won't even know what registration number goes to the aircraft after a few months of that, lol.
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Maaaaaybe... we should make a new website - www.swapmyNregistration.com and we could start a tail number swapping deal to throw everyone off.

I could almost see this as being a fun way to provoke Congress to look at the issue of privacy and the ADS-B system.
 
I am honestly surprised that pilots and owners haven’t started some legal action in an attempt to remove ownership details from publicly accessible records, especially since the Elon debacle. You can’t do that with cars, you shouldn’t be able to do that with airplanes. Given the recent privacy concerns (last couple of decades), having an owners full name, address, and phone number available to anyone with a quick google search is disturbing.
 
The FAA privacy thing above works well. I bought my plane from a gentleman that had his reasons for privacy. So my plane is pretty much blocked from everything. It will show up as anonymous on flightaware, etc, while I'm flying, but your average Karen would have a tough time figuring out who strafed her flower bed.
 
The FAA LADD program turns off tail number sharing from FAA sources to flight tracking services. Only aircraft type shows up on Flightaware, FR 24, etc. What it doesn't do is block tail numbers collected from non-government sources, such as ADS-B Exchange.
 
LADD source blocking (NOT industry blocking), and use PIA.

At that point it becomes difficult to be tracked. (But not impossible if someone figures out your PIA code).

Or just use NetJets.
 
Use Tailbeacon and set it to Anonymous mode, as long as you squawk 1200 you show up as VFR or NA on any ADSB reciever. Excellent reason not to use flight following, as well.
 
Iflydogs said:
Use Tailbeacon and set it to Anonymous mode, as long as you squawk 1200 you show up as VFR or NA on any ADSB reciever. Excellent reason not to use flight following, as well.
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Yeah, good luck with that. Doesn’t work.
 
Wagondriver said:
Yeah, good luck with that. Doesn’t work.
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It works perfectly! If it doesn't work for you, it's probably because the tailbeacon is not seeing you squawk 1200, if it doesn't, it will put out your tail number. In fact that is an excellent way to make sure your transponder is working, or not turned on.

I fly 150-200 hours a year, all over the country--go ahead and try to find any trace of my tail number N9906T on FlightAware, the only traces you will see are where I forgot to turn on the transponder and it out my tail number out, for a very short time until I noticed it on ADSB-in and turned it on.
 
Iflydogs said:
It works perfectly! If it doesn't work for you, it's probably because the tailbeacon is not seeing you squawk 1200, if it doesn't, it will put out your tail number. In fact that is an excellent way to make sure your transponder is working, or not turned on.

I fly 150-200 hours a year, all over the country--go ahead and try to find any trace of my tail number N9906T on FlightAware, the only traces you will see are where I forgot to turn on the transponder and it out my tail number out, for a very short time until I noticed it on ADSB-in and turned it on.
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Mine is set to anonymous, ATC at KEGE couldn't identify me, but other airplanes in the area called me out by tail number, they said I showed up on their traffic with my tailnumber. I have also been called by tail number from the tower at KGJT, while squawking 1200 with it set on anonymous.
 
Iflydogs said:
It works perfectly! If it doesn't work for you, it's probably because the tailbeacon is not seeing you squawk 1200, if it doesn't, it will put out your tail number. In fact that is an excellent way to make sure your transponder is working, or not turned on.

I fly 150-200 hours a year, all over the country--go ahead and try to find any trace of my tail number N9906T on FlightAware, the only traces you will see are where I forgot to turn on the transponder and it out my tail number out, for a very short time until I noticed it on ADSB-in and turned it on.
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So Front Royal, VA you forgot to turn on the transponder?
 
So Front Royal, VA you forgot to turn on the transponder?
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Yes or I might have had a non-1200 squawk code, if so it will send N number out.

Mine is set to anonymous, ATC at KEGE couldn't identify me, but other airplanes in the area called me out by tail number
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Interesting--do you have ADSB-in? If so, do you see your tail number going out? If you don't see it on your ADSB but others do, that is very weird. But if you didn't know what you were sending out, for some reason the tailbeacon was probably not seeing your 1200 and working as it should.
 
Here is an excellent example taken a few days ago, you see here 6 aircraft, 4 sending out tail numbers, 2 anonymous
IMG_2597.jpeg
 
Iflydogs said:
It works perfectly! …--go ahead and try to find any trace of my tail number N9906T on FlightAware…
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ADS-B exchange shows a ‘78 Tomahawk registered to a person with the initials HJR. Historical flights show up occasionally, so I’d say it doesn’t work “perfectly”.
 
Sometimes pilots don’t squawk 1200. There are some congested airspaces, usually near large airports, where you are assigned a specific code. Other times you might be assigned one if you want traffic alerts from controllers. In these cases, even if the tailbeacon is set to anonymous, the n number will go out.
 
I ADSB relies mostly on your unique transponder S-code more than your squawk code fo identification. I dont think the S-code can be suppressed.
 
1. Join the Navy as an aviator, fly one of theirs. Pretty sure they don't publish flight data while underway.
2. Fly a powered parachute.
 
OP, you asked a very similar question last year.

www.pilotsofamerica.com

Is any possibilty to see my flight in a records?

Is any organization which creates flight records basing on my transponder and ADS-B signals? Are the records available to see?
www.pilotsofamerica.com www.pilotsofamerica.com

If you truly desire anonymity, you need to operate solely in airspace that is not ‘rule airspace’

 
Anything involving use of UAT “anonymous mode” doesn’t work anywhere you need to talk to ATC and receive radar services. So, VFR only, only below 18k ft, and forget about going to a Class C or B airport.
 
dans2992 said:
Anything involving use of UAT “anonymous mode” doesn’t work anywhere you need to talk to ATC and receive radar services. So, VFR only, only below 18k ft, and forget about going to a Class C or B airport.
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I've never been given a squawk code just because I was flying into a C or D airport. Flying in B airspace, yes. But you're still anonymous any time you aren't on a unique code.
 
It's ok to say, "It can't be reasonably done".
We are back to needing to pressure feds to come up with a solution.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
It's ok to say, "It can't be reasonably done".
We are back to needing to pressure feds to come up with a solution.
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Without the OP coming back and being more detailed on what he's trying to accomplish, we can't say if it can reasonably be done. We CAN say that absolute anonymity cannot reasonably be done (see the Elon Musk example). But some anonymity can easily be accomplished.
 
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