Shetland

[sasa1000]

Hi, I have just discovered this system on the net last week and am seriously considering buying one. I am wondering if there are any users in Shetland (Scottish Isles) I always pay attention to the aircraft flying over (on the days that we can see them) and assume they are heading across to the States, I even considered buying a spotting scope but having found this I feel that this is a far more interesting option. If I leave the box and the PC on will the RB record flights that have passed over through the day so I can check them at night? Apologies if this is mentioned in the forum but I am just in the process of reading all the posts I can think relevant.
Thanks in advance.

[RodBearden]

Hi Sasa and welcome!

As far as I know, the nearest user to you is near Dundee, so you will be filling a gap in our network which is rapidly filling to span the globe; see this link for live coverage - www.airnavsystems.com/radarbox/network.php - you'll see it changing over the day as users switch on and off, though many leave their RadarBoxes running 24/7.

If you get the RadarBox, you will be able to track the airliners flying round you up to a maximum of about 200 miles. This depends on exactly where you are - the aerial that comes with the RB is line-of-sight, so If you have a good view, so will the RB!

The software keeps a log of all aircraft that your RB picks up, so yes, if you leave your PC and the RB running, you can see it all when you get home.

You can download the software for free and try it in demo mode: see this link: www.airnavsystems.com/RadarBox/support.html (download the full version).

Check out the Screenshots forum to see what the map looks like.

Any more questions, just ask - we're a friendly bunch here!

Rod

[tarbat]

I'm probably the nearest user to you, on the Tarbat peninsula - see map.  It's a bit quiet this morning!!

You would probably then be the most northerly UK user, and will see flights heading across to  the US and other regions.  You'll also see the local Loganair and Highland Airways flights, although only in the list of aircraft, not on the map.

And you'll even see a helicopter with the same registration as your userid - G-SASA, the air ambulance.  Along with coastguard and RAF aircraft that frequent this area in great numbers!

In all, I've logged over 7500 different aircraft.

[sasa1000]

Thanks for the welcome Rod and the answers to my questions. I can see that this is a friendly forum and questions seem to get answered fully. I'm sure I'll be around for a while.

[sasa1000]

Hi Tarbat and thanks for the info, can you please tell me what you mean when you say I'll only see aircraft in the list view and not in the map. Is this just unique to this 2 companies as they are not relaying the relevant info to track on the map or is it a geographical glitch? I am new to this and would welcome any info etc. If it is just this 2 airlines it won't matter as there is plenty other stuff. Lastly do Flybe send out info to track on map as they are the airline that fly to Shetland? Sorry for so many questions.

[sasa1000]

Tarbat, can you track aircraft as far North as Shetland? I ask as your second screen shot intrigued me and I would be interested to know what aerial setup you have to enable this.

[tarbat]

No, my coverage is blocked by a hill just to the north of me, so my range is limited to as far as Orkney to the north.  The second screenshot was taken using Planeplotter, which is a completely separate program from Radarbox that allows users to share aircraft positions from their Radarbox.  So, someone, somewhere has coverage of Shetland, probably a user I know of at Stornoway.

Many of the small, local airlines have aircraft that do not show on the map, but do show on the list of aircraft.  This is because the aircraft are not fitted with ADS-B equipment, but do have ModeS.  You'll see these aircraft in the list, with their altitude and squawk code, etc., but not on the map.  These include Loganair, Highlands, and Flybe.  They still appear in the list of aircraft - see screenshot attached.  The main international airlines are all ADS-B equipped, so appear on the map.

Any other questions, just ask..

[attachment deleted by admin]

[DaveReid]

No, my coverage is blocked by a hill just to the north of me, so my range is limited to as far as Orkney to the north.  The second screenshot was taken using Planeplotter, which is a completely separate program from Radarbox that allows users to share aircraft positions from their Radarbox.  So, someone, somewhere has coverage of Shetland, probably a user I know at Stornoway.

There's also a user on the PlanePlotter network in Orkney (d6), sharing HFDL I think, which of course won't be much use for local traffic..

[sasa1000]

Thanks again tarbat, that was a comprehensive answer and thanks for the screenshot. Pity smaller airlines don't show on map but that won't put me off, as it will still be interesting to monitor long haul flights on map and gather info on all others.