APRS in 2022

[rcarsey]

I just installed a Yaesu FTM-300DR (vhf/uhf, built-in APRS, xband repeat, wires-x, FM/Fusion capable.. to give you a list of the notable capabilities)...

So the initial intention was to have a VHF/UHF radio just to ragchew while on longer flights.. and of course, shoot some fish in a barrel when it comes to making Field Day contacts.. APRS is a total side-benefit..

So now that we're in 2022, where there are a ton of ADS-B receivers scattered everywhere, thanks to FlightAware, FlightRadar24, ADSBExchange, and some others.. what are the benefits of APRS these days?

Here's what I've found so far (I'm new to APRS, but been a ham for decades):

1. Position reports. Questionable quality due to low beacon rates as compared to ADS-B

2. Ability to send/receive TXT messages through a SMSGATE; though its a little clunky for recipients to reply.

3. Assists in finding the freqs that local hams are monitoring (if they're advertising their freq in their beacon)

4. Have a text qso with other hams by sending messages addressed to particular callsigns.. clunky due to having to scroll through they keyboard on the yaesu rig.

5. Offering cross-band repeat while loitering in an area could be fun for people on the ground.

...aaaand thats all I got. Anything else I should be exploring??

[swordtail]

You may find that old technology taking up too much PIC time. I am a ham and a pilot for 50 years now and I find ham radio more of a distraction than a benefit in the air. I think that you'll get over it quickly.

[RV6_flyer]

I have APRS in my airplane.

The only advantage I see is on trips like today, I can see two separate flights as one round trip. The ADS-B plots have more data but are two separate flights with ~1/2-hour between them.

[jwyatt]

I’ve had an APRS transmitter in my 9A since first flight - worked well, my wife particularly liked it for watching flights. A wiring mistake in a serial line took it offline in December, and I didn’t realize it for 6 months…with ADS-B, I never missed the data. I haven’t removed it because it’s already installed, and I fixed the serial line during my condition inspection, but I doubt I’d install it again in a new build. Might get removed if I ever do a full avionics rebuild, which will likely mean rewiring most of the aircraft.

[ikold]

I feel that APRS in the world of ADSB has little or no utility. As for rag chewing while on a long cross country that could be fun. I imagine that at altitude you could stay on a repeater for quite some time or operate simplex for 100+ miles on flat land.

Would be nice if there were a radio that could operate on both Aviation bands and ham bands…

[Bill Boyd]

I had APRS in my 6A for a long while, and 2m FM for a much shorter while. I agree about the distraction that aeronautical mobile ham operation can be while acting as PIC, and with the duplication of position reporting utility that ADS-B presents. But I've seen that service coverage of the two systems is not the same; there are many regions and altitudes where one will provide a position ping that the other will not.

I have the APRS rig from the 6A sitting in a drawer somewhere, mission-capable but not installed in the -10. I don't suspect I will ever bother with it.

In the current geopolitical climate, an entity needing to save face might just decide that APRS-out makes your aircraft of interest to a Sidewinder missile (or two). This appears to have happened:

https://www.rtl-sdr.com/the-us-airfo...n-over-canada/

[GatorsR1]

hamsters might be the simple explanation behind the hoopla/hysteria ?

https://www.rtl-sdr.com/the-us-airfo...n-over-canada/

[gnuse]

I can tell you that APRS is more likely to follow your complete flight track than ADSB. It is useful if you want to follow your track or share it with others. I use both. It comes on with my radio switch and off when I turn off the radio switch, so not much of a distraction.

[gnuse]

Originally Posted by RV6_flyer

I have APRS in my airplane.

The only advantage I see is on trips like today, I can see two separate flights as one round trip. The ADS-B plots have more data but are two separate flights with ~1/2-hour between them.

Attachment 27678

It also shows temp, speed, alt., etc. at various points.........it also give us another reason to use up our time on aviation related activity.