Aircraft Registration Numbers: How to Read a Tail Number

Look closely at the tail or rear fuselage of any aircraft and you will find a short string of letters and numbers painted in large characters, such as N628AA, G-XWBA or F-HTYA. That is the aircraft's registration, its legal identity. Unlike a flight number, which is reused every day by whichever plane operates it, the registration belongs to one specific airframe and normally stays with it until it is sold to an operator in another country. Learn to read it and you can tell where a plane is registered, look up its history, and recognize the same jet on a future trip.

Registration vs. Flight Number

These two are constantly confused. The flight number (for example AF006) is a commercial label: it describes a route and a schedule, and a different aircraft may operate it tomorrow. The registration (for example F-HPJD) identifies the physical aircraft. An airframe keeps its registration whether it is flying passengers, sitting in maintenance, or being repainted for a new airline. Think of the flight number as a job title and the registration as a passport.

Reading the Country Prefix

Every registration begins with a country prefix agreed internationally. The first one or two characters tell you where the aircraft is registered, which is not always where the airline is based. Some of the most common prefixes:

The United States is the easy one to spot: every US registration starts with N, which is why spotters call them “N-numbers”. Many other countries place a dash after the prefix, followed by letters or numbers unique to that airframe, while some, like Japan and the United States, write the registration without a dash.

The Hidden Code: ICAO 24-bit Hex

Besides the painted registration, every aircraft has a unique 24-bit ICAO address, written as six hexadecimal characters such as 3C6444. Its ADS-B transponder broadcasts it, and it is how tracking services tell one dot on the map from another. Databases link the hex code to the registration, so given one you can find the other. For US aircraft the hex code is even computed directly from the N-number.

How to Find Your Aircraft's Registration

From the gate or through your window you can often read the registration painted on the tail or the rear fuselage. Before you fly, tracking sites list the aircraft expected for a flight number, although the airline can swap it at short notice. With the registration in hand, public databases give the aircraft's age, first flight date, manufacturer serial number (MSN), previous operators, and photographs of that exact plane.

Why Plane Spotters Chase Tail Numbers

For aviation enthusiasts, the registration turns flying into a collection game. Spotting a rare airframe, catching a brand-new delivery, or boarding the same aircraft you flew years ago is a thrill. Some registrations are famous: VH-OQA was the first Qantas A380. Some airlines pick vanity registrations that spell out words. Logging the registration of every flight builds a personal record far richer than “I flew from A to B”.

Log Every Tail Number with FlightLog

Every flight in FlightLog can carry its aircraft type and registration, and the aircraft collection lists the types you have flown. The live plane tracker follows an aircraft in the air from ADS-B data, with the aircraft's details.

Start decoding the planes you fly and keep a permanent record of each one. You can download FlightLog for free on iOS and Android and add your first tail number today.