St. Louis is within 20 miles of 3 airports with control towers: St Louis Downtown, St. Louis Lambert International and St Louis Regional. Most planes you see over St. Louis are taking off from or landing at one of them. Airports take off and land into the wind, so when the wind changes, the paths over St. Louis change too.
Right now over St. Louis
Live aircraft within about 8 miles of St. Louis, updated every 30 seconds.
Hearing helicopters or sirens? Listen to the St. Louis city police scanner ↗
Which way the airports are landing right now
Planes take off and land into the wind. Here is the wind at each airport right now, and what it means for the planes over St. Louis.
Tap the map to see how often planes pass over that spot. Zoom in with + and –, or pinch with two fingers. 📍 shows where you are. ⤢ goes back to the full view.
Arriving planes don’t fly straight to the runway. Controllers line them up like cars merging onto a highway, often 10 to 20 miles or more from the airport, and fly them along the side of the airport before turning them toward the runway. That is why a town several miles from an airport can sit right under the line of arriving planes, and why it changes when the airport switches direction.
Flight paths over St. Louis: what the recorded flights show
We’ve recorded months of flights below 10,000 feet over this area. Here’s what they show for St. Louis, and which way the wind sets the runways at each nearby airport. These are averages: any single day can be quieter or busier.
- Aircraft rarely fly right over the center of St. Louis: under a minute a day on average.
- The busiest flight path near St. Louis is about 1.4 miles east-southeast of the center of St. Louis, where an aircraft is overhead about 3 minutes a day (very roughly 20 flights), usually around 2,300 ft above the main airport.
- There: 90% low, under 4,000 ft · 10% helicopters.
- Most of them are heading north.
- It’s busiest on days the wind blows from the northwest (about 5 minutes a day), and quieter when it blows from the southeast (under a minute).
Which way the wind sets the runways
- St Louis Downtown (CPS), 4.5 miles south-southeast: over the past year, whenever there was a breeze, it favored landing toward the southwest (runway 23) 33% of the time and toward the southeast (runways 12L and 12R) 24%. When CPS lands toward the southeast, arriving planes line up over or near St. Louis on their way in.
- St. Louis Lambert International (STL), 12.5 miles northwest: over the past year, whenever there was a breeze, it favored landing toward the southwest (runway 24) 29% of the time and toward the southeast (runways 12L and 12R) 23%.
- St Louis Regional (ALN), 19.9 miles north-northeast: over the past year, whenever there was a breeze, it favored landing toward the south (runway 17) 37% of the time and toward the north (runway 35) 23%.
Estimated from the past year’s hourly winds (Nov 2025 to Oct 2026), counting the hours with at least a light breeze. The wind leads, but controllers also weigh noise rules, traffic and runway work, so the runway in use doesn’t always match.
Is your street under a flight path? Check your exact address →
Who controls the sky over St. Louis
These air traffic control facilities keep the planes over St. Louis safely apart. Each one has a free thank-you wall.
- CPSTowerSt. Louis Downtown Tower (CPS)Takeoffs and landings at St Louis DowntownThank them →
- STLTowerSt. Louis Lambert Tower (STL)Takeoffs and landings at St. Louis Lambert InternationalThank them →
- ALNTowerSt Louis Regional Tower (ALN)Takeoffs and landings at St Louis RegionalThank them →
- T75Approach controlSt. Louis TRACON (T75)Guides planes climbing out of and coming down into the airports around St. LouisThank them →
- ZKCEn route centerKansas City ARTCC (ZKC)Handles flights cruising high over St. LouisThank them →
Why the flight paths over St. Louis change
The wind
Airports use the runway that points most into the wind. When the wind swings around, arrivals and departures flip to the other end of the runway, and planes can start crossing a different part of St. Louis. That often happens when a front or a line of storms moves through.
Storms
Controllers steer planes around thunderstorms, so on stormy afternoons flights can show up where you normally never see them, sometimes lower and closer together than usual.
Busy times
At busy times, controllers space arrivals a few miles apart and may extend the line of planes farther out, which can stretch the arrival path over more neighborhoods.
Training and small planes
Smaller airports nearby are home to flight schools. Student pilots practice takeoffs, landings and approaches, so you may see the same small plane circle back again and again.
Questions about aircraft noise in St. Louis
Aircraft noise is handled by the airport, not by air traffic control. Each airport (usually run by a city, county or airport authority) has its own noise office and wants to hear about specific flights, so note the date and time. The airports near St. Louis are:
- St Louis Downtown (CPS)
- St. Louis Lambert International (STL)
- St Louis Regional (ALN)
To find the right noise office, search the airport’s name with the word “noise,” or use the FAA’s airport locator. If the airport can’t help, the FAA’s noise ombudsman can. FAA: Noise complaints and inquiries → · Find your airport’s noise office, and what helps at home →
Nearby towns
Every plane over St. Louis is talking to a controller. Say thanks to the people who keep them safely apart.
Common questions
How many planes fly over St. Louis a day?
Very few fly right over the center of St. Louis. The busiest nearby path, about 1.4 miles east-southeast of the center, has an aircraft overhead about 3 minutes a day (very roughly 20 flights).
Which way does STL usually land?
Over the past year, whenever there was a breeze, the wind favored St. Louis Lambert International landing toward the southwest (runway 24) 29% of the time and toward the southeast (runways 12L and 12R) 23%. Planes take off and land into the wind, so the direction flips when the wind does.
Why are planes flying so low over St. Louis?
Planes low over St. Louis are usually landing at or taking off from one of the nearby airports, such as St Louis Downtown (CPS), 4 miles away. Air traffic controllers keep every one of them safely separated from the others.
Why are there more planes over St. Louis some days?
Mostly because of the wind. Airports take off and land into the wind, so a wind shift can send arrivals or departures over different neighborhoods. Storms and busy travel days can also move or stretch the usual paths.
Which airport are the planes over St. Louis going to?
The closest airports with control towers are St Louis Downtown (CPS), St. Louis Lambert International (STL), St Louis Regional (ALN). Low planes are usually using one of these; higher jets are often passing over on the way somewhere else.
Who do I contact about airplane noise in St. Louis?
The noise office of the airport the plane was using, not the control tower. Have the date and time ready. If the airport can't help, the FAA's noise ombudsman takes inquiries through faa.gov/noise.