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FlightAware/Flightradar 24 tracking

painless

Well Known Member
Do FlightAware or Flightradar24 track aircraft with UAT installations? I can?t see my past flights in either site. Have GRT Safefly/Uavionix Echo UAT installed. I pass my FAA report.
 
history

I don't know how far back your previous flights are but both of those apps will allow you to see some recent past data for free.

If you want a longer history, you will need to purchase one of their upgrade plans...
 
Yes, however the coverage is more spotty as not as many of the ground uplinks monitor UAT. Also, with FlightAware you need to create an account and change your settings to “Show Position Only flights”. Otherwise, they only show flights for which they have a field flight plan. A year ago almost none of my flights showed up. These days, at least portions of most of my flights are on there.

Chris
 
I also wonder this and have a theory that it has something to do with the way I'm into the ATC system.

Again, just a theory... I would love to learn from someone who knows how "the system" works.

I too have the GRT SafeFly and Uavionix Echo and had Uavionix Tech Support walk me through the set up via telephone so I'm very certain its configured correctly. The only time I consistently show up on FlightAware is when I'm getting flight following on a long XC out of state or across the state. If I'm just flying locally (KFNT, Flint, MI) they give me a local squawk code and I don't show up on FlightAware. Might have something to do with it :confused:
 
Also, with FlightAware you need to create an account and change your settings to “Show Position Only flights”. Otherwise, they only show flights for which they have a field flight plan.
Try this first.
The only time I consistently show up on FlightAware is when I'm getting flight following on a long XC out of state or across the state. If I'm just flying locally (KFNT, Flint, MI) they give me a local squawk code and I don't show up on FlightAware.
FWIW local "flight following" traffic data is not passed on to the FAA "national" system so that data is not available to anybody outside the local ATC facility. :cool:
 
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Yes, however the coverage is more spotty as not as many of the ground uplinks monitor UAT. Also, with FlightAware you need to create an account and change your settings to ?Show Position Only flights?. Otherwise, they only show flights for which they have a field flight plan. A year ago almost none of my flights showed up. These days, at least portions of most of my flights are on there.

Chris

Interestingly enough, I got curious about FlightAware, brought up the App, and typed in the tail number of my little jet (N958PD). I haven?t talked to anyone, nor filed a flight plan on it, yet quite a few of my test flights show up on their tracking. Not all of them, by any means, but some of them. I can?t figure out the differences between those that do, and those that don?t - almost all of the flying has been above 12,000? so far.

Paul
 
Mode S works

I don't look at FlightAware very often, but I've found that all of my flights show up on flightradar24. I have a Mode S transponder and as soon as I turn it to ALT I show up, regardless of whether I squawk 1200 or a discrete code. This is the case in Canada and in the US. I don't have ADS-B. I also run a receiver for flightradar24 (cheap way to get the Business level membership) and I know it picks up aircraft with mode S.
 
FlightAware and Flightradar24 do not track UAT. I have the same echouat. It rarely triggers FlightAware but never Flightradar24 unless given a squawk code.
 
I have the older Dynon SV-ADSB-470 which is UAT only. I always show up on Flightaware and have for several years. In all 48 lower states. VFR 1200 no flight following. Their free account keeps the history for 3 months. I use it to cross check (help me remember) where I flew for my logbook.
 
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Flightaware does. I used their gear in part shaking down my Skybeacon Anonymous mode posts.

My SDR, Flightaware filter and basic +5dbi SMA antenna, same as you would find on a Stratux, records planes with UAT to 30+ NM at 2000+ AGL regularly. Just plugged into my phone, on the ground, not even on a highpoint in the open. The 1090 antenna gets enroute jets out to 120+ NM.

I am unsure of how 978mhz UAT recording will catch on vs existing 1090mhz ES/ADS-B out recording. It takes an extra receiver (SDR), extra antenna, extra USB port and extra run of line to the antenna.

31 January 2019-

https://discussions.flightaware.com/t/announcing-the-new-978-mhz-antenna/45405

FlightAware is pleased to announce the availability of a 978 MHz antenna designed for receiving UAT978 signals. This antenna is a similar design to our very popular 1090 MHz antenna and is offered at a similar price point. We think it offers a great value to enthusiasts that wish to experiment with UAT reception. We are offering a limited quantity of these antennas via Amazon USA to hobbyists that have built or are interested in building sites that use the “dump978” software to track aircraft that use that alternative ADS-B technology in the USA. Also remember that our bandpass filter can be used with this antenna as it is designed to pass both 978 MHz and 1090 MHz signals. Please note that this is not a dual-band antenna design and is specifically for use on 978 MHz only. You will want to use a separate receiver such as the original (Orange) Pro Stick USB RTL-SDR device to receive 978 MHz. The Pro Stick Plus is not compatible with UAT 978 reception. This is a limited quantity offering while we assess the level of interest in 978UAT among the hobbyist community. We will evaluate increasing future supply of this product based on the level of interest.
 
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Interestingly enough, I got curious about FlightAware, brought up the App, and typed in the tail number of my little jet (N958PD). I haven’t talked to anyone, nor filed a flight plan on it, yet quite a few of my test flights show up on their tracking. Not all of them, by any means, but some of them. I can’t figure out the differences between those that do, and those that don’t - almost all of the flying has been above 12,000’ so far.

Paul
If you are not in range of a FlightAware ADS-B receiving stations (not the FAA ground stations) then this will happen.

I have the older Dynon SV-ADSB-470 which is UAT only. I always show up on Flightaware and have for several years. In all 48 lower states. VFR 1200 no flight following. Their free account keeps the history for 3 months. I use it to cross check (help me remember) where I flew for my logbook.
The DYNON SV-ADSB-470 is a UAT receiver and does not transmit anything. If you are using the SV-XPONDER-26X, it is 1090MHz OUT not UAT. That is why you show up on Flightaware with "show position only flights" selected.

:cool:
 
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Email from support

Looks like UAT functionality is coming soon. Email below from my request to support.
 
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Looks like UAT functionality is coming soon. Email below from my request to support.

Those like me, have been feeding UAT to Flightaware for years. Anyone flying with a UAT transponder near/at KHBI is being picked up by my antennas mounted to the FBO. This was an unsupported configuration which required you to know what you're doing.

Today, you can download a pre-release SD card image with UAT support. Flightaware now sells UAT antennas on Amazon. So, anyone who wants to provide UAT coverage can now do so with a lot less effort then before. The only thing to note is to keep your expectations in-check. UAT transponders transmit at a lower wattage and typically are low flyers. As a result, it's harder to pickup those signals and there are very few people with UAT antennas uploading to Flightaware.

See: https://discussions.flightaware.com/c/flightaware/ads-b-flight-tracking for more info.
 
They do UAT but ground stations generally have to choose to use either 978 MHz or 1090 MHz and most go with the 1090, I think. My station has a 1090 antenna. I imagine one could operate two ground stations but I don’t think the receiver dongles they sell can do both frequencies at the same time. This is based on my experience with a FlightAware ground station I have been operating since about 2015.

I’d be interested in finding out if I am wrong about this...
 
I have a GRT GPS+EchoUAT, and didn't do anything special but I show up on Flightaware. Creepy that anyone can type in my N number and see when and where I'm flying (and even get an alert of when I takeoff and land).

I have noticed the coverage is spotty though - sometimes only parts of the flight path appear, and the lower I am, the less it picks up. I'm based at Lancaster, TX - south of Dallas.
 
They do UAT but ground stations generally have to choose to use either 978 MHz or 1090 MHz and most go with the 1090, I think. My station has a 1090 antenna. I imagine one could operate two ground stations but I don?t think the receiver dongles they sell can do both frequencies at the same time. This is based on my experience with a FlightAware ground station I have been operating since about 2015.

I?d be interested in finding out if I am wrong about this...

This is true. I build a ground station for about $100. And once you've gone that far, its only a matter of buying a second radio/antenna for $20-30 to add a second frequency to receive and decode UAT data.

In my case, I have 3 radios attached to my $30 Raspberry Pi "computer", one for the standard 1090Mhz, one for a 978Mhz UAT, and a 3rd to receive airband frequencies. I stream the position data to various places (flightaware, adsbexchange, radarbox24 and flightradar24), and the audio is sent to LiveATC. Interestingly, one receiver can listen to a bunch of different AM airband frequencies - i suppose because each channel takes up such a small amount of bandwidth (25khz).

As for privacy concerns.. how long before someone robs my house because they see that I've gone out flying? http://www.aero-news.net/index.cfm?do=main.ajTextPost&id=7fcbe0e2-a104-4d77-b450-c1e690cb6b84
 
As for privacy concerns.. how long before someone robs my house because they see that I've gone out flying?

To slow the crooks down, you can opt out of releasing your address on your airman certificates at faa.gov. For aircraft certification, you can change your aircraft registration address to a PO Box or some other non-descript location.

The FAA is completely irresponsible with personal and aircraft information. It's utterly bizarre to me that you can't lookup any info about the license plate of some random car or maybe the car that just cut you off, but the FAA shouts your info to the world.
 
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