Helicopters over Hermosa Beach

Live helicopter tracking for Hermosa Beach, Los Angeles County — updated every few seconds.

Area briefing

Hermosa Beach, Los Angeles County

Checking the sky overhead…

GTLA AirWatch · Live area briefing · positions from ADS-B, rechecked every 20 seconds

Map of Hermosa Beach, Los Angeles County
Scanning
Live map — checking for helicopters over Hermosa Beach… The dashed ring is the 3.5 km radius this page counts as “over Hermosa Beach”; inner rings mark one-third and two-thirds of that distance.

Tonight over Hermosa Beach

Nothing overhead now. The last helicopter left 38 minutes ago, heading south.

Verbs like “held over” and “circled” describe the recorded flight path, not what was happening on the ground. Nothing here states a crime, a fire or a casualty.

Who's hovering here?View the full live map

The sky over Hermosa Beach

102helicopter passes tracked over 47 days
15.2
passes per week
0.5
hours overhead per week
1 PM
busiest hour
Private
most common overhead

By hour of day

12a
3a
6a
9a
12p
3p
6p
9p
Busiest hour: 1p · this hour (10p) has averaged 1 pass historically

Who flies over Hermosa Beach

  • Private79%
  • Military7%
  • News6%
  • Fire / medical2%
  • CHP2%
  • Other4%

The regulars over Hermosa Beach

The aircraft recorded here most often — the ones you’ll see again.

Who flies over Hermosa Beach, by the numbers

Private and charter helicopters over Hermosa Beach

81 of 102 recorded passes over Hermosa Beach were private and charter helicopters — 79% of the traffic here, 2.1 hours overhead in total.

usually 1pm–4pmtypically 400–600 ft

Private and charter aircraft are usually in transit, on a tour or a survey flight, and pass through without stopping.

What it usually means

Private / civil: Private and civil helicopters are usually in transit, on a charter, or on a survey flight.

Military: Military aircraft are usually transiting between bases or on a training route rather than responding to anything local.

News helicopter: News helicopters usually mean live coverage of a developing story — a pursuit, a fire, or a scene the station is broadcasting.

Fire / medical: Fire and air-medical helicopters mean a fire response, a rescue, or a hospital transport — often brief, and often at low altitude.

Recent helicopter activity

Nearby coverage

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Helicopters over Hermosa Beach common questions

How high do helicopters fly over Hermosa Beach?

From the passes recorded here: private and charter helicopters at 400–600 ft. These are the middle half of measured altitudes above sea level for each group, not a floor or a ceiling.

How long do helicopters stay over Hermosa Beach?

Most passes are brief — a minute or two straight through. The aircraft that stay longest here are private and charter helicopters: 2.1 hours overhead across 81 recorded passes. Private and charter aircraft are usually in transit, on a tour or a survey flight, and pass through without stopping.

How can I tell if it's police or a news helicopter?

Police aircraft usually fly tight, repeated orbits over one spot and often stay for a long time. News helicopters tend to hold a wider circle at a higher altitude and arrive after an incident is already underway. This page labels each aircraft by its operator, so you don't have to guess.

Where does this data come from?

GTLA AirWatch tracks public ADS-B and MLAT broadcasts that aircraft transmit about their own position, the same open data used by air-traffic enthusiasts worldwide. It is updated every few seconds.

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