For developers

The data on this site is public, and so is the plumbing: an open JSON API and a remote MCP server. No keys, no signup.

MCP server

Connect an AI assistant directly to GroundCheck. The server speaks MCP (Model Context Protocol) over streamable HTTP at:

https://groundcheck.net/mcp

In Claude: Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector → paste the URL. No authentication. Tools: search_operators · get_operator_record · search_aircraft · get_aircraft_record · latest_incidents.

The server ships its rules with the data: connected assistants are instructed never to present a safety score, never to treat absent records as a clean history, and to carry each record's match-confidence caveats — the same no-judgement rules this site follows.

JSON API

The same read API this site runs on. Treat it as v0 — response shapes may change without notice.

  • GET /api/operators?q={name}operator search (fuzzy, includes aliases)
  • GET /api/operators/{id}full operator record
  • GET /api/operators/{id}/sdr?offset=&limit=paged maintenance disclosures
  • GET /api/aircraft?q={n-number}aircraft search by tail-number prefix
  • GET /api/aircraft/{n_number}full aircraft record
  • GET /api/incidents?limit=&scope=all|resolved|part135latest NTSB events
  • GET /api/sourcesper-source load state and freshness

Please cache responses and keep request rates modest — this runs on small infrastructure, with no uptime promises. Responses are edge-cached for up to 15 minutes.

Attribution

The underlying records are US public data (NTSB, FAA). GroundCheck's work is the entity resolution — linking records to the right operator with stated confidence. If you build on it, link back to groundcheck.net, and preserve each record's link to its official NTSB/FAA source.