FlightXML API-requests counting

FlightAware AeroAPI
1

Hi

We are using the silver subscription for FlightXML 3. This subscription has 20.000 requests per month. This will give us around 26 requests per hour.
When checking the FlightXML Billing → Recent Activity (Billing Information ✈ Recent Activity - Flight Status API / Flight Tracking API / FlightAware API - Commercial Services - FlightAware) it states 72 or 84 per hour under the column Count. Are count and requests the same. Are we running into problem later this month (silver are the highest subscription I’m allowed to purchase). Our web-service is only making one request (https://flightxml.flightaware.com/json/FlightXML3/AirportBoards?airport_code=EKBI&howMany=100) every 5 minutes and therefore only 12 times per hour (not 72 or 84). Please enlightening me here :blush:

With kind regards

Ole Tetzschner

2

A query is equal to 15 results. With your how many set to 100, that would be a maximum of 6.6666667 queries every 5 minutes or 72 to 84 queries every hour.

The query count is determined by the number of times a FlightXML method is invoked by your application at its default number of results; each invocation will count as a single query. Many FlightXML methods return lists and limit the number of results to 15 records by default, but also have a “howMany” argument that allow you to request a larger number of results. If you specify a value for “howMany” that is greater than 15 (and have already invoked “SetMaximumResultSize” to opt-in to a larger maximum limit), then you may be returned up to the quantity specified by howMany, if possible. You will be billed for a query count equivalent to the actual number of results returned divided by 15, rounded up. For example, if you call SetMaximumResultSize with a max_size of 100, then call FlightInfo with howMany of 45, but it only returns 35 records, you will be charged the equivalent of calling FlightInfo a total of 3 times, or 1+int(35/15).

3

Thanks for the explanation. Am I the only one feeling mislead by the pricing (max results per query) ?

Kind regards Ole

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4

Im not trying to split hairs, but it is technically correct in that the max number of results for a given query is up to 150. It does not mention the number of queries charged for a larger result size. I have made a request to make this more clear on the pricing page.

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