diff --git a/cmd/server/apikey_security_test.go b/cmd/server/apikey_security_test.go
index 49913797..b0a4ae01 100644
--- a/cmd/server/apikey_security_test.go
+++ b/cmd/server/apikey_security_test.go
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ func TestRequireAPIKey_RejectsWeakKey(t *testing.T) {
 		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
 	}))
 
-	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/packets", nil)
+	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/admin/prune-geo-filter", nil)
 	req.Header.Set("X-API-Key", "test")
 	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
 	handler.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ func TestRequireAPIKey_AcceptsStrongKey(t *testing.T) {
 		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
 	}))
 
-	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/packets", nil)
+	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/admin/prune-geo-filter", nil)
 	req.Header.Set("X-API-Key", strongKey)
 	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
 	handler.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
@@ -85,7 +85,7 @@ func TestRequireAPIKey_EmptyKeyDisablesEndpoints(t *testing.T) {
 		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
 	}))
 
-	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/packets", nil)
+	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/admin/prune-geo-filter", nil)
 	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
 	handler.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
 
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ func TestRequireAPIKey_WrongKeyUnauthorized(t *testing.T) {
 		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
 	}))
 
-	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/packets", nil)
+	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/admin/prune-geo-filter", nil)
 	req.Header.Set("X-API-Key", "wrong-key-entirely-here")
 	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
 	handler.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
diff --git a/cmd/server/openapi.go b/cmd/server/openapi.go
index afd233db..3644247e 100644
--- a/cmd/server/openapi.go
+++ b/cmd/server/openapi.go
@@ -66,7 +66,6 @@ func routeDescriptions() map[string]routeMeta {
 				{Name: "search", Description: "Full-text search", Type: "string"},
 				{Name: "groupByHash", Description: "Group duplicate packets by hash", Type: "boolean"},
 			}},
-		"POST /api/packets":              {Summary: "Ingest a packet", Description: "Submit a raw packet for decoding and storage.", Tag: "packets", Auth: true},
 		"GET /api/packets/{id}":          {Summary: "Get packet detail", Tag: "packets"},
 		"GET /api/packets/timestamps":    {Summary: "Get packet timestamp ranges", Tag: "packets"},
 		"POST /api/packets/observations": {Summary: "Batch submit observations", Description: "Submit multiple observer sightings for existing packets.", Tag: "packets"},
diff --git a/cmd/server/routes.go b/cmd/server/routes.go
index 0cc7952b..d3382644 100644
--- a/cmd/server/routes.go
+++ b/cmd/server/routes.go
@@ -18,7 +18,6 @@ import (
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/gorilla/mux"
-	"github.com/meshcore-analyzer/packetpath"
 	"github.com/meshcore-analyzer/prunequeue"
 )
 
@@ -254,7 +253,6 @@ func (s *Server) RegisterRoutes(r *mux.Router) {
 	r.HandleFunc("/api/packets/timestamps", s.handlePacketTimestamps).Methods("GET")
 	r.HandleFunc("/api/packets/{id}", s.handlePacketDetail).Methods("GET")
 	r.HandleFunc("/api/packets", s.handlePackets).Methods("GET")
-	r.Handle("/api/packets", s.requireAPIKey(http.HandlerFunc(s.handlePostPacket))).Methods("POST")
 
 	// Decode endpoint
 	r.HandleFunc("/api/decode", s.handleDecode).Methods("POST")
@@ -1232,110 +1230,6 @@ func (s *Server) handleDecode(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	})
 }
 
-func (s *Server) handlePostPacket(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
-	var body struct {
-		Hex      string   `json:"hex"`
-		Observer *string  `json:"observer"`
-		Snr      *float64 `json:"snr"`
-		Rssi     *float64 `json:"rssi"`
-		Region   *string  `json:"region"`
-		Hash     *string  `json:"hash"`
-	}
-	if err := json.NewDecoder(r.Body).Decode(&body); err != nil {
-		writeError(w, 400, "invalid JSON body")
-		return
-	}
-	hexStr := strings.TrimSpace(body.Hex)
-	if hexStr == "" {
-		writeError(w, 400, "hex is required")
-		return
-	}
-	decoded, err := DecodePacket(hexStr, false)
-	if err != nil {
-		writeError(w, 400, err.Error())
-		return
-	}
-
-	contentHash := ComputeContentHash(hexStr)
-	pathJSON := "[]"
-	// For TRACE packets, path_json must be the payload-decoded route hops
-	// (decoded.Path.Hops), NOT the raw_hex header bytes which are SNR values.
-	// For all other packet types, derive path from raw_hex (#886).
-	if !packetpath.PathBytesAreHops(byte(decoded.Header.PayloadType)) {
-		if len(decoded.Path.Hops) > 0 {
-			if pj, e := json.Marshal(decoded.Path.Hops); e == nil {
-				pathJSON = string(pj)
-			}
-		}
-	} else if hops, err := packetpath.DecodePathFromRawHex(hexStr); err == nil && len(hops) > 0 {
-		if pj, e := json.Marshal(hops); e == nil {
-			pathJSON = string(pj)
-		}
-	}
-	decodedJSON := PayloadJSON(&decoded.Payload)
-	now := time.Now().UTC().Format("2006-01-02T15:04:05.000Z")
-	nowEpoch := time.Now().Unix()
-
-	var snr, rssi interface{}
-	if body.Snr != nil {
-		snr = *body.Snr
-	}
-	if body.Rssi != nil {
-		rssi = *body.Rssi
-	}
-
-	// v3 schema (cmd/ingestor/db.go:251-303): transmissions no longer carries
-	// path_json (it lives on observations now), observations uses observer_idx
-	// INTEGER (FK observers.rowid) and timestamp INTEGER (unix epoch).
-	// Fix for #1196 — pre-fix code wrote v2 column names and silently
-	// swallowed the observations insert error.
-	res, dbErr := s.db.conn.Exec(`INSERT INTO transmissions (hash, raw_hex, route_type, payload_type, payload_version, decoded_json, first_seen)
-		VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?)`,
-		contentHash, strings.ToUpper(hexStr), decoded.Header.RouteType, decoded.Header.PayloadType,
-		decoded.Header.PayloadVersion, decodedJSON, now)
-	if dbErr != nil {
-		writeError(w, 500, "transmission insert: "+dbErr.Error())
-		return
-	}
-	insertedID, _ := res.LastInsertId()
-
-	// Resolve observer string → observers.rowid. INSERT OR IGNORE then SELECT
-	// mirrors the ingestor's resolver (cmd/ingestor/db.go:778,799,906).
-	var observerIdx interface{}
-	if body.Observer != nil && *body.Observer != "" {
-		obsID := *body.Observer
-		if _, err := s.db.conn.Exec(
-			`INSERT OR IGNORE INTO observers (id, name, last_seen, first_seen) VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)`,
-			obsID, obsID, now, now); err != nil {
-			writeError(w, 500, "observer upsert: "+err.Error())
-			return
-		}
-		var rowid int64
-		if err := s.db.conn.QueryRow(`SELECT rowid FROM observers WHERE id = ?`, obsID).Scan(&rowid); err != nil {
-			writeError(w, 500, "observer lookup: "+err.Error())
-			return
-		}
-		observerIdx = rowid
-	}
-
-	if _, obsErr := s.db.conn.Exec(
-		`INSERT INTO observations (transmission_id, observer_idx, snr, rssi, path_json, timestamp)
-			VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?)`,
-		insertedID, observerIdx, snr, rssi, pathJSON, nowEpoch); obsErr != nil {
-		writeError(w, 500, "observation insert: "+obsErr.Error())
-		return
-	}
-
-	writeJSON(w, PacketIngestResponse{
-		ID: insertedID,
-		Decoded: map[string]interface{}{
-			"header":  decoded.Header,
-			"path":    decoded.Path,
-			"payload": decoded.Payload,
-		},
-	})
-}
-
 // --- Node Handlers ---
 
 func (s *Server) handleNodes(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
diff --git a/cmd/server/routes_test.go b/cmd/server/routes_test.go
index b4b8ee0c..572c4221 100644
--- a/cmd/server/routes_test.go
+++ b/cmd/server/routes_test.go
@@ -4846,72 +4846,6 @@ func TestListLimitsConfigurable(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
-// TestPostPacketPersistsV3Schema is the round-trip regression for #1196.
-// POST /api/packets must write the observation row using the v3 schema
-// (observer_idx INTEGER, timestamp INTEGER) and surface insert errors.
-// The pre-fix handler writes v2 columns (observer_id, observer_name,
-// RFC3339 timestamp) and silently swallows the obs insert error.
-func TestPostPacketPersistsV3Schema(t *testing.T) {
-	const apiKey = "test-secret-key-strong-enough"
-	srv, router := setupTestServerWithAPIKey(t, apiKey)
-
-	// FLOOD/ADVERT hex (header 0x11, path byte 0x00, payload bytes).
-	// Mirrors TestDecodePacket_FloodHasNoCodes.
-	const rawHex = "110011223344556677889900AABBCCDD"
-	bodyJSON := `{"hex":"` + rawHex + `","observer":"obs1","snr":5.5,"rssi":-72}`
-
-	req := httptest.NewRequest("POST", "/api/packets",
-		bytes.NewReader([]byte(bodyJSON)))
-	req.Header.Set("X-API-Key", apiKey)
-	req.Header.Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
-	w := httptest.NewRecorder()
-	router.ServeHTTP(w, req)
-
-	if w.Code != http.StatusOK {
-		t.Fatalf("POST /api/packets: expected 200, got %d (body: %s)",
-			w.Code, w.Body.String())
-	}
-
-	var resp map[string]interface{}
-	if err := json.Unmarshal(w.Body.Bytes(), &resp); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("decode response: %v", err)
-	}
-	idF, _ := resp["id"].(float64)
-	txID := int64(idF)
-	if txID <= 0 {
-		t.Fatalf("expected transmission id > 0, got %v (body: %s)",
-			resp["id"], w.Body.String())
-	}
-
-	// Resolve expected observer_idx from the seeded observers table.
-	var wantIdx int64
-	if err := srv.db.conn.QueryRow(
-		"SELECT rowid FROM observers WHERE id = ?", "obs1",
-	).Scan(&wantIdx); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("lookup observer rowid: %v", err)
-	}
-
-	// Assert the observation row was written with v3 columns.
-	var (
-		gotIdx int64
-		gotTS  int64
-	)
-	err := srv.db.conn.QueryRow(
-		"SELECT observer_idx, timestamp FROM observations WHERE transmission_id = ?",
-		txID,
-	).Scan(&gotIdx, &gotTS)
-	if err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("observation row missing for tx %d: %v (handler swallowed insert error?)", txID, err)
-	}
-	if gotIdx != wantIdx {
-		t.Errorf("observer_idx: want %d, got %d", wantIdx, gotIdx)
-	}
-	nowSec := time.Now().Unix()
-	if gotTS < nowSec-60 || gotTS > nowSec+60 {
-		t.Errorf("timestamp: want unix int near %d, got %d", nowSec, gotTS)
-	}
-}
-
 // TestConfigThemeTypeColorsLegacyRequestKey verifies the REQUEST→REQ rename
 // (#1799 PR #1804 r1 item 6) doesn't break operators whose config.json still
 // carries the legacy `typeColors.REQUEST` key. The GET response must:
diff --git a/cmd/server/types.go b/cmd/server/types.go
index 7e55c9cd..4c5e547b 100644
--- a/cmd/server/types.go
+++ b/cmd/server/types.go
@@ -388,11 +388,6 @@ type PacketDetailResponse struct {
 	Observations     []ObservationResp `json:"observations,omitempty"`
 }
 
-type PacketIngestResponse struct {
-	ID      int64       `json:"id"`
-	Decoded interface{} `json:"decoded"`
-}
-
 type DecodeResponse struct {
 	Decoded interface{} `json:"decoded"`
 }
diff --git a/docs/api-spec.md b/docs/api-spec.md
index e964efe1..65867982 100644
--- a/docs/api-spec.md
+++ b/docs/api-spec.md
@@ -27,7 +27,6 @@
 - [GET /api/packets](#get-apipackets)
 - [GET /api/packets/timestamps](#get-apipacketstimestamps)
 - [GET /api/packets/:id](#get-apipacketsid)
-- [POST /api/packets](#post-apipackets)
 - [POST /api/decode](#post-apidecode)
 - [GET /api/observers](#get-apiobservers)
 - [GET /api/observers/:id](#get-apiobserversid)
@@ -907,48 +906,6 @@ Single packet detail with byte breakdown and observations.
 
 ---
 
-## POST /api/packets
-
-Ingest a raw packet. Requires API key.
-
-### Headers
-
-- `X-API-Key: <key>` (required if `config.apiKey` is set)
-
-### Request Body
-
-```jsonc
-{
-  "hex":      string,        // required — raw hex-encoded packet
-  "observer": string | null, // observer ID
-  "snr":      number | null,
-  "rssi":     number | null,
-  "region":   string | null, // IATA code
-  "hash":     string | null  // pre-computed content hash
-}
-```
-
-### Response `200`
-
-```jsonc
-{
-  "id":      number,         // packet/observation ID
-  "decoded": {               // full decode result
-    "header":  DecodedHeader,
-    "path":    DecodedPath,
-    "payload": object
-  }
-}
-```
-
-### Response `400`
-
-```json
-{ "error": "hex is required" }
-```
-
----
-
 ## POST /api/decode
 
 Decode a raw packet without storing it.