An N-number is the FAA-issued aircraft registration tail for U.S. civil aircraft. It begins with the letter N followed by 1 to 5 alphanumeric characters and identifies a single aircraft over its lifetime.

Where does this data come from?

Registration records come from the FAA Releasable Aircraft Database (refreshed weekly), and each profile shows the snapshot date. Accident and incident history is not imported: every profile links to the NTSB CAROL database, where the official reports live.

Registration and ownership data refresh weekly from the FAA Releasable Aircraft Database. GroundScholar Registry shows the snapshot date on every profile so you know how fresh the answer is.

Why is the owner name redacted?

Individual-owner names are redacted by default to discourage automated scraping; entity owners (LLC, dealer, airline, flight school, government) are shown without redaction. A reveal control on the profile page unlocks individual records for legitimate use.

FAA aircraft registry

Look up any FAA N-number in five seconds.

Registration, owner type and status from the FAA registry, with direct links to NTSB accident records and the FAA AD library — per tail, with the snapshot date on every page.

Free, no loginData current as of 2026-10-18Sources and methodology

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FAA registry hub

Browse the registry by manufacturer and model

Faster than registry.faa.gov. Same data, modernised layout, fresh snapshot stamps.

Vanity tool

Check N-number availability and find close alternatives

Type a desired tail; we score similar candidates by edit distance, keyboard layout, and phonetic match.

Pre-purchase

What to look for before buying a used aircraft

Practical guide: registry liens, accident history, Airworthiness Directive applicability, logbook reconciliation, and pre-buy inspection scope.

Recent profiles

A small sample to illustrate the profile shape. Every active U.S. tail has its own page.

Search the full registry by tail, manufacturer, or model →

Browse every N-number A→Z, or start from a manufacturer →

Airworthiness clocks

What keeps a registered aircraft legal to fly

A registry record shows who owns a tail, not whether it is legal to fly. These are the recurring inspection and test intervals every U.S.-registered aircraft is measured against, each one quoted from the regulation itself.

For student pilots

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What this is

GroundScholar Registry turns the FAA Releasable Aircraft Database into one fast profile per U.S. N-number, with links out to NTSB CAROL accident records and the FAA Airworthiness Directive library. Free for individual lookups; reservation, monitoring, and pre-purchase report tiers are on the way.

What is an N-number?: An N-number is the FAA-issued aircraft registration tail for U.S. civil aircraft. It begins with the letter N followed by 1 to 5 alphanumeric characters and identifies a single aircraft over its lifetime.
Where does this data come from?: Registration records come from the FAA Releasable Aircraft Database (refreshed weekly), and each profile shows the snapshot date. Accident and incident history is not imported: every profile links to the NTSB CAROL database, where the official reports live.
Is the data live?: Registration and ownership data refresh weekly from the FAA Releasable Aircraft Database. GroundScholar Registry shows the snapshot date on every profile so you know how fresh the answer is.
Why is the owner name redacted?: Individual-owner names are redacted by default to discourage automated scraping; entity owners (LLC, dealer, airline, flight school, government) are shown without redaction. A reveal control on the profile page unlocks individual records for legitimate use.