Your receiver is here. Let's get flying.
Plug it in, open the app, and it connects by itself. Then a two-minute tour of the buttons you'll use every flight.
Connect
Power on the receiver
Plug it into USB power, or into the battery that comes in the Deluxe bundles. Give it about a minute to start up.
Open the app and allow what it asks
- Read the Pilot Responsibility & Safety Acknowledgement, scroll to the bottom and tap Accept.
- Allow each permission:
- Location: your position on the map and distances to traffic.
- Bluetooth (Android calls it Nearby devices): finding and connecting to your receiver.
- Local Network (iPhone and iPad only): reaching the receiver over Wi-Fi. Without it the receiver can't be found.
- Notifications: alerts keep working with the screen off.
It connects by itself
In a few seconds the ADS-B: line at the top of the map shows your receiver, and traffic appears.
- Phone on Wi-Fi? The receiver joins the same network. The first time, the app asks for that network's password.
- Cellular only? It connects by Bluetooth, and your phone keeps its own internet for maps and weather.
That's it. Next time you open the app it connects again on its own.
Your receiver's free year turns on the first time you connect, for both our apps: Drone Pilot ADS-B and pilotADSB EFB. Tap License: at the top of the map to see it.
Your map
- Status bar: where traffic comes from (ADS-B:), your position source, your license and connection. If something looks wrong, read this first.
- Weather chip: shows when radar is on; during storms, the nearest lightning.
- Left rail: map layers (zoom, airspace, weather, obstacles).
- Right rail: everything else (alerts, recording, settings).
- Range rings: distance at a glance, in miles or kilometers (your choice in Map Settings).
- Traffic: each aircraft with its height above or below you. Color comes from your alert rules: red is closest.
- You: the center of the rings.
- Favorites: save places you fly often.
- Wind bubble: the strongest forecast wind at drone heights. Tap it for the full wind report.
- Compass: which way is up. Long-press it to rearrange the buttons.
The buttons you'll use most
Tap a button to switch it on or open it. Long-press (touch and hold) for its settings. Yellow means it's on.
Want more map? Tap the pill at the very bottom of the map (the aircraft and drone count) to hide or show both side rails.
| ZoomTap to step through the zoom levels. Long-press to set each level, or to turn off the third level if you don't need it. | More | |
| CenterTap to turn Auto-Center on or off. With Auto-Center off, long-press to center the map on you. | More | |
| POIThe center point the range rings measure from: your position, your drone, or a KML boundary. | More | |
| LAANCThe FAA altitude grid near airports. Long-press for more settings, including Special Use Airspace. | More | |
| WeatherRadar on the map. Long-press for lightning and rain warnings. | More | |
| ObstThe master on/off for every obstacle layer. Each kind of obstacle has its own button to turn it on or off by itself. | More | |
| TFRTemporary flight restrictions. Active TFRs are always shown and can't be turned off. Tap to show or hide future TFRs. Yellow means an active TFR is within 60 miles (about 100 km); a small red dot means future TFRs are hidden for today. | More | |
| RulesGoverns how every audible and visual alert is shown and called out. Most pilots never need to change them, but the options are extensive. | More | |
| MuteSilence all callouts for a few minutes. | More | |
| RecordRecords all incoming data until you stop it. Long-press for recording options. Saved files can be played back to help with rule customization, to prove flight data, and more. | More | |
| PlaybackReplay a flight, yours or the built-in samples. Great for learning the app at your desk. | More | |
| SettingsYour receiver's status, connection, alert volume, map style and app license status. | More |
Most windows have a ? at the top right. Tap it for help on that exact screen, even with no signal.
No receiver found?
- Give the receiver at least a full minute after you plug it in.
- Make sure Bluetooth is on, and that you allowed Bluetooth / Nearby devices (and Local Network on iPhone and iPad). Said no by mistake? Turn it on in your phone's Settings → Apps → Drone Pilot ADS-B (on iPhone: Settings → Drone Pilot ADS-B).
- Using a phone's hotspot? The app has to run on that same phone. Phones keep the devices on their hotspot apart, so a tablet on a phone's hotspot can't reach a receiver on that same hotspot.
- Tap I have powered on my receiver to try again.
- Still stuck? See the Troubleshooting chapter of the Manual, or ask in our community forum.
Flying an airplane with ForeFlight?
Your receiver arrives unlocked for ForeFlight and any EFB that supports standard GDL90, with no subscription required from us. Connect your tablet to the receiver over Wi-Fi and open your EFB.
Want your tablet to keep its internet? Use the free pilotADSB EFB Configurator app (Android and iOS) to put the receiver on that tablet's own hotspot. The EFB app has to run on the same device the receiver is connected to by hotspot.
Learn more
Drone Pilot ADS-B is for situational awareness only. It doesn't replace seeing and avoiding other aircraft, and many aircraft and drones don't broadcast at all.