Plane #

[karolm]

Is there a way to tell from your flight number where your plane is coming from? Any way to know that?

[DanJ]

Sometimes, but it is difficult. Even an arriving flight with the same flight # can be a different bird on the next leg. In a lightly served airport, you have a better chance of figuring it out, but pretty hard at a hub airport.

[paul929207]

Sometimes, you can look at the boards at the airport & find the flight coming in at the gate you depart from. But like Dan's method, it is not perfect.

[phill369]

If it has the same flight number, you can usually see it online at a site like flightstats.com...not sure if it doesn't have the same number.

[alidor]

What is the flight number and date you are trying to track?

[FlyerTalker]

Continental has that functionality in their mobile website, which can be accessed through co.com. Other airlines have some rudimentary ways of figuring it out.

 

As always, specifics make for a better answer.

[parody]

The printed edition of the OAG lists the origin, destination (and intermediate stops, if any) of flights by airline and number. Thus, to my knowledge, this is the only source where you can tell, in advance, where a particular flight is coming from by flight number. As others have pointed out, one can use the airport monitors in an attempt to ascertain this information, but it generally only can be done for the current day. Unfortunately, airline flight numbers are not like roadway numbers where even 2-digit number Interstate routes are generally east-west, odd 2-digit number Interstate routes are generally north-south, circumferential Interstate routes are even 3-digit numbers and Interstate spurs to a CBD are odd 3-digit numbers.

[karolm]

Geeez this is so complicated.

 

AA 1362 ord to jfk (then 152 to Barcelona)

 

Thanks for all your info.

 

Carol

[greatam]

deleted

[alidor]

What date? It's not complicated but you need to give full info.

[karolm]

May 22 1362 ord to jfk

152 jfk to bcn

 

 

Thanks for any info.

 

Carol

[Globaliser]

Geeez this is so complicated.

You think this is complicated? This is child's play compared to the real complexity of the airline industry.

[greatam]

What date? It's not complicated but you need to give full info.

 

I'm waiting for the answer!!!!!

 

I have it right from AA's cargo dept but that doesn't mean it was "not complicated" for the average person.

[DanJ]

Short of looking up every AA flight into ORD arriving around noon, and doing a flight status check on aa.com and finding the one scheduled to arrive at the same gate as your flight leaves from at 1pm, then doing the same for flights arriving at jfk in the couple hours before your BCN flight leaves, you are not going to find out where your planes are coming from.

[parody]

This only assumes that they are using different flight numbers. If the flight has the same flight number, read my post above.

[greatam]

This only assumes that they are using different flight numbers. If the flight has the same flight number, read my post above.

 

IF I understand correctly your previous post, OAG print version has info for the SAME flight number. Flightstats.com does too. BUT with flight stats you have to determine which way the flight is going and sometimes the day of the week if there are multiple legs with the same flight number.

 

I got the info from AA cargo as there is truly "need to know" with highly perishable refrigerated freight. And even then, what they told me is NOT 100% positive. Obviously, if the inbound plane has a mechanical or other problem, they will use whatever MD-80 is available to handle flight 1362.

 

I am waiting for Alidor to post the "non complicated" answer.

[Globaliser]

This only assumes that they are using different flight numbers. If the flight has the same flight number, read my post above.

But even if you find an inbound flight with the same flight number as the outbound flight that you're going to be on, that's no guarantee that the same aircraft will operate the inbound flight and the outbound flight.

 

In fact, if you can find a timetable notation that shows a change of gauge, you can be pretty much guaranteed that a different aircraft will operate the outbound flight.

[YXU AC*SE]

Are we beating up on Alidor again? :-) Scott.

[greatam]

Are we beating up on Alidor again? :-) Scott.

 

NO!!! Alidor posted this question was "not complicated". We are all waiting for the answers because it is VERY complicated.

 

IMHO, when someone posts that quite a few of us don't know what we are talking about, some answers are "not complicated" and "has an airline system in their house", we eagerly await ANSWERS. We would all like to know how to figure this out WITHOUT cheating and me calling AA cargo. IIRC, the only answers Alidor has posted are "get a TA".

 

We're waiting!!!!

[YXU AC*SE]

Tee hee ... I know it's complicated. My AC questions can only be answered by someone who has access to AC's proprietary dispatch systems where one has lookup access by FIN numbers. I pretty sure you cannot see that on Amadeus or Sabre! :-)

 

But, we probably should give Alidor the benefit of the doubt and allow him/her the opportunity to reply before we start the mad hectoring / haranguing ... didn't we already have one thread pulled on account of that?

 

Scott. aka Call me Switzerland :-)

[alidor]

I use Apollo and through Apollo with some carriers this info is available. I asked the date because as you know, the flight number on one date could be one thing and months ahead, it could be another route entirely.

 

No info on American flights through Apollo anyway. If the American info isn't in Sabre, it certainly wouldn't be in Apollo.

 

Why does this person want to know anyway? Out of curiosity or worry that the plane could be coming from a weather prone city?

[AZjohn]

Why does this person want to know anyway?

 

I was wondering when someone was going to ask this? Seems to me this info is hard to get for a reason, and can’t think of a good motive to know this info and where/how to get it:(.

John

[Globaliser]

Seems to me this info is hard to get for a reason ...

OK, here's one reason: It changes all the time. It could even change on the day. It could even change an hour or so before the flight. While airlines always have a plan, short-notice modifications and improvisation happen frequently.

[karolm]

Geez, this person just asked if there was a way of knowing where their

scheduled plane was coming from. It certainly isn't worth 22 posts of mostly putting me down.

 

I think it was a fair question without the 3rd degree. WHY would I want

to know that information. In case there is bad weather that would interfer with my flight. I could make other arrangements.

[parody]

But even if you find an inbound flight with the same flight number as the outbound flight that you're going to be on, that's no guarantee that the same aircraft will operate the inbound flight and the outbound flight.

 

That is a good point. Since the print edition of the OAG does not note this type of information, would you have any idea what percentage of flights does this affect?

 

can’t think of a good motive to know this info

 

A great example of why you might want this information concerns winter weather. I had a relative whose flight was canceled because the plane was snowed in in Chicago but it was blue skies here in Boston.