Overview

This MCP server exposes Flightradar24 flight data to Claude Desktop (via the Model Context Protocol) so you can query live positions, follow routes, and receive alerts inside your assistant workspace. The server translates Flightradar24 data into a small set of developer-friendly tools (search, live position subscriptions, route lookup, and alerting) that can be integrated as MCP “tools” for real‑time assistant workflows and automations.

It is useful for developers building travel assistants, operations dashboards, or automation rules that need current aircraft positions and status. By running the server locally (or in your infrastructure) and registering it as an MCP provider in Claude Desktop, you can let the assistant reference up‑to‑the‑minute flight information and push notifications into your conversation context.

Features

Search flights by callsign, flight number, registration, or route
Live position streaming (subscribe/unsubscribe) for individual flights
Retrieve planned and historical routes for tracking and mapping
Alerting rules (arrival/approach, departure, proximity, ETA thresholds)
Simple REST + WebSocket interface designed to be exposed as MCP tools
Configurable update frequency, geofence support, and alert actions
Dockerized and environment‑variable configurable for easy deployment

Installation / Configuration

Clone and start (typical Node/Docker-based workflow):

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/sunsetcoder/flightradar24-mcp-server.git
cd flightradar24-mcp-server

# Run locally (Node)
npm install
npm start

# Or using Docker
docker build -t fr24-mcp-server .
docker run -p 3000:3000 --env-file .env fr24-mcp-server

Example .env (adjust keys and ports to your environment):

PORT=3000
FR24_API_KEY=your_fr24_api_key_here
FR24_POLL_INTERVAL_SEC=5
MCP_BASE_URL=http://localhost:3000
ALLOWED_ORIGINS=http://localhost:3000,http://localhost:3001

Docker Compose example:

version: "3.8"
services:
  fr24-mcp:
    image: fr24-mcp-server:latest
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    env_file:
      - .env

Notes:

You must provide valid access to Flightradar24 data (API key or approved credentials). Follow Flightradar24 terms of service.
Configure polling interval and rate limits to stay within acceptable usage.

Available Tools / Resources

The server implements a small REST + WebSocket surface that maps well to MCP tools. Common endpoints:

Method	Endpoint	Purpose
POST	/api/search	Find flights by query (callsign, flight no., registration)
GET	/api/flight/:id	Get current snapshot for a flight ID
GET	/api/route/:id	Retrieve route / track for a flight
POST	/api/subscribe	Start WebSocket subscription for live updates
POST	/api/alerts	Create alert rule (ETA, proximity, geofence)
DELETE	/api/alerts/:id	Remove alert

WebSocket updates are typically delivered on wss://{host}/ws and include JSON updates like position, altitude, groundspeed, status, and ETA.

Example search request (curl):

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/api/search \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"query":"DL123"}'

Simple MCP manifest (use in Claude Desktop to register tools):

{
  "name": "FlightRadar24 Live",
  "description": "Real-time flight search, positions, routes and alerts",
  "base_url": "http://localhost:3000",
  "endpoints": [
    { "path": "/api/search", "method": "POST", "name": "search_flight" },
    { "path": "/api/flight/:id", "method": "GET", "name": "get_flight" },
    { "path": "/api/subscribe", "method": "POST", "name": "subscribe_flight" }
  ]
}

Use Cases

Real‑time travel assistance: In Claude Desktop, ask “Where is AA100 right now?” and the assistant calls the search/get endpoints to return the aircraft position, ETA, and terminal.
Operations dashboard: Subscribe to multiple flight IDs to display live positions on a map widget, triggering alerts if a flight deviates from its planned track.
Event/airport notifications: Create alerts for inbound flights to notify ground teams when an aircraft is on approach or within a configurable distance/time window.
Incident response: Monitor diversions or unusual ground speeds and push messages into chat or messaging channels (Slack/Teams) from automations driven inside the assistant.
Personal travel workflow: Automatically generate an itinerary update when a tracked flight’s ETA changes beyond a threshold and attach live position snapshots to user notes.

Tips and Best Practices

Respect Flightradar24 licensing and rate limits — cache responses where possible, and avoid aggressive polling.
Use WebSocket subscriptions for low latency updates instead of frequent REST polling.
Limit exposed endpoints and secure your server with authentication (API keys, IP allow list) when deploying beyond localhost.
Test MCP tool integration in a development Claude Desktop profile before production rollout.

Repository and further details: https://github.com/sunsetcoder/flightradar24-mcp-server

FlightRadar24 Real Time Flight Tracking MCP Server