FlightStats Website

[ApusApus]

Can anyone explain how a flight can appear on a flight tracking website descending to land on time and yet be well over an hour away from that point?

I had one last night on the FlightStats website where I was tracking the Jet2 flight from Birmingham which was due to arrive 10:15pm. I picked the flight up over Turkey about an hour away & followed it in from there. It was cruising at 33,000 feet & was on time. With 35 minutes left, FS showed the plane starting to descend. I watched until it was about 20 miles away & then left for the airport, as I usually do.

Got to the airport & checked the arrivals board only to find it was showing the flight delayed by 1 hour!

Phoned the OH to check my laptop as the website was still open & she told me it's showing the plane as 10 miles away! Quickly double-checked I'd got the right flight which I had & then went to the Jet2 Sales Desk who confirmed the delay but couldn't explain why FS were showing it as overhead!

I'm stumped, how can this happen? Anybody else had a similar experience?


Shane

[William Morris]

Is it actually tacking the flights in real time via gps, transponders (is that the right terminology? ).

Or ....

Is it just picking up on flight schedules (ie scheduled take off and scheduled arrival).

If it is the latter then any actual delay would not be picked up.

[William Morris]

Apparently there is a delay lag on the software updates for security reasons plus actual landing times are estimated. Real landing times can be delayed by the local air traffic controller.

[trevnhil]

I use Flight radar 24.com... https://www.flightradar24.com/34.63,32.93/9
This definitely real time as we can see and hear them when they go over the Polemi area..

[Kili01]

Using the internet, I check the departures board at the airport where the flight that I am meeting originates. That seems to work, as on time and delayed departures and their take off times are shown. Then I add on 4 or 4.5 hours flight time and remember to adjust the time of arrival in line with the 2hr time difference.
Then I might also check flightradar about an hour before the expected flight should arrive. By that time the aircraft will be close to Greece or Turkey...
Dee