Summary
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FlightScnr is a plug-and-play desktop radar that displays live aerial flights without any soldering or coding.
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ESP32 uses T-Encoder Pro to stay at free levels, polls ADSB/router APIs and caches results.
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A 3D printable shell and native web setup provide an easy desktop display and Wi-Fi portal.
It’s been a great week for aviation enthusiasts. We saw it a few days ago someone projects flying planes on the ceilingit was really nice, but maybe a little difficult to set up. Now someone has come up with their own aircraft tracking gadget that needs zero soldering or coding.
FlightScnr shows you the sky above your office desk
No need to look out the window
This cool project is called FlightScnr created by Yash Mulgaonkar. FlightScnr uses a LilyGO T-Encoder Pro powered by an ESP32-S3 R8 microcontroller that provides both a display and a scroll wheel to see and interact with the radar. To keep the equipment safe, Mulgaonkar designed a 3D printable shell that also doubles as a stand to put on your desk.
All the features that come with this project are:
Live sweeper radar display with radar tracks for surface air traffic
Flight details for each visible aircraft – Origin/Destination, model, altitude, heading
Questionnaires adsb.fi Route API lookups (AirLabs, FlightAware, FR24) in flash/RAM to minimize API calls in the background and caches to keep you under free tier monthly limits
Easy setup with Wi-Fi setup control portal and local web interface (flightscnr.local) to configure your coordinates, ranges, API keys and other display configurations
Watch, because why not?
Mulgaonkar proudly states that the project requires zero soldering or coding on your end, so if you’re looking for an easy task and you’re a big fan of aviation, FlightScnr seems like the perfect fit for you. You can check how to make your own and download the source code of the project GitHub pageand you can take a 3D print schematic for the shell Makerworld.
