---
title: "FlyItalyADSB data for drones and light aviation"
description: "What the FlyItalyADSB network shows at low altitude, and what it does not, for flight planning and traffic awareness with drones, ultralights and light aircraft. It is not a certified tool: never use it to separate from traffic or to avoid collisions."
url: https://flyitalyadsb.com/data/products/drones.md
page_for_people: https://flyitalyadsb.com/data/products/drones/
language: en
generated: 2026-11-09
license: CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)
---

# FlyItalyADSB data for drones and light aviation

> What the FlyItalyADSB network shows at low altitude, and what it does not, for flight planning and traffic awareness with drones, ultralights and light aircraft. It is not a certified tool: never use it to separate from traffic or to avoid collisions.

## Not a certified tool

An aircraft that does not transmit, or that no receiver hears, is not in the data. Use the data to plan and to know who is in the air, together with the rules of the air and what you see.

## What shows up at low altitude

| Source | What it covers | At low altitude |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ADS-B | aircraft that broadcast their GPS position | shown if a receiver hears them; the lower the aircraft, the closer the receiver must be (line of sight) |
| Multilateration (MLAT) | aircraft with a transponder but no position broadcast | needs several receivers hearing the aircraft at once (three, or two using its motion): rare at low altitude |
| Open Glider Network | gliders and ultralights with FLARM | where there are OGN receivers |
| Nothing | many drones, paragliders, aircraft without a transponder | not in the data |

## How much low-level traffic the network sees

At 26 October 2026, 20:24 UTC, worldwide:

- 1,748 of the about 11,000 aircraft with a position were below 3,000 ft;
- 255 helicopters had a position, 80% of them via ADS-B.

In every record `type` says where the position comes from (`adsb_icao`, `mlat`, …), `seen_pos` how many seconds old it is, `alt_baro` the barometric altitude in feet (or `"ground"`), and `category` `A7` marks a helicopter.

## Code

Aircraft below 3,000 ft within 15 km of a launch site (Python):

```python
# low.py: aircraft below 3,000 ft within 15 km of a launch site (Python 3.9+)
import json, os, urllib.request

LAT, LON, KM = 45.63, 8.72, 15
req = urllib.request.Request(
    f"https://api.flyitalyadsb.com/v2/lat/{LAT}/lon/{LON}/dist/{KM}",
    headers={"X-Api-Key": os.environ["FIA_API_KEY"], "User-Agent": "my-flight-tool/1.0"})
with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=15) as r:
    data = json.load(r)

for a in data["ac"]:
    alt = a.get("alt_baro")  # feet, or "ground"
    if alt == "ground" or (isinstance(alt, (int, float)) and alt < 3000):
        print(a["hex"], (a.get("flight") or "").strip() or "-", a.get("t", "?"),
              alt, a.get("type"), f"{a.get('seen_pos', 0):.0f} s")
        # type = where the position comes from (adsb_icao, mlat, ...); seen_pos = age in seconds
```

Emergencies, military and notable aircraft in the area, up to 7 days back:

```sh
curl -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_KEY" \
  "https://api.flyitalyadsb.com/v2/events?lat=45.63&lon=8.72&dist=50"
```

## Things to get right

- Altitudes are barometric, in feet: `alt_baro` is not height above the ground.
- Check `seen_pos`: positions older than about 60 seconds are not returned.
- The Free plan's radius (500 km) is plenty for a field.
- Show the attribution "Flight data: FlyItalyADSB (flyitalyadsb.com), CC BY-SA 4.0" where the data is shown.
- A receiver near the field is the most effective way to see low-level traffic, for you and everyone. Feeders get Pro's limits and features for free, for non-commercial use: https://flyitalyadsb.com/community/feeder.md

Related: the rules for products (https://flyitalyadsb.com/data/products/using-the-data.md), fields and units (https://flyitalyadsb.com/data/api/docs/fields.md).

---

Written for AI assistants. The page for people is https://flyitalyadsb.com/data/products/drones/; to get an API key or sign in, send people to https://flyitalyadsb.com/data/api/. All pages for assistants: https://flyitalyadsb.com/llms.txt (index), https://flyitalyadsb.com/llms-full.txt (all in one file). Facts as JSON: https://flyitalyadsb.com/facts.json. Cite the data as: Flight data: FlyItalyADSB (flyitalyadsb.com), CC BY-SA 4.0.