Find / track AA / US registration / "tail" number, flights (consolidated)
 

I like to keep a log of the planes I've flown, so I try to get the tail #s.

I've asked the flight attendants, and none seem to know what the tail # of the aircraft we're flying is.

Normally I just look at the tail through the window before boarding, but sometimes I'm coming in on a quick connection and leaving on one and don't have time/forget.

Once, I asked a gate agent who replied to me with some hostility: "we can't give that information out for security reasons."

Not sure, but is there any way to find this information out online or somewhere else?

On some flights JFK-LAX, I've seen a sticker with the tail # posted in the J class galley.

Goto: http://www.bts.gov/programs/airline_...ledStatistics/

You can look up your flight information from there, which will include a tail number (with a few exceptions). Usually there is a 2-3 month delay in the information being accessible online. Also, I've noticed that for some AA aircraft (MD80s if I remember correctly), they do not have their tail number listed (N****), but rather a fleet designator (e.g. 3AT) corresponding to what is found on the nose gear door. I used to know of a database that would then let you find the tail number from the fleet number, but it recently went offline.

Perfect! Thank you!

Also look on the "sill" of the door as you get on and off... there is a metal plate riveted there with the tail number stamped on it.

Or, you can look out of the terminal window ;)

There is also an FAA permit (paper about 5x7) mounted near the entrance door. Location vaires depending on aircraft. Easier to read then the metal plate. There are 2 numbers. The N (tail number/FAA number) and the AA plane ID number that is on the front wheel door. This is a 3 digit number. For 777 it is 7XX (it started at 7AA) for 757 it is 5XX (started at 5AA). They do not use I,O and Z in this ID. Not sure of the rest.

Hmm, thanks! Just wondering, is it only MD80s that have a fleet desginator instead of tail # on the BTS site? There's a few #'s I'd like to know the aircraft for such as (mostly STL-MCO flights)
N5FCAA
N5TAAA
N526AA
N4WYTW
N4XATW
N3CEAA
Does 5 mean 757? What do 4 and 3 mean?
I've tried looking these up on Airliners.net and can't find any aircraft matches.
Thanks! And by the way, is there a site that gives the aircraft registration # for international flights, like TWA STL-YVR (back in 2000!)?

I could be completely wrong about this, but if I remember correctly, for the fleet numbers 3=737, 4=MD80, 5=757. Like I said before, I don't know of a complete online database anymore that allows cross referencing between fleet numbers and tail numbers. I'd say your best bet is to google "3CE American 737", which refers you to a page that has both the fleet number and tail number (look at the cached page if it does not load). Such a technique may not always work, though.

tail number on regional jets
 

I also keep a log of the aircraft that I have flown on. I add to this the name of the F/A on the regional jets and a few notes on aircraft condition, etc.

If you do not get the tail number on a RJ before takeoff, its also located on board on the inside of a galley cubby door. The uppermost cubby on the right hand side. (two seat side of the plane) Just ask the FA to read it to you and then simply rcord it on your palm pilot. As the FA's are typically younger on the RJ flights, you get great service :D

Oh but why right it down, take a piece of paper and a pencil with you and get a rubbing of each time (like going the vietnam wall) and keep the actual rubbings for posterity. If you think writing it down gets looks this will REALLY get you looks!

I've gone off on several FT rants about agents reciting "security" like a mantra when something has no possible security connection, but this is a situation where it actually might. Specifically, someone bent on mischief might want to confirm that the aircraft is the one where an accomplice left something behind on purpose - perhaps one of two components to a device, each of which is benign by itself but which, when combined, could be nasty. So, while there are (as noted in several previous posts) lots of ways to get this information, all of which are equally available to mischief-makers, they might be a bit suspect of someone who thinks it's important to find out.

(When I did some consulting for a railroad a few years back, they were pretty contemptuous of hobbyists who wanted to know locomotive numbers and that sort of thing. Security was not their concern, though their getting in the way was to a degree. The term for them was "FRNs," for "Freakin' [substitute a similar word for complete accuracy] Railroad Nuts." Bottom line is that railroad, or airline, employees may not sympathize with this compulsion.)

thanks- seraching in that format works great & often yields airliners.net pics! :)
Usually if I have time I write down the registration # of the a/c just for kicks & keep it in an Excel log, but sometimes I can't see it or I'm in a rush (to clear immigration & catch a connection in 61 minutes, for example). Is there a BTS-equivalent website for aircraft registration numbers for international flights O/D US?
Well, even if there isn't, I'm a happy camper. :) There is a lot of (somewhat) useless knowledge here on FT!
PS: Next time, repeat steps listed above and then kiss the frame of the aircraft door or registration # plate when you walk in, especially if the lead F/A or pilot is watching. Mutter something about heavy metal love... :D

WAY COOL! :cool:

On SOME RJs there is a plack on the wall outside the galley naming the plane after an Employee of the Month and listing the N-number.

Here's another FAA site where you can enter an N-number and get the ergistration information.

BTW, N526AA was a "FALCON-XP" from 05/15/1985 until 04/17/1991 and has been a Bell OH-58C helicopter since 02/19/2003.

And guess who uses N1KE in eaverton, OR?

Am I just hallucinating, or did ExpertFlyer used to have the tail number in the comments section of the Flight Status info, but it seems it doesn't anymore?

Should we start a thread about 'rubbing' on planes??