San Rafael, California, United States · live ADS-B
Planes over San Rafael, CA right now
Updated
6 aircraft over San Rafael, CA right now; military AS65 20 km N at 725 ft Within 25 km of the city centre, ADS-B at 19:27 local (03:27 UTC).
Planes over San Rafael, CA right now
At 19:27 local (03:27 UTC), 33 aircraft were airborne within 60 km of San Rafael, California, United States, 6 of them within 25 km of the city centre. The closest is N7327E (C210), 12 km N at 4,325 ft.
By height: 2 cruising at 20,000 ft or more (mostly passing over on the way somewhere else), 16 between 3,000 and 20,000 ft (typically climbing out or descending into a nearby airport) and 15 below 3,000 ft. Most of the traffic is arriving at or departing from airports around San Rafael, CA.
| Flight | Airline | Type | Altitude | Where | Heading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N7327E | — | C210 | 4,325 ft | 11.6 km N | 330° NNW |
| UAL677 | United Airlines | A320 | 13,200 ft | 16.5 km SSW | 140° SE |
| SWA1262 | Southwest Airlines | B38M | 7,900 ft | 19 km SSE | 253° WSW |
| C6556 | Military | AS65 | 725 ft | 19.6 km N | 129° SE |
| LXJ500 | — | CL35 | 12,475 ft | 21.1 km SE | 315° NW |
| N965S | — | C182 | 4,000 ft | 23 km ENE | 321° NW |
Every aircraft broadcasting its position over San Rafael, CA: airliners, helicopters, military and private planes, with how high and which way they are flying.
- Aircraft within 25 km
- 6 airborne, ADS-B
- Aircraft within 60 km
- 33
- Helicopters
- 5 within 60 km
- Military
- 1 flagged military airframes
- Low (< 3,000 ft) away from airports
- 4
- Circling or loitering
- 2 last 20 min
- Nearest major airport
- SFO · 41 km San Francisco International
- Next visible CSS pass
- 18:30 local time
Helicopters, military and low planes over San Rafael, CA
5 helicopters are flying within 60 km. The nearest, C6556 (AS65), is 20 km N at 725 ft. Police, air-ambulance, news and tour helicopters often fly low and slow over cities; ADS-B does not say which role a helicopter has, but the registration on the flight page usually tells you the operator.
1 military aircraft is visible nearby: C6556 (AS65) 20 km N at 725 ft. Many military flights switch their transponders off or hide their identity, so this is a minimum.
4 aircraft are below 3,000 ft and not next to an airport: N12452 27 km N at 2,900 ft; ~2B0459 42 km NNW at 900 ft; N108SC 46 km NNW at 950 ft; N366GT 56 km NE at 2,350 ft. Low flying away from runways is usually helicopters, survey or banner flights, or traffic approaching a smaller airfield.
3 aircraft nearby use a privacy programme (PIA or LADD), so the owner asked for the identity to be hidden; the position is still shown.
- C6556 · AS65 helicopter, 20 km N, 725 ft
- N911EH · EC30 helicopter, 27 km ENE, 3,400 ft
- N108SC · B407 helicopter, 46 km NNW, 950 ft
- N911AC · B505 helicopter, 51 km SE, 875 ft, circling
- N366GT · EC45 helicopter, 56 km NE, 2,350 ft
Is a plane circling over San Rafael, CA?
N911AC (B505, helicopter) is 51 km SE at 875 ft. Over the last 19 minutes it has stayed within about 3.7 km of one spot.
BYF43 (C82S, aircraft) is 55 km SSE at 650 ft. Over the last 19 minutes it has stayed within about 2.7 km of one spot.
Aircraft circle for many ordinary reasons: police or news helicopters watching an incident, holding patterns while waiting to land, aerial survey, flight training or photography.
How busy is the sky over San Rafael, CA?
With 6 aircraft within 25 km, San Rafael, CA is quieter than every nearby large cities right now. The busiest nearby sky is over San Francisco with 14 aircraft within 25 km.
Most low traffic around here is linked to San Francisco International (SFO), 41 km from the city centre; its live arrivals and departures are on the airport page.
- Planes over Richmond, CA 7 aircraft now
- Planes over San Francisco 14 aircraft now
- Planes over Oakland 13 aircraft now
ISS and bright satellites over San Rafael, CA tonight
1 visible pass of the ISS, Tiangong or Hubble in the next 24 hours. The next starts at 18:30 local time in the WSW, peaks 12° above the SW horizon and lasts about 2 minutes. A fast, steady, non-blinking light is a satellite, not a plane.
- CSS (TIANHE) · 18:30 local visible, peak 12° SW, 2 min
- ISS (ZARYA) · 20:22 local not visible, peak 48° SE, 6 min
- ISS (ZARYA) · 21:59 local not visible, peak 21° NNW, 5 min
- ISS (ZARYA) · 01:17 local not visible, peak 10° NNE, 1 min
- ISS (ZARYA) · 02:52 local not visible, peak 34° NE, 6 min
- ISS (ZARYA) · 04:29 local not visible, peak 24° SW, 5 min
What plane is flying over me?
This page uses the centre of San Rafael, CA. For the exact aircraft above your street, open "What's overhead" and share your location: it lists every aircraft near you with the direction and angle to look.
Aircraft broadcast their position by ADS-B and volunteer receivers relay it. Small drones, most military aircraft on missions and some police aircraft do not broadcast, so they never appear on any public tracker. Drone sightings cannot be checked here.
Coverage: ADS-B from volunteer receivers. Within 60 km of a big city coverage is usually good above a few thousand feet; low helicopters can drop out between receivers. Circling detection uses positions sampled once a minute over the last 20 minutes.
Planes over nearby cities
More live data for San Rafael, CA
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Data: ADS-B Exchange community feeders via adsb.lol (ODbL), OurAirports, CelesTrak (satellite orbits).