iFly GPS Forum

A little off subject but does anyone know the difference between Skyradar and SkyGuard? They look to be mounted in the same box. Both appear to work with iFly.

Running iFly on Android (Galaxy Note 3 and Note 10.1)

I have a SkyRadar (one of the earlier ones). ADSB-In only. I think there is a remarkable similarity, i.e. the Skyguard even says its compatible with the old SkyRadar iPhone app etc. Hmm. Anyway - The SkyRadar works great but it's as an In-only device I get Weather all the time but Traffic only sporadically when I happen to be close to another aircraft with an ADSB-Out device, the out transmission triggers nearby ASDB stations to transmit traffic. So that's the big difference In vs. In/Out. With the Out on the Skyguard you'll actually get traffic. If I didn't already have the SkyRadar I'd definitely opt to the SkyGuard for that reason. Neither are quite 2020 ready yet so for now I'm living with the ADSB-In (since I have it) hoping to see if Skyguard get approved as a certified GPS source.

Scott,

The SkyGuardTWX is a larger "thicker box". Keep in mind, the SkyGuardTWX is a Transceiver and the SkyRadar is a Receiver. The SkyGuardTWX is one of the smallest Transceivers on the market. SkyRadar makes a great ADS-B Receiver, but it won't activate the full traffic like the SkyGuardTWX.

Also, for the antenna. They look the same, but according to Don at SkyGuardTWX, there is a difference and they get that specific modification for their antenna. The SkyGuardTWX antenna has a UTC 1-second timer inside it, where the SkyRadar does not. It's my understanding that they are not compatible. It will likely still show GPS position, but "could" affect the Transmit/Receive of the ADS-B data.

I hope this helps clear up an confusion or an questions.

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Shane Woodson
Vice President | Adventure Pilot LLC.