How To Request A New Real-Time API Integration

Spidertracks has an API available so third-party consumers can retrieve telemetry data from our system.

 

Click to Skip to Section:

1. Overview

2. Becoming an API Consumer

3. Setting Up a New Integration

4. Data Access and Limitations

5. Testing the Feed with Postman

6. Troubleshooting & Common Issues

7. Additional Resources

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1. Overview

The Spidertracks Automated Flight Following (AFF) API allows third-party systems to access real-time aircraft telemetry data, including live location and other available flight metrics, directly from the Spidertracks platform.

This API follows the global AFF standard originally developed by the USDA Forest Service and maintained at www.aff.gov. It enables seamless integration for organizations that require live tracking and telemetry data for operational or compliance purposes.

2. Becoming an API Consumer

To access Spidertracks API data, you must be registered as an API Consumer.

 

How to Apply

1. Complete the API Consumer Application Form to request access.

2. Our team will review your application to ensure it meets the requirements for API access.

3. Once submitted, we may contact you for additional details before approval.

4. Upon approval, you’ll receive credentials and setup instructions.

The contact email listed on your request form will be the same email used to retrieve data from our system.

If you have not yet set up an account, please follow the instructions in this article:

How to Create An Account 

The organisation using the API must also add this email as a member of their Spidertracks account.

Doing so automatically sends an invitation and links the account to your API consumer profile:

How To Add Users & Manage Their Visibility Settings

3. Setting Up a New Integration

When your application is approved, a Private AFF Consumer account will be created.

To activate the integration:

This must be done by an account admin.

1. Click Admin.

2. Select Organisation. 

3. Select AFF API.

4. Select Private AFF Consumer set up.

5. Click Apply to All or Save for a single Aircraft.

Once the integration is validated, additional approval steps may be required before it appears under Public AFF Consumers, making it visible to all users.

4. Data Access and Limitations

All AFF feeds are filtered in accordance with AFF data standards:

• Only the latest report within each two-minute interval is displayed.

• Non-standard tracking points (e.g., Watch, Mark, SOS, Fire events) are always included.

• The feed only returns data from the last 14 days.

• Requests for older data will return the earliest available points within that 14-day window.

This filtering ensures compliance with AFF requirements to transmit at least one report every two minutes.

5. Testing the Feed with Postman

If you’d like to test the feed before full integration, you can do so easily using Postman.

1. Download and install Postman.

2. Download AFF API JSON Collection. 

3. Extract the AFF API JSON collection from the .zip file.

4. Open Postman.

5. Click Import, locate the AFF API JSON collection, and select and import it into Postman.

6. The collection should now appear in the side panel.

(If you can’t see the side panel click the orange Side Panel button in the bottom left corner of the Postman window).

7. Choose the appropriate collection:

• Feed JSON → Production environment

• Feed JSON Test → Test environment

8. Navigate to the Auth tab.

9. Enter your username and password.

10. Open the Body tab.

11. Set the desired date/time using the parameter:"dataCtrTime": "2020-06-09T00:12:01Z".

Note: Date time is in UTC in the following format "dataCtrTime": "2020-06-09T00:12:01Z". 

12. Click the send button and the API will return the next points (up to 1000 points) from the date time entered.

          *Results should appear in the bottom half of the window. Look for the status:

6. Troubleshooting & Common Issues

Issue	Likely Cause	Solution
No data returned	Request time outside 14-day window	Adjust dataCtrTime to a recent date
Unauthorised error	Invalid credentials or unlinked email	Verify account link and API credentials
Missing aircraft	Not activated under Private AFF Consumers	Ask account admin to enable the aircraft
Data delays	Request frequency too high	Limit to one request per two minutes

7. Additional Resources

• 📄 AFF Consumer Guide (PDF) – Detailed API integration and feed examples (attached below)
  
  

• 📧 Need help? Contact our Support Team: [e-mail]