An aircraft plotter.
PlanePlotter by COAA is an aircraft tracking program which gives you a radar-like display of aircraft around your position which are transmitting ACARS, ADS-B and HFDL.
This program is absolutely packed with some really cool features. One of our favourites was the integration with Google Earth. Another very cool feature was listening in to air traffic control radio and following what flights were up to. Listed below are some of the main features of PlanePlotter:
- Message display - PlanePlotter shows a table display of messages received and decoded from live aircraft transmissions.
- Data saving - PlanePlotter archives all the digital data that it receives and decodes to a log file.
- Chart display - PlanePlotter plots aircraft positions, altitudes and times decoded from the message traffic that it receives. These include embedded position reports, AMDAR reports and ADS reports contained in ACARS messages, ADS-B position reports received by the Kinetic SBS1(tm) or AirNav System RadarBox(tm) Mode-S receivers, and position reports on HF using Charles Brain's PC-HFDL software. The plot can be superimposed on a suitable aeronatical chart that you have prepared, or PlanePlotter can download satellite imagery and plot the aircraft symbols on that. Where altitude information is available (eg Mode-S messages), you can select the data by altitude band to distinguish low level and high level traffic.
- Google Earth server - If you are receiving Mode-S ADS-B position reports, PlanePlotter can interface to Google Earth to display aircraft positions over the Google Earth base map. It can even give you a dynamic real-time view from the flight deck of an aircraft that you designate.
- Direction finding - PlanePlotter can determine and display the direction of any transmission using a simple passive antenna switch. This allows aircraft to be located even if they are not equipped with ACARS or Mode-S/ADS-B.
- Input signals - PlanePlotter can decode ACARS messages, display the message content and plot any positions on a chart. PlanePlotter can process and display Mode-S/ADS-B position reports captured by the Kinetic SBS1(tm), the AirNav Systems RadarBox(tm), the RxControl Mode-S receiver, the PlaneGadget Radar, the miniADSB, the microADBS and the FPGA Beast.
Overall, this program seems to be worth the price if you consider the features it offers. Before stumbling across this program, we weren't even aware something like this exists. Give it a try and let us know how you like it in the comments.
Compatibility and License
This download is licensed as shareware for the Windows operating system from miscellaneous software and can be used as a free trial until the trial period ends (after an unspecified number of days). The PlanePlotter 6.4.6.2 demo is available to all software users as a free download with potential restrictions and is not necessarily the full version of this software.
What version of Windows can PlanePlotter run on?
PlanePlotter can be used on a computer running Windows 11 or Windows 10. Previous versions of the OS shouldn't be a problem with Windows 8 and Windows 7 having been tested. It runs on both 32-bit and 64-bit systems with no dedicated 64-bit download provided.
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