iPhone users are constantly finding new ways to use their phones’ features to their advantage. Recently, a user on TikTok gave the world a very good hack for travelers. It will allow iPhone users to keep track of all the data surrounding their flight. All that the person has to do is look up their flight number and then text themselves that number. Once they’ve done that, they need to click the number on the screen and select the section that says preview flight. The app is going to open up a full flight tracker, allowing the user to see any updates surrounding their flight.
This was actually a trick that showed up on a few sites that cover iPhone and Mac hacks a while back. Many users, though, are just learning about this feature through the TikTok video that went viral. It turns out that the code for this flight tracker is buried deep in the iMessage app for iPhones. This means that you won’t need to download any extra apps to be able to get the feature to run. It’s pegged to the maps app, and that’s why it allows you to view the trajectory of the flight.
Once a person has texted themselves the number of their flight, they can essentially resend the code to their friends and family. That’s going to allow them to keep tabs on the flight as well, if they are iPhone users, of course. The other way to track flights is to access the airline app or website and then input the flight number. This hack makes the process much easier for users. One of the things that people can track through this built-in app in iMessage is the gate from which the flight is going to be taken off.
This brings up one of the main questions surrounding this ordeal: Is the information that’s provided to iPhone users through this shortcut trustworthy? The answer is that it should be since the app is going to be pulling data directly from the airline. There’s basically no other way to get that information. Is there a potential downside to this? Technically, there could be some delays when the app is trying to fetch the data.
Suppose that you’re running through an airport, and you’re trying to get your gate number to know where you’re meant to board. Text yourself your flight number, and hope that you’re able to find updated data. Otherwise, you’ll have to do it the old-fashioned way and look for the flight on the screens at the airport. By most accounts, the built-in feature works rather well. It’s not something that will typically be overused. Therefore, it’s not likely the system will ever overload or anything like that. iPhone users have hopefully learned a cool new trick!
