CLI reference¶

The Pyfr24 command-line interface provides quick access to all features without writing code.

Common options¶

These options are available for all commands:

-t, --token: API token (can also be set via FLIGHTRADAR_API_KEY env var)
-l, --log-level: Logging level (DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR, CRITICAL)
-f, --log-file: Log file path
-o, --output: Output file path (JSON)

Available commands¶

Flight summary¶

Get flight summary information:

# Short form
pyfr24 flight-summary -F F94371 -f "2025-04-18" -t "2025-04-18"

# Long form
pyfr24 flight-summary --flight F94371 --from-date "2025-04-18" --to-date "2025-04-18"

# Example response:
{
  "data": [
    {
      "fr24_id": "39f406c4",
      "flight": "F94371",
      "callsign": "FFT4371",
      "operating_as": "FFT",
      "painted_as": "FFT",
      "type": "A20N",
      "reg": "N390FR",
      "orig_icao": "KDEN",
      "datetime_takeoff": "2025-04-18T16:25:31Z",
      "dest_icao": "KSNA",
      "dest_icao_actual": "KSNA",
      "datetime_landed": "2025-04-18T18:26:53Z",
      "hex": "A48356",
      "first_seen": "2025-04-18T16:05:23Z",
      "last_seen": "2025-04-18T18:27:52Z",
      "flight_ended": false
    }
  ]
}

Live flights¶

Get live flights for an aircraft registration:

# Short form
pyfr24 live-flights -R N12345

# Long form
pyfr24 live-flights --registration N12345

Flight tracks¶

Get flight tracks by ID:

# Short form
pyfr24 flight-tracks -i 39a84c3c

# Long form
pyfr24 flight-tracks --flight-id 39a84c3c

Export flight data¶

Export flight data with various options:

# Basic export
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c -o data/flight_39a84c3c

# With different background maps
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --background carto-light    # CartoDB Light (default)
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --background carto-dark     # CartoDB Dark
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --background osm            # OpenStreetMap
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --background esri-topo      # ESRI World TopoMap
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --background esri-satellite # ESRI World Imagery

# With different orientations
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --orientation horizontal  # 16:9 aspect ratio
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --orientation vertical    # 9:16 aspect ratio
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --orientation auto       # Auto-detect

# With timezone conversion
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --timezone "America/New_York"      # Eastern Time
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --timezone "America/Los_Angeles"   # Pacific Time
pyfr24 export-flight -i 39a84c3c --timezone "Europe/London"         # GMT/BST

Airline information¶

Get airline information by ICAO code:

# Short form
pyfr24 airline-info -i AAL

# Long form
pyfr24 airline-info --icao AAL

Airport information¶

Get airport information by code:

# Short form
pyfr24 airport-info -c JFK

# Long form
pyfr24 airport-info --code JFK

Flight positions¶

Get flight positions within a bounding box:

# Short form
pyfr24 flight-positions -b "33.5,-118.8,34.5,-117.5"

# Long form
pyfr24 flight-positions --bounds "33.5,-118.8,34.5,-117.5"

Flight IDs¶

Get flight IDs for an aircraft registration:

# Basic usage
pyfr24 flight-ids -R N216MH -f "2025-01-01" -t "2025-04-10"

# Save results to file
pyfr24 flight-ids -R N216MH -f "2025-01-01" -t "2025-04-10" -o flight_ids.json

Smart export¶

The smart-export command lets you export all data for a flight by flight number and date, with interactive selection if there are multiple matches.

Example:

pyfr24 smart-export --flight UA2151 --date 2025-04-22

If multiple flights are found, you'll see a summary and be prompted to select.
The output directory is named automatically for clarity.
A toplines.json file is created with a summary of the exported flight.

Arguments:

--flight (required): Flight number or callsign
--date (required): Date (YYYY-MM-DD)
--output-dir: Custom output directory (optional)
--background: Map background (carto-light, carto-dark, osm, esri-topo, esri-satellite)
--orientation: Chart orientation (horizontal, vertical, auto)
--timezone: Convert timestamps to specified timezone (e.g., America/New_York)
--auto-select: For scripting (e.g., latest, earliest, or index)

Toplines summary example:

{
  "flight_number": "UA2151",
  "flight_id": "3a01b036",
  "date": "2025-04-22",
  "origin": "KEWR",
  "destination": "KDEN",
  "departure_time": "2025-04-22T14:48:36Z",
  "arrival_time": "2025-04-22T18:53:23Z",
  "departure_time_readable": "April 22, 2025, at 2:48 p.m. UTC",
  "arrival_time_readable": "April 22, 2025, at 6:53 p.m. UTC",
  "registration": "N28457",
  "aircraft_type": "B739"
}

With timezone conversion (--timezone "America/New_York"):

{
  "flight_number": "UA2151",
  "flight_id": "3a01b036",
  "date": "2025-04-22",
  "origin": "KEWR",
  "destination": "KDEN",
  "departure_time": "2025-04-22T10:48:36-04:00",
  "arrival_time": "2025-04-22T14:53:23-04:00",
  "departure_time_readable": "April 22, 2025, at 10:48 a.m. ET",
  "arrival_time_readable": "April 22, 2025, at 2:53 p.m. ET",
  "registration": "N28457",
  "aircraft_type": "B739"
}

Getting help¶

For detailed help on any command:

pyfr24 --help
pyfr24 <command> --help