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π 2 helicopters over LA right now β 0 circling, 2 transiting.
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GTLA AirWatch is the live air-traffic dashboard for Los Angeles County and the surrounding SoCal basin. Every helicopter currently airborne over LA appears on the 3D map in real time, with FAA registration, operator identification, aircraft livery, and live flight trails sourced from ADS-B telemetry. Coverage extends from downtown Los Angeles north through the San Fernando Valley to Ventura County, east to the Inland Empire, and south through Orange County.
The map identifies aircraft from the LAPD Air Support Division, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) Aero Bureau, the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) and LA County Fire (LACoFD), the California Highway Patrol (CHP), and the regional news fleets β KTLA Sky5, KNBC NewsChopper 4, KABC AIR7, KCAL Sky9 / KTTV SkyFOX, and CBS News. It also tracks military aircraft including the United States Navy, US Coast Guard, and US Army helicopters that transit LA airspace, plus firefighting heavies like the CAL FIRE Firehawks, LACoFD's Coulson-operated S-61 and CH-47 Helitanker, and air-medical operators including Reach Air Medical Services.
The "Who's hovering here?" feature at gtla.live/here identifies the helicopter directly above the visitor's current location β useful when residents see or hear a helicopter overhead and want to know what it's doing. Common use cases include identifying news-helicopter coverage of breaking events, tracking police-pursuit response, monitoring wildfire firefighting operations during fire season, and following major-incident airspace activity in real time.
Live launch alerts are delivered through the GTLA AirWatch Telegram channel: instant notifications when news helicopters depart their bases, indicating that something newsworthy is unfolding somewhere in Los Angeles.
π 2 helicopters over LA right now β 0 circling, 2 transiting.
Neighborhood page: Caspers Wilderness Park
This story has concluded β aircraft have cleared the area.
9:31 p.m. β CAL FIRE last updated the incident at 9:04 p.m. with 216 acres; Watch Duty listed 250 acres at 8:19 p.m. No containment figure published by either. No aircraft remain over the fire: the air attack stood down for the night after five firefighting aircraft and four news helicopters worked it through the afternoon.
π° ABC7: Gibby Fire updates: Shelter-in-place issued for some Orange and Riverside County residents amid brush fire in San Juan Capistrano
4:31 p.m. β Both official sources now agree on 216 acres, Watch Duty at 4:30 p.m. and CAL FIRE at 4:22 p.m. Watch Duty no longer lists active evacuation zones in its description, which it did through the 3:29 p.m. update. Four news helicopters are now over the fire alongside five firefighting aircraft: KTLA Sky5, KNBC NewsChopper 4, KTTV SkyFOX 11 and KABC AIR7, with a fifth ABC ship earlier. CAL FIRE and Orange County Fire Authority helicopters and UC Helitanker 1 are still working it. Β· per Watch Duty
3:45 p.m. β The fire is now 220 acres. Ortega Highway remains closed eastbound at Gateway in Rancho Mission Viejo and westbound at Grand in Lake Elsinore. Three aircraft are still working it: two CAL FIRE helicopters, one of them low over the fire, and UC Helitanker 1. A news helicopter is holding above the fire traffic area at 5,500 feet.
π° ABC7: Gibby Fire updates: Shelter-in-place issued for some Orange County residents amid growing brush fire in San Juan Capistrano
π° ABC7: Gibby Fire updates: Crews battle fast-moving brush fire in San Juan Capistrano
Named the Gibby Fire on the official feeds, and being referred to as the Ortega Fire. Watch Duty reports 450 acres with active evacuation zones as of 3:29 p.m.; CAL FIRE's incident page still read 130 acres at 3:16 p.m. Reported at about 2:08 p.m. per Watch Duty. Ortega Highway (SR-74) is closed eastbound at Gateway in Rancho Mission Viejo and westbound at Grand in Lake Elsinore. A full air attack is working the fire: two Orange County Fire Authority helicopters, a CAL FIRE ship, UC Helitanker 1 and a contract PJ Helicopters ship, with a Helinet news helicopter orbiting above the fire traffic area at 5,500 feet. Β· per Watch Duty