Canada Flight Radar – Live Flight Tracking

Curious about the jet heading over the lake, or whether your sister’s flight into Pearson is on schedule? Our Canada flight radar follows aircraft from coast to coast to coast on a single live map. Use it free in your browser at home or on your phone, with no app to install and no account to set up.

How to launch the live flight tracker

• Click “Start Flight Radar” in the box above. A short rewarded video ad runs, and the map appears as soon as it ends.
• Find your region. Drag the map toward Canada and zoom in on your province, city or neighbourhood.
• Select a plane. Clicking or tapping an icon brings up its flight number, route, aircraft type, altitude and speed, along with the path flown so far.

For tips on filters, search and icons, read our guide on how to use a flight radar.

Canada flight radar: major airports to watch

Aircraft registered in Canada carry a registration starting with C-, shown in the details panel.

Coverage across Canada, from the Atlantic to the Arctic

NAV CANADA runs air traffic control nationwide, but a public flight tracker depends on volunteer receivers on the ground. That creates some distinctly Canadian patterns:

• Southern corridors are well covered. Along the Windsor–Québec City corridor and around Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton, aircraft are usually visible right down to the runway.
• The North Atlantic gateway. Flights between North America and Europe funnel past Newfoundland onto organized oceanic tracks. Gander handles the oceanic control area, so on a busy evening you can watch a chain of eastbound jets fanning out over the ocean.
• The far north has gaps. Across the territories, ground receivers are few and far between, so positions may come from satellites or be estimated.
• Mountains block low signals. In British Columbia and the Rockies, a small plane flying through a valley can vanish behind the terrain until it climbs again.

Flights over me: naming the aircraft above your home

Standing on the deck and hearing engines overhead? Here’s how to put a name to them:

1. Zoom the map in until you can see your street.
2. Match the direction of the aircraft in the sky with an icon moving the same way.
3. Click the icon for the airline, aircraft type, origin and destination.

Jets crossing high above the Prairies are often on long cross-country routes, while low aircraft near Mississauga or Richmond are typically on approach to Pearson or YVR. In winter you may also notice snowbird flights heading south.

Following a flight to meet family or friends

• Confirm the departure. If the plane hasn’t left its origin, the arrival will be late as well. In winter, de-icing can add time before take-off.
• Leave at the right moment. Head out once the flight is well on its way, so you don’t spend ages circling or paying for the parkade.
• Remember customs. Passengers arriving from outside Canada need time for border processing and baggage before they reach the arrivals hall.

The airline remains the official source for gate changes, delays and cancellations.

The technology behind live flight tracking

A flight radar doesn’t actually rely on radar. Most airliners figure out their location by GPS and transmit it several times a second through ADS-B on 1090 MHz. Hobbyists run small antennas that capture these broadcasts and forward them to the tracking networks. ADS-B has been mandatory in the United States since 2020, so cross-border traffic is well represented.

Aircraft with older transponders don’t report a position. Then MLAT (multilateration) calculates where they are, but only when four or more receivers capture the same signal. Over open ocean and sparsely populated regions, satellite reception and estimated tracks fill in the picture. To compare services, see our guides to Flightradar24 and AirNav Radar.

Know your numbers: a short glossary

Questions Canadians ask about flight tracking