A year or two ago I found an app for my iPhone which tracks air traffic radar from airports around the world. It’s called Flightradar24 and now there’s a version for the Mac. What this clever app does is nothing short of remarkable. You’ll see images of planes moving into and out of airports in near real-time. But that’s not all. It also display comprehensive data about each plane; the route, altitude, air speed, and much more.
Flightradar24 lets you search for a specific flight, filter flights by airline, speed, location, altitude and view both flight trails and callsigns right on the Mac’s screen.
Look at the detail presented on the Mac’s screen. It’s near real-time.
What about flight radar coverage?
Flightradar24 covers all of the U.S. and Canada, though with a 5-minute delay (radar data comes from the FAA). Coverage is Asia substantial in most developed countries, but limited in Africa. Nearly 95-percent of Europe is covered.
Zoom out from a region and you’ll see nearly all air traffic.
Zoom in or out on the map region, click on a plane and view the details. It’s that simple.
Personally, I found the iPhone and iPad versions to work better, and you can use the app to view a facsimile of the horizon from the cockpit’s perspective. Every now and then a specific flight disappears from view or cannot be found, only to reappear later. That is likely to be caused by incomplete data. Real-time coverage is limited to aircraft equipped with ADS-B transponders.