LIVE MAP COACH · From first tap to advanced tools

Master Flightradar24 as a spotter.

This guided walkthrough takes you from your very first time opening Flightradar24 to using professional‑level tools like filters, playback, alerts, and approach tracking, all explained in simple aviation‑friendly language.

1 Beginner: First flight search 2 Intermediate: Filters & map tools 3 Advanced: Spotter workflows ★ Practice scenarios
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LIVE TRAFFIC MENTOR
Today’s focus
Map layers Filters Approach tracking Playback
Level 1 · Beginner

Your first session in Flightradar24

5–10 minutes

Start here if you have never used Flightradar24 before. Open the app or website alongside this guide (phone, tablet, or desktop). We will get you comfortable with the map, basic controls, and finding a specific flight.

1
Understand the live map

Each yellow aircraft icon is a real airplane, updated every few seconds. Pinch to zoom (or scroll on desktop) to see more or fewer aircraft. Drag to pan around the world.

2
Center the map on your airport

In the search bar, type your city or airport code (for example: CMB, LHR, DXB). Tap the airport result. The map will zoom in and you will see arrivals, departures, and aircraft overhead.

3
Tap a single aircraft

Select any aircraft icon. A side panel opens showing airline, callsign, altitude, speed, and route. This is your “flight card”. You will use it all the time as a spotter.

4
Watch the track line

When a flight is selected, a colored line shows where it has been and where it is going. Use this to predict from which direction the aircraft will appear in the sky.

Skill unlocked: map navigation Skill unlocked: basic flight card
Level 2 · Intermediate

Map layers, filters, and views

10–20 minutes

Once you can comfortably move around the map, the next step is to control what you see. This is where Flightradar24 becomes powerful for spotting: you can highlight only interesting aircraft and hide the rest.

1
Change the map style

Open the map settings icon. Try switching between default, satellite, and terrain views. Use terrain when you are tracking approaches into airports with hills or mountains.

2
Toggle weather and radar coverage

If available in your subscription, enable weather layers (rain, storms) to see how conditions influence approaches. Radar / MLAT coverage layers show where the app is receiving data from.

3
Use filters to show only what matters

Open the Filters menu. Start with simple presets: only show a specific airline, only show aircraft above or below a certain altitude, or highlight arrivals into one airport. This keeps the map readable on busy days.

4
Try the “airline” and “aircraft type” filters

To practice, create a filter that only shows wide‑body aircraft or a specific airline you want to photograph. Watch how the density of icons changes.

Level 3 · Advanced

Building real spotter workflows

20–30 minutes

At this level you are using Flightradar24 not just to “watch planes”, but to plan shots, predict approaches, and review what happened earlier in the day.

1
Track approaches and go‑arounds

Watch the altitude and speed in the flight card as an aircraft lines up to land. Learn how a normal approach looks on the altitude graph so you can spot unusual climbs or go‑arounds.

2
Use playback (if available)

With playback you can rewind the map to an earlier time and see how aircraft moved. This is useful when you missed a flight and want to understand its route or pattern.

3
Watch traffic flows with filters

Combine filters with playback to study how arrivals and departures use different runways at different times of day or with different winds. This helps you choose your spotting location.

4
Set up alerts (subscription feature)

If your account supports alerts, configure notifications for specific aircraft types, registrations, or routes so you never miss a rare visitor again.

Practice scenario · At home

Use this when you are not at the airport but want to train your eyes and brain to read the map like an experienced controller.

1. Open Flightradar24 and center on your home airport.
2. Apply a simple filter: “arrivals only” or “below 10 000 ft”.
3. Pick one arrival and follow it from 20–30 NM out all the way to touchdown.
4. Watch the altitude and speed profiles and how the track line curves on final.
5. Repeat with different airlines and aircraft types.
Extra challenge: mute the TV and try to predict when you would first see the aircraft from a typical spotting location based only on the map.

Practice scenario · At the fence

Use this when you are already at your spotting location and want to combine what you see on‑screen with what you see in the sky.

1. Set the map to show only arrivals for your runway or airport.
2. Choose a landmark on the map (river, road, town) that aircraft pass before you see them.
3. Each time an aircraft crosses that landmark on the map, look up and confirm when it appears and from which angle.
4. Adjust your camera settings before the aircraft is in range using information from the flight card (type, speed, light level).
Over time you will build a mental “3D map” of your airport’s approaches, making it much easier to be in the right place at the right time.