Helicopters over La Crescenta

Live helicopter tracking for La Crescenta, Los Angeles — updated every few seconds.

Checking the sky over La Crescenta

Map of La Crescenta, Los AngelesScanning
Scanning for choppers over La Crescenta — nothing overhead right now. The dashed ring is the 2 km radius this page counts as “over La Crescenta”; inner rings mark one-third and two-thirds of that distance.
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The sky over La Crescenta

173helicopter passes tracked over 23 days
52.7
passes per week
4.2
hours overhead per week
2 PM
busiest hour
Police
most common overhead

By hour of day

12a
3a
6a
9a
12p
3p
6p
9p
Busiest hour: 2p · this hour (11a) has averaged 5 passes historically

Who flies over La Crescenta

  • Police38%
  • Private34%
  • News9%
  • Fire / medical9%
  • Sheriff6%
  • Other5%

What it usually means

Police (LAPD / municipal): Police helicopters typically orbit for a search, a pursuit, or to support officers on the ground. A tight circle overhead usually means the activity is directly below.

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

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 La Crescenta: common questions

Why is there a helicopter over La Crescenta?

Most helicopter activity over La Crescenta is one of four things: police aircraft supporting officers on the ground, news helicopters covering a developing story, fire or air-medical aircraft responding to an emergency, or private and military aircraft simply transiting the area. This page shows which one is overhead right now, identified by operator.

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.

What time do helicopters usually fly over La Crescenta?

Based on 173 tracked passes over La Crescenta, the most common hour for helicopter activity is around 2pm local time. Activity rises during evening news hours and drops sharply overnight.

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.