Aircraft Types API

About the Aircraft Types API

An aircraft specifications API built on the FAA Aircraft Characteristics Database, the reference airport planners and air traffic tools use for aircraft dimensions and classifications. Look up a type by its ICAO type designator (B738, A20N, C172) or search by manufacturer and model, and filter by engine type, engine count or wake category.

Every type returns its manufacturer and model, aircraft class, engine type and count, wingspan with and without winglets, length, tail height, maximum takeoff and landing weight, approach speed, aircraft approach category (A-E), airplane design group (I-VI), ICAO wake turbulence category and FAA weight class, plus the same dimensions and weights in metres and kilograms.

Paid plans add the airport planning block (taxiway design group, wheelbase, cockpit to main gear distance, main gear width and configuration, parking area), the wake block (consolidated wake turbulence category, RECAT 1.5 and RECAT 2 categories, same runway separation category, LAHSO group) and usage figures: how many aircraft of the type are on the US register and how many flight-plan operations it flew in the National Airspace System last fiscal year. The data is refreshed weekly from the FAA.

How it works

icao matches the ICAO type designator or the FAA designator exactly (case-insensitive) and returns that one type. Without it, manufacturer and model are substring matches after stripping punctuation, so model=737 finds every 737 variant and manufacturer=deHavilland finds DE HAVILLAND; engineType, wakeCategory and engines narrow the result, or search on their own (wakeCategory=super lists every Super type). Searches are ordered by annual flight-plan operations, so the types you meet most often come first, and count reports every match while limit (default 10, at most 50) caps types.

The figures come from the FAA Aircraft Characteristics Database, which the FAA compiles from manufacturer airport planning manuals and Flight Standardization Board reports for airport design under AC 150/5300-13B. approachCategory follows the highest approach speed at maximum landing weight; where the FAA gives two values, approachSpeedRangeKnots carries both. designGroup combines tail height and wingspan, and airport.taxiwayDesignGroup combines main gear width and cockpit to main gear distance. Metric values are converted from the published feet and pounds.

No match returns 404. The ICAO wake category is normalised to Light, Medium, Heavy or Super; a few light-sport types are listed by the FAA as Light/Medium and keep that value. On the Free plan the airport, wake and usage leaves and remarks are null.

What people use it for

Airport Planning

Check whether an aircraft type fits a gate, taxiway or hangar from its wingspan, length, tail height, design group and taxiway design group.

Flight Tracking Apps

Show the aircraft behind an ADS-B type code with its manufacturer, model, size and wake category.

Aviation Training

Look up approach speeds and categories, wake turbulence classes and separation categories for study material and simulators.

Operations and Fees

Price landing or parking fees by maximum takeoff weight and parking area, and group fleets by weight class.

Ways to call it

One endpoint, many ways in — REST with JSON, XML, YAML and CSV, plus GraphQL and an MCP interface for AI agents.

JSON

Default REST response

XML

Markup format

YAML

Human-readable

CSV

Tabular export

Beta

GraphQL

Query language

New

MCP

For AI agents

Request parameters — GET /v1/aircrafttypes

Sent in the query string. Premium parameters are accepted on every plan but only take effect on plans that include them. Anything not listed here is dropped rather than passed through.

Optional

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curl "https://api.apiverve.com/v1/aircrafttypes?icao=B738&manufacturer=Airbus&model=737&engineType=jet&wakeCategory=heavy&engines=2&limit=10" \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY"

Authentication

Send your key in the x-api-key header. That is the only auth step — no token exchange, and no per-endpoint scope to configure.

Response — GET /v1/aircrafttypes

Every APIVerve endpoint returns the same three top-level keys, so one response handler covers your whole integration: status, error and data. Only data changes shape.

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{
  "status": "ok",
  "error": null,
  "data": {
    "count": 1,
    "returned": 1,
    "types": [
      {
        "icaoCode": "B738",
        "faaDesignator": "B738",
        "manufacturer": "BOEING",
        "model": "Boeing 737-800",
        "variant": "Boeing B737-800",
        "aircraftClass": "Fixed-wing",
        "engineType": "Jet",
        "engineCount": 2,
        "wingspanFt": 117.4,
        "wingspanWithoutWingletsFt": 112.6,
        "hasWinglets": true,
        "lengthFt": 129.5,
        "tailHeightFt": 41.4,
        "maxTakeoffWeightLb": 174200,
        "maxLandingWeightLb": 146275,
        "approachSpeedKnots": 144,
        "approachSpeedRangeKnots": {
          "min": 140,
          "max": 144
        },
        "approachCategory": "D",
        "designGroup": "III",
        "icaoWakeCategory": "Medium",
        "faaWeightClass": "Large",
        "metric": {
          "wingspanM": 35.78,
          "lengthM": 39.47,
          "tailHeightM": 12.62,
          "maxTakeoffWeightKg": 79016,
          "maxLandingWeightKg": 66349
        },
        "airport": {
          "taxiwayDesignGroup": "3",
          "wheelbaseFt": 51.2,
          "cockpitToMainGearFt": 56.4,
          "mainGearWidthFt": 23,
          "mainGearConfig": "D",
          "parkingAreaFt2": 16487,
          "parkingAreaM2": 1532,
          "rotorDiameterFt": null
        },
        "wake": {
          "consolidatedCategory": "F",
          "recat15Category": "D",
          "recat2CategoryA": "D",
          "recat2CategoryB": "C",
          "sameRunwaySeparation": "III",
          "lahsoGroup": "8"
        },
        "usage": {
          "usRegistered": true,
          "usRegistrations": 971,
          "annualFlightPlanOperations": 2484764,
          "operationsYear": 2024
        },
        "remarks": "Depending on flaps configuration and MALW, AAC could be C. AAC validated by Flight Standardization Board (FSB) report.",
        "lastUpdated": null
      }
    ]
  }
}

Response fields

Paths are relative to data. Premium fields are absent rather than zeroed on plans that do not include them, so check for presence instead of comparing to 0.

Response headers

Every response carries your balance, so your own code always knows where it stands without polling anything. All four are exposed to browsers through CORS.

Errors

Read the HTTP status first, then error for the specific reason. The body names the parameter that has to change.

What a call costs — 1 credits per call

Credits are shared across every APIVerve API — one balance, one key, one bill. Failed requests never count against it, so a rejected input costs nothing.

Calls are what the credits buy at this API's rate — spend them here, on any of the other APIs, or across both. Nothing is reserved per endpoint.

Zero-code embed — one snippet, no backend

Drop an interactive Aircraft Types form onto any page. The widget calls the API for you, so no key ever appears in your markup and there is nothing to deploy.

Changelog — Aircraft Types API

Every change to this endpoint, newest first. Breaking changes ship as a new version and the previous one keeps serving — response fields are added, never removed or retyped in place, so an integration written against v1 keeps working.

Currently v1Data refreshed weekly