Military Aircraft, Airborne Screensaver
The Military Aircraft, Airborne screensaver shows airframes flagged military in the community ADS-B database, gathered key-less by the pipeline. Military is a property of the tail, not the mission, and aircraft on operations go dark — so this is the part that chooses to be visible. It's free, runs in your browser, and ESC exits.
Live preview
Press ESC to leave fullscreen. Settings are saved in your browser only.
How the Military Aircraft, Airborne screensaver works
The saver reads the source described above and draws it on a canvas — no account, no tracking.
Airframes flagged military in the community ADS-B database, gathered key-less by the pipeline. Military is a property of the tail, not the mission, and aircraft on operations go dark — so this is the part that chooses to be visible.
It refreshes on a schedule, so what you see stays current.
Colours and any options can be changed in settings; nothing is stored beyond your own browser.
What a military flag means on ADS-B
ADS-B is a broadcast in which an aircraft transmits its identity and position, most commonly on 1090 MHz using Mode S extended squitter messages, with the position taken from a satellite navigation source such as GPS. Volunteer receivers around the world pick these signals up, and adsb.lol is one community-fed aggregator that makes what its receivers hear available as open data.
Each aircraft has a unique 24-bit ICAO address, normally written as six hexadecimal characters, and community databases link those addresses to registrations, aircraft types and flags such as military. The flag belongs to the airframe, so a military tanker flying a routine training route and one on another task look identical on the board.
The picture is partial by design. Many military aircraft do not transmit or switch ADS-B off, so what appears is only the portion that chooses to be seen and happens to be within range of a volunteer receiver. The board makes no claim about mission, nationality or intent.
A worked example
Airframes flagged military in the community ADS-B database, gathered key-less by the pipeline. Military is a property of the tail, not the mission, and aircraft on operations go dark — so this is the part that chooses to be visible.
Settings & tips
- Accent and Background recolour the display.
- Every value on screen comes from the live source — nothing is simulated.
- Press ESC to leave fullscreen.
Frequently asked questions
- Is this real data?
- Yes — it comes from the source named on this page and is refreshed on a schedule.
- Is a key needed?
- No. This source is fully key-less.
- Is it free?
- Yes, and it runs entirely in your browser.
- Why are so few aircraft shown compared with real military traffic?
- Only airframes that broadcast ADS-B within range of volunteer receivers are included, and many military flights do not.
- What is an ICAO address?
- A unique 24-bit code assigned to each aircraft and broadcast by its transponder, usually shown as six hexadecimal characters. It identifies the airframe and stays the same whatever the flight.