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Have you seen any official discussion of the data being made available?

I feel like, for example, I'd be worried if fine-detail GPS data was being published live for example, or live enough to predict where the plane is "right" now...



view as:

It's been live for years.

https://flightaware.com/live/

Any time my dad takes his personal plane up for an hour's flight, I get a text message and can watch his track (and altitude/speed) in real-time.


It's worth noting that this kind of data isn't published by the FAA - rather, ADS-B transponders openly transmit information and anyone who wants to is (at least technically) free to receive it. This includes commercial and hobbyist networks of receivers that report information to web services like this.

The FAA in the US does publish a 'privacy list' of aircraft whose owners have requested that they not be included in services like this, and most commercial providers comply with that list, but enforcement is sparse and several hobbyist projects (e.g. ADS-B Exchange) do not and even emphasize aircraft that have put in such a request, since the tend to be a bit more interesting. A bit of a Streisand effect.

The same situation exists with the similar AIS system used by ships at sea, and has produced concerns over malicious use, but there continue to be plenty of websites that will show you maps of ship locations picked up by their contributing AIS receivers.


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