Now that Henrico police and State Police are encrypted, my scanner traffic has lighted considerably. I'm thinking I need to expand my horizons. Are there any aviation-related channels that I should look into? I've got Medflight already programmed and hear some good traffic on that. I'm on a Radio Shack Pro-197 with the stock indoor antenna if that makes any difference. Thanks in advance.
Hi,
There is always stuff to listen to, although it is not as "exciting" as monitoring the PD, there is still plenty to monitor in Henrico county. Don't forget that you can still monitor the Henrico fire and EMS talk groups as well as anything not Henrico PD on that system with your Pro-197.
As far as aviation is concerned, you will probably not hear ATC (Air Traffic Control) with your current set-up (as described), unless you are very close to Richmond Int'l Airport, as they are ground based, but you will hear the planes aloft. Are you able to mount an antenna outside? I would strongly recommend your doing so, if you are able to. That will greatly expand the capability of your scanner. Try also scanning the railroad frequencies, next, try searching in the "business band" of 464-470MHz, as there is always stuff there to monitor. I don't know if the Pro-197 has built-in search ranges, but if so, just start searching in each category and you will find interesting stuff to monitor (in my opinion, but I will happily monitor anything, whereas a lot of scanner owners consider their radios as bricks once the local and state police go encrypted, as that is all they are interested in!). Lots of luck on your adventure! Happy Holidays!
