FlightXML3 actual_departure_time and actual_arrival_time bug

FlightAware AeroAPI
1

Some flights seem to be reporting actual_departure_time and actual_arrival_time with an epoch of 0. For example


https://flightxml.flightaware.com/json/FlightXML3/FlightInfoStatus?include_ex_data=false&ident=AAL1700-1502688339-airline-0130

is returning


{
  "FlightInfoStatusResult": {
    "next_offset": -1,
    "flights": 
      {
        "ident": "AAL1700",
        "faFlightID": "AAL1700-1502688339-airline-0130",
        "airline": "AAL",
        "flightnumber": "1700",
        "tailnumber": "N948UW",
        "type": "Form_Airline",
        "codeshares": "BAW2439",
        "blocked": false,
        "diverted": false,
        "cancelled": false,
        "origin": {
          "code": "KPIT",
          "city": "Pittsburgh, PA",
          "alternate_ident": "",
          "airport_name": "Pittsburgh Intl"
        },
        "destination": {
          "code": "KPHL",
          "city": "Philadelphia, PA",
          "alternate_ident": "",
          "airport_name": "Philadelphia Intl"
        },
        "filed_ete": 3360,
        "filed_airspeed_kts": 249,
        "distance_filed": 267,
        "filed_departure_time": {
          "epoch": 1502912400,
          "tz": "EDT",
          "dow": "Wednesday",
          "time": "03:40PM",
          "date": "08/16/2017",
          "localtime": 1502898000
        },
        "estimated_departure_time": {
          "epoch": 1502913000,
          "tz": "EDT",
          "dow": "Wednesday",
          "time": "03:50PM",
          "date": "08/16/2017",
          "localtime": 1502898600
        },
        "actual_departure_time": {
          "epoch": 0
        },
        "departure_delay": 600,
        "filed_arrival_time": {
          "epoch": 1502915760,
          "tz": "EDT",
          "dow": "Wednesday",
          "time": "04:36PM",
          "date": "08/16/2017",
          "localtime": 1502901360
        },
        "estimated_arrival_time": {
          "epoch": 1502916360,
          "tz": "EDT",
          "dow": "Wednesday",
          "time": "04:46PM",
          "date": "08/16/2017",
          "localtime": 1502901960
        },
        "actual_arrival_time": {
          "epoch": 0
        },
        "arrival_delay": 600,
        "status": "Scheduled",
        "progress_percent": -1,
        "aircrafttype": "E190",
        "full_aircrafttype": "E190",
        "inbound_faFlightID": "AAL1700-1502688339-airline-0451",
        "adhoc": false
      }
    ]
  }
}

Looks like a bug

2

So that’s actually the correct behavior and the times where it returns -1 is the bug. What we had intended was for missing timestamps (for example when the flight has not yet departed or not yet arrived as was the case here) to just populate with an epoch of 0. We have a bug where they are instead populating with a -1. It’s in the work queue to fix that but I don’t have a timeline on it just yet.

3

Oh weird, okay. Why not just omit the fields or make them nullable?