How far away do you pick up airports?

[SteveHamn]

Hi, I'm a scanner newbie and I just picked up a BCD396XT. The Freescan/RadioReference combo makes scanning a blast! I live about 5 miles away from LAX and I am a little disapointed I'm not picking up the tower/ground control from home. In the car (w/o a external antenna) I don't start really hearing things until about a mile away, and it's not really consistent/understandable until I'm pretty much across the street. Obviously an external antenna would help, but really is that going to make that big of a difference? (From across the street to 1 block away? :/ ) Is this simmilar to what you guys are seeing, or am I missing something?

Thanks

 

[n5ims]

Hearing the aircraft is generally quite easy due to their height. The ground stations (airport tower, ground control, etc.) is generally difficult unless you're real close to the airport. There's not really a specific distance since that depends on exactly where their antennas are and their design. Some airports have their antennas on the tower's roof so it's easy to pick them up from a reasonable distance, but others may be located where the ground listening range is much beyond the airport itself.

You must remember that the ground stations are designed to talk to aircraft in flight (or very close if they're on the ground). Often the antennas are placed to limit their range from signals on the ground (to prevent noise or other stray signals from interfering with the aircraft communications). Although not real common, they may be very low with shielding placed around them (concrete walls, dirt, or other material) to both keep people away and reduce interference.

 

[ind224]

I would suggest an outdoor antenna and a scanner like an RS 2045 or BC780 XLT. The outdoor antenna fed w/ RG6 minimum will make a major difference.
As much as I dislike it, digital scanners are not the best for regular VHF.
Sounds like the same symptoms my 106's (3 of them) suffer from.
I can hear my ground controllers 11 miles out w/ a discone at 35' feeding a 2045.
Try tuning the ATIS frequency...are you still using a rubber duck?
Move it around and see what happens.
Being in Cali I would suspect low band and mil air would be hopping. I'd never rely on my 106 to deliver 104% there.

 

[nodak1crdet3]

I agree with the other poster on an outside antenna. It will greatly improve your reception. I have a Radio Shack discone up on the roof about 30 to 35 feet high. I can pick up Selfridge clearance, tower, & departure (These are UHF freqs in the Milair band). Sometimes I've even heard the A-10's answer back while still on the ground. I'm about 18 miles from Selfridge. The discone is hooked up to a RS PRO-2052 with RS RG-8 coax, that is very old & needs to be replaced.

For VHF aircraft I have a RS PRO-2050 hooked up to a RS Scantenna that is sitting outside my room in the attic facing west toward Detroit Metro airport. I can only pick up 1 DTW tower freq (Ground side). Metro is probably about 35 to 40 miles from me. I can hear the airliners talking on all the other freqs from Metro also, just not the ground side of the transmissions.

If you have a handheld scanner, I would look into a Diamond RH77CA antenna.

Hope this helps.

 

[CalebATC]

I would suggest the Antennacraft ST-2. The Diamond D-130 is also a good antenna, but a little more expensive. It is a little better than the ST-2, and a not so bad milair antenna. Height is key! Get it up as high as possible, and that should do the work.

ST-2: Antennacraft ST2 Scanner Antenna, Antenna Craft ST-2
D-130: Diamond D-130J D-130NJ Discone Antenna (Uses PL-259 [Classic CB ones], or N connectors)

PS- Amen to the RH77CA, I hear it's great for airband handheld.

 

[SteveHamn]

When I say I can't hear towe/ground control I mean I can't hear anything on that channel at all, not even the aircraft as well as ATIS channels. Perhaps this area is just too cluttered with buildings/hills to get anything. Thanks for the inputs on the antennas, yes right now I'm just using the rubber duck that came with it, I'll definitely get one or two (I'm thinking RH77CA for air and then a wideband for general use). Right now I live in an apartment so I don't know if I'll be able to get away with a mast. What would you guys reccomend for a car antenna?

 

[majoco]

Squelch set too high?

 

[SteveHamn]

I'm proud to say I'm not that big of a newbie. Even with no squelch I get all static.

 

[737mech]

Might be overloaded

I'm proud to say I'm not that big of a newbie. Even with no squelch I get all static.

Your scanner isn't the problem. The out of box antenna might be. Some of us that live in cities with rf everywhere have to use fm traps or filters to get VHF airband. Try going cheap with the fm trap at radioshack and while you're there see if they have the race stubby antenna. Then if you really want a good filter look at PAR Electronics | Filters for the commercial 2 way market, MATV, FM broadcast, laboratory, marine industry, amateur radio, scanner and short wave listening enthusiasts It's been discussed alot on this forum using fm traps and filters. The newer scanners are what they call "front end overloaded". The fm trap worked for me and then I got the PAR FM broadcast filter for scanners and WOW!! Really glad I did that.

 

[ridgescan]

I get tower and some ground stuff here in west San Francisco from Oakland at 15 miles and SFO which is 11 miles out. I have the d130j at 45'

 

[BMT]

I get Orlando tower about 30 miles and Daytona ground control at 25 miles.
All my antennas are about 25 feet.
I must live in a magic spot. ;-))))

BMT

 

[kd7mxi]

my vx-8g is usually line of sight

 

[captkel]

I'm in South Florida in the city of Coral Springs. The farthest I can pickup south of me is (TMB) Kendall-Tamiami Executive Airport tower- about 40 miles away. Sometimes I can get (HST) Homestead Air Reserve Base tower- about 50 miles away. I get all the other airports towers in between and the ZMA RCAG in Miami too which is about 30 miles away. To the north I get (PBI) Palm Beach International Airport tower and the ZMA RCAG in Palm Beach, both about 30 miles away and all the other airport towers in between. Most of the time I can get the ZMA RCAG near Pahokee which is about 45 miles from me. By the way, not just on VHF but on UHF too. I have all kinds of filters and preamps. My highest antenna, an Arrow VHF 2 Meter Corner Reflector is facing south and is up almost 40'. This antenna works great for me on the VHF airband. The VHF antenna facing north is up 30'. It's a home made VHF airband Quagi. The UHF antenna which I can aim in any direction is up 30' It's a SDL UHF airband yagi. At times I can receive the distant stations UHF frequencies better then the VHF!
I may be in a magic spot too.

KEL

 

[brandon]

Obviously an external antenna would help, but really is that going to make that big of a difference? (From across the street to 1 block away? :/ ) Is this simmilar to what you guys are seeing, or am I missing something?

Directional antennas make all the difference. Here are some receptions from my location in Menifee, CA (north of Murrieta in Riverside County) using a log periodic.

• Ontario Intl (KONT) ATIS - 30+ miles away: Audio: 124.250_ontario_atis.mp3
  
• Ontario Intl (KONT) Tower - 30+ miles away with both sides heard. Audio: 120.600_ontario_tower.mp3
  
• Victorville (KVCV) Tower - Prob 60+ miles. Audio: 118.350_Victorville_Tower.mp3
  
• Lancaster Fox Airfield (KWJF) ATIS - Prob close to 100 miles. Audio: 126.300_fox_airfield_atis.mp3

I can rotate the antenna south and get French Valley, point to east and hear Palm Springs ATIS (although very weak --- Mt San Jacinto doesn't help lol) and occasionally John Wayne and Burbank ATIS with antenna pointed more to the west. Antenna is only a modest 20ft or so in the air. I can only imagine how good it would be if I could get up 100ft and above the hill across the street from me.

I tested the same stations on a discone and Scantenna and they were either not heard, or barely audible while opening the squelch (Ontario ATIS specifically).