More aviation and safety sources

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More Aviation and Safety Sources

Official records that are worth knowing about but cannot be searched for you here, because they need a sign-in, an application, or a search form of their own. Each link goes to the publisher. For what we can search, use Aircraft registry, Airport delays, Flight restrictions and NTSB investigations.

How to use this page (where to start)

A crash you read about: start with NTSB investigations. For the owner of the aircraft, use Aircraft registry.
A smaller aviation event that never became an NTSB investigation (a mechanical failure, a bird strike, a close call): FAA ASIAS and the Wildlife Strike Database.
A road, rail or pipeline accident: NHTSA (road), FRA (rail) and PHMSA (pipeline) each keep their own data. The NTSB covers only the larger ones.
A plane in the air right now: the live tracking sites at the bottom. Use the hex code from the Aircraft registry page to find a specific plane, and look the hex up again if the callsign changes.
Past delays and traffic numbers: BTS TranStats and the FAA's ASPM and OPSNET.
Some sites need a free account or an application. The note beside each link says so.

FAA (aviation records)

FAA aircraft inquiry – The official record for one tail number, including registration history. Our Aircraft registry page searches a copy of the same data in bulk.
FAA ASIAS (accident, incident and defect data) – The FAA Accident and Incident Data System and Service Difficulty Reports: smaller events and mechanical failures that never became NTSB investigations.
FAA Wildlife Strike Database – Reported bird and wildlife strikes by airport, species and damage.
FAA NOTAM Search – Notices to Air Missions: closures, hazards, and temporary changes, by airport.
FAA Dynamic Regulatory System (DRS) – Type certificates, airworthiness directives, advisory circulars and regulations.
FAA Airport Data and Information Portal – Airport facts: runways, ownership, operations and based aircraft.
FAA ASPM and OPSNET (sign-in required) – Delay, cancellation and traffic statistics for the national airspace system. Needs a free FAA account.
FAA SWIM – The FAA's real-time data feeds (flight plans, surface movement). Requires an application and a technical subscriber.

NTSB (investigations)

NTSB CAROL – The NTSB's own case search, including dockets and documents we do not copy.
NTSB investigations – Major investigation pages, reports, board meetings and press releases.
NTSB safety recommendations and studies – Recommendations to agencies and companies, and their status, plus safety studies.
NTSB developer portal – The free API behind our NTSB investigations page, for anyone building their own tools.

Other transportation safety (U.S. Department of Transportation)

NHTSA fatal crash data (FARS) – Every fatal road crash in the U.S. since 1975, without names.
NHTSA crash reports for driver-assist and self-driving vehicles – Crashes reported by manufacturers under the Standing General Order, from 2021.
FRA railroad safety data – Railroad accidents, incidents and highway-rail crossing data since the mid-1970s.
PHMSA pipeline and hazmat data – Pipeline incident and hazardous-materials data: look for the "Data and Statistics" section.
FMCSA truck and bus data – Carrier safety records, inspections and crash counts for commercial trucks and buses.
BTS TranStats – Airline on-time performance from 1987, and air traffic and cargo statistics.
DOT open data – Datasets from all DOT agencies, many with free download and query options.

Live and recent aircraft tracking

OpenSky Network – Crowd-sourced flight tracking. Its API is free for research and non-commercial use; historical data needs an approved application.
ADS-B Exchange – Unfiltered flight tracking, with a search by hex code (our registry results link here).
adsb.lol – Community flight tracking with a free map and data.
airplanes.live – Community flight tracking with a free map and data.
FlightAware – Commercial flight tracking with flight history for a tail number or flight number. Some features need an account.

Credit: links to the FAA, NTSB, DOT agencies and other sources named on this page. Each is owned by its publisher.