Send your flight number by WhatsApp to +44 117 471 7170 and the live status comes straight back: airline, gate, scheduled and revised time. The flight then joins a watch list, rechecked every 15 minutes, and you get an alert the moment the gate, time or status changes, free, with no app to install.
You do not have to book anything to use it. It is run by Tick Taxi, a UK private-hire operator we work with. It tracks any flight number worldwide, so it works for Heathrow Airport whether or not you ever book a car. That is the fastest answer. Below: what to send, what the alerts actually say, and an honest comparison with the airline app, Heathrow Airport's own departures and arrivals board and Flightradar24, because no single method is best for everyone.
Is my flight delayed? Check in one message
Text the flight number on its own. BA123 is enough. If the airline has moved the departure you see the scheduled time with the revised time next to it, so you know exactly how far the day has slipped rather than just that "something changed".
If the flight is not today, add the day: EZY218 tomorrow, or TOM257 24/12. After that you can stop refreshing. The next message you get is the one that matters.
| Send this | You get |
|---|---|
| A flight number, e.g. BA2490 | Live status now, and the flight goes on the watch list |
| BA2490 tomorrow | The same, for a future date |
| MY FLIGHTS | Everything currently being watched for you |
| STOP TRACKING | Watching stops. No more alerts |
What the alerts tell you
Three things, and only these three:
- Gate published. The number, as soon as it appears. At most airports this is the thing people stand and refresh for.
- Time moved. A new departure or arrival time, shown against the scheduled one.
- Status changed. Delayed, boarding, departed, landed or cancelled.
Nothing else is sent. No offers, and no message to a number that has not messaged first.
The one catch, stated plainly
WhatsApp only lets a business send a free-form message within 24 hours of your last message to it. The tracker uses no paid message templates, which is what keeps it free, and it means alerts run inside that 24-hour window. Track a flight a week out, go quiet, and the live alerts will have lapsed by travel day.
The fix takes five seconds: send the flight number again on the day you fly. That reopens the window, and every gate, delay and cancellation change comes straight through.
Every way to track your LHR flight, compared
| Method | Cost | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| WhatsApp tracker | Free | Alerts pushed to you with no app, and for whoever is meeting the flight | 24-hour window above; confirm with your airline |
| Your airline's app | Free | The most authoritative source for your booking, and rebooking when it goes wrong | Needs installing and signing in; push notifications are easy to miss |
| Heathrow Airport's live board | Free | The airport's own view of what is happening on the day | You have to keep going back to it |
| Flightradar24 / FlightAware | Free tier | Watching the inbound aircraft, which is often the real reason a departure slips | Aircraft position is not the same as your flight being cancelled |
If two sources disagree, believe the airline. They own your booking; everyone else, us included, is reading data about it.
When the flight is actually delayed or cancelled
An alert is only useful if you know what to do with it:
- Check the airline app or desk first. Rebooking, vouchers and the official reason all come from them.
- Long delay or cancellation? Under UK261 you may be entitled to rerouting, care while you wait, and in some cases compensation. Claim directly with the airline, free, or escalate to the UK Civil Aviation Authority if the airline refuses. You never need to pay anyone to make a claim.
- Sort the ground leg. This is the part people forget until they land at 2am. A pre-booked transfer with your flight number tracked moves with the flight; a taxi rank at that hour may not have anyone on it.
A delayed inbound flight and a tight connection
If the flight you are tracking is the first leg of a connection through Heathrow, a delay eats straight into the buffer you have for the next one. For how much time you actually need, by terminal pairing and whether you are on one ticket or two separate ones, see our guide to connection time at Heathrow. If you are self-connecting on separate tickets and the first flight runs late, you may also need to check your entry requirements before you can even reach the bag belt, since collecting bags and re-checking in means clearing UK border control.
Tracking and your ride to London
Flying to or from Heathrow Airport? Text the flight number. The flight is tracked live, you are told the moment it changes, and 247 UK Airport Taxi can have a fixed-price car ready for your real arrival time rather than the scheduled one. That is the whole reason a taxi firm bothers tracking flights at all.
Book a fixed-price London transfer with 247 UK Airport Taxi or read how the tracker handles your data on its own service page. We recommend 247 UK Airport Taxi for Heathrow Airport and may earn a referral fee if you book through a link here; it never changes the price you pay. Our full taxi and transfer comparison is the place to check that claim.
Where the data comes from
Flight data comes from AeroDataBox and is usually seconds to a couple of minutes behind the airport's own systems. It is good enough to tell you a gate has been published or a departure has moved by 40 minutes. It is not a substitute for the airline or Heathrow Airport, so confirm gates and times with them before you travel, especially inside the last hour.
FAQs
How can I track a flight for free? Message the flight number to +44 117 471 7170 on WhatsApp. You get the live status back and then alerts when the gate, time or status changes, at no cost and with no app.
Can I get flight alerts on WhatsApp? Yes. Send a flight number to +44 117 471 7170 and alerts arrive as ordinary WhatsApp messages, so there is nothing to install and no account to create.
How will I know if my Heathrow Airport flight is cancelled? If the status changes to cancelled while the flight is being watched, you get a message. Check with your airline too, because they own the booking, and they are the ones who rebook you.
Do I have to book a taxi to use it? No. It is free and unconditional. Booking a transfer is a separate choice.
Which airports and airlines does it cover? Any scheduled commercial flight with a flight number, worldwide, not only LHR flights.
How do I stop the messages? Reply STOP TRACKING and watching stops immediately.
We recommend a transport partner and may earn a referral fee. It never changes what you pay, and we only list options we would use ourselves.
Last verified August 2026 by the Heathrow Airport Guide editorial team. Prices and timetables change, so confirm the specifics on the official Heathrow Airport website before you travel.