What has been you experience flying with AirMap?

Roadking · Nov 3, 2018

I fly a DJI P4 and use DJI Go4, but I am considering trying AirMap. I usually like to stick with all DJI to eliminate variables (or finger pointing) in the event of an unfortunate incident, however I like the idea of getting the instant authorization in AirMap and flying the mission in the same app.

Any thoughts, pros/cons or actual experiences are appreciated.

Just a footnote: of course i am talking about when flying under 107.

Carl Friis-Hansen · Nov 4, 2018

I think Airmap may mature to be a very useful tool for advisory and authorization.
Personally I would not use it to fly with, unless it became a well tested and common program to use with the DJI birds. In addition I think it is best to use a pad with only the necessary applications installed. I have even disabled all unnecessary background applications on the iPad I am using to fly with.

dawgpilot · Nov 5, 2018

I was interested in trying AirMap to fly, but I've been unable to get AirMap to connect when using my Samsung Note8. The button to connect shows up, but after hitting it, it launches the "flying" interface, but my drone & controller never seem to connect. Kind of annoying.

Weaponized · Nov 5, 2018

I use it as a standalone but It cant connect to Go4. It works pretty good. When in a LAANC zone I get a text telling me to enjoy my flight and remain clear of aircraft. I always cross reference the data with DJIs flight restriction map since the DJI map rules the roost and can ground me.

One thing Ive noticed...the FAA really needs to increase the detail of sectional maps. Aircraft pilots don't need street-level accuracy. We absolutely do.

Roadking · Nov 5, 2018

I may do a short test flight when the weather clears up (raining here in NC). It looks like I can get instant authorization, then proceed with the flight. Connect tablet to controller just like DJI Go, with AirMap app launched it should be similar.

Dave Pitman · Nov 5, 2018

Weaponized said:
One thing Ive noticed...the FAA really needs to increase the detail of sectional maps. Aircraft pilots don't need street-level accuracy. We absolutely do.

You can use the FAA's Arcgis site. Besides the UAS Facilities Map, it contains all of the controlled airspace and you can zoom in as tight as you want with a satellite basemap. Turn off the LAANC grid layer and turn on the Airspace layer of choice.

Weaponized · Nov 6, 2018

Dave Pitman said:
You can use the FAA's Arcgis site. Besides the UAS Facilities Map, it contains all of the controlled airspace and you can zoom in as tight as you want with a satellite basemap. Turn off the LAANC grid layer and turn on the Airspace layer of choice.

That's definitely handy. Still...lots of info on a sectional that's not included there. Given that we are held accountable for information on the sectional... The data on these maps really should match.

Dave Pitman · Nov 6, 2018

Weaponized said:
That's definitely handy. Still...lots of info on a sectional that's not included there. Given that we are held accountable for information on the sectional... The data on these maps really should match.

The street level airspace boundary is where the sectional fails and the arcgis render helps with that. You still have the sectional and other resources for other details. The arcgis render is great. I can get a call asking about a prospective project that is close to controlled airspace and simply type it into the arcgis page and know immediately if it is or is not in the airspace. AirMap, meh.

I kind of thought that is what you were looking for. Give it a try.

Weaponized said:
One thing Ive noticed...the FAA really needs to increase the detail of sectional maps. Aircraft pilots don't need street-level accuracy. We absolutely do.

Weaponized · Nov 6, 2018

Dave Pitman said:
The street level airspace boundary is where the sectional fails and the arcgis render helps with that. You still have the sectional and other resources for other details. The arcgis render is great. I can get a call asking about a prospective project that is close to controlled airspace and simply type it into the arcgis page and know immediately if it is or is not in the airspace. AirMap, meh.

I kind of thought that is what you were looking for. Give it a try.

Yeah that's what I'm actually looking for... it just reminded me of the other inconsistencies across different platforms so I was ranting.

Dave Pitman · Nov 6, 2018

You can also drop a sectional raster into Google Earth Pro and toggle back and forth between the satellite layer and sectional layer. If it's really close, then open up FAA.arcgis. I would even not even consider DJI's map nor AirMap's map.

BryanD · Nov 10, 2018

I had never heard of Arcgis and have not been able to figure out how to drop a sectional into Google earth. Can anyone help me with those two topics or should that be another thread?

To answer the OP question, I am hesitant to use Airmap to control my Phantom - prefer to stick with the GO4 app. I like the Airmap app but still learning to interpret what it is telling me.

dawgpilot · Nov 10, 2018

BryanD said:
I had never heard of Arcgis and have not been able to figure out how to drop a sectional into Google earth. Can anyone help me with those two topics or should that be another thread?

To answer the OP question, I am hesitant to use Airmap to control my Phantom - prefer to stick with the GO4 app. I like the Airmap app but still learning to interpret what it is telling me.

ArcGIS is a reference to the FAA's published UAS data site.

BryanD · Nov 10, 2018

dawgpilot said:
ArcGIS is a reference to the FAA's published UAS data site.

I understand that. I Googled it real quick and it did not look too intuitive to me. Was looking for some quick help on how it worked. I will go out and research it some more.

dawgpilot · Nov 10, 2018

BryanD said:
I understand that. I Googled it real quick and it did not look too intuitive to me. Was looking for some quick help on how it worked. I will go out and research it some more.

It's pretty simple. Once you are on the ArcGIS site, you can just search for your location in the box at the top left and zoom to a location. You can also change the base map to satellite imagery by clicking the box that looks like it has 4 squares on it. Feel free to play around with it, since you can't really "break" anything there.

BryanD · Nov 10, 2018

dawgpilot said:
It's pretty simple. Once you are on the ArcGIS site, you can just search for your location in the box at the top left and zoom to a location. You can also change the base map to satellite imagery by clicking the box that looks like it has 4 squares on it. Feel free to play around with it, since you can't really "break" anything there.

Got it, thanks!

Dave Pitman · Nov 10, 2018

BryanD said:
I had never heard of Arcgis and have not been able to figure out how to drop a sectional into Google earth. Can anyone help me with those two topics or should that be another thread?

Generally, you use a .kmz or .kml file as a raster layer in GEP (Google Earth Pro).
Here is one source:
Your source for Aviation Digital Raster Charts.