diff --git a/internal/server/server.go b/internal/server/server.go
index 76e89a8..2197f85 100644
--- a/internal/server/server.go
+++ b/internal/server/server.go
@@ -190,6 +190,9 @@ func (s *Server) Stop() {
 func (s *Server) setupRoutes() http.Handler {
 	router := mux.NewRouter()
 
+	// Health check endpoint for load balancers/monitoring
+	router.HandleFunc("/health", s.handleHealthCheck).Methods("GET")
+
 	// API routes
 	api := router.PathPrefix("/api").Subrouter()
 	api.HandleFunc("/aircraft", s.handleGetAircraft).Methods("GET")
@@ -240,6 +243,63 @@ func (s *Server) isAircraftUseful(aircraft *merger.AircraftState) bool {
 	return hasValidPosition || hasCallsign || hasAltitude || hasSquawk
 }
 
+// handleHealthCheck serves the /health endpoint for monitoring and load balancers.
+// Returns a simple health status with basic service information.
+//
+// Response includes:
+//   - status: "healthy" or "degraded"
+//   - uptime: server uptime in seconds
+//   - sources: number of active sources and their connection status
+//   - aircraft: current aircraft count
+//
+// The endpoint returns:
+//   - 200 OK when the service is healthy
+//   - 503 Service Unavailable when the service is degraded (no active sources)
+func (s *Server) handleHealthCheck(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	sources := s.merger.GetSources()
+	stats := s.merger.GetStatistics()
+	aircraft := s.merger.GetAircraft()
+	
+	// Check if we have any active sources
+	activeSources := 0
+	for _, source := range sources {
+		if source.Active {
+			activeSources++
+		}
+	}
+	
+	// Determine health status
+	status := "healthy"
+	statusCode := http.StatusOK
+	if activeSources == 0 && len(sources) > 0 {
+		status = "degraded"
+		statusCode = http.StatusServiceUnavailable
+	}
+	
+	response := map[string]interface{}{
+		"status": status,
+		"timestamp": time.Now().Unix(),
+		"sources": map[string]interface{}{
+			"total": len(sources),
+			"active": activeSources,
+		},
+		"aircraft": map[string]interface{}{
+			"count": len(aircraft),
+		},
+	}
+	
+	// Add statistics if available
+	if stats != nil {
+		if totalMessages, ok := stats["total_messages"]; ok {
+			response["messages"] = totalMessages
+		}
+	}
+	
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+	w.WriteHeader(statusCode)
+	json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(response)
+}
+
 // handleGetAircraft serves the /api/aircraft endpoint.
 // Returns all currently tracked aircraft with their latest state information.
 //