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Well, I think I will take this oppurtunity to open the world of Scanning and Listening to ATC to my fellow JetPhotos.netters [img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img] since I just got my new scanner, a Yaesu/Vertex Standard VR500. (This model is available from HamRadio.com for a very good price.)
The Basics
You might be wondering how it is that you can listen to ATC at home. ATC and all radio communication works the same way reguardless. Your AM/FM radio is more or less the same thing as a typical scanner. Each "station" has a frequency, much like your television has different channels. The difference between a regular radio and a scanner is the amount of channels you can tune in.
Most FM radios tune in a range from about 85-108 MHz. Aviation transmissions occur over the next step, namely, 108-136 MHz. If you wanna listen to ATC, then you have to get a radio that "plays those channels." There is more to it than this, but this is just a simple introduction.
One thing to note, as is apparent from your regular FM radio, is that the farther away you are from a transmission source, the weaker the signal is. This is also true for Aviation frequencies. Also, aviation frequencies are what are called VHF. VHF, whose technical stuff isn't really important, is a line of sight communication. This means that if there are buildings/mountains/obstacles between you and the transmission source, your receipt will be limited. This is important for many scanners to understand because often times you will not here communications from the ground, but will have very little difficulty hearing communications from airborne aircraft.
Now that you know the basics, you can go out and buy a scanner relatively cheaply at RadioShack or even at eBay. Just make sure that it is able to pick up the 108-136 MHz frequencies, commonly called the AirBand or Aviation Band. Once you have that, you can tune into any frequency and listen away. A whole list of frequencies is available for tons of airports at http://www.airnav.com. Models range from about $80 for cheap Uniden units to thousands for professional. You can get a base unit (like a little radio) or a handheld unit. The features vary by model so shop around. My first unit was a uniden bearcat 120XLT which picked up aviation, fire, police, and marine transmissions. I have since upgraded to a Yaesu VR500. This model is called a "wideband" receiver because it receives all frequencies from 0.5 to 1300 Mhz. (The exception being some 800 MHz frequencies because they are block and used for cellular phone transmissions) Well I hope this satisfies your curiosity in how to get started in scanning! If you have any questions, please post them here, I will try to answer them for you.
Some Pictures
Uniden Bearcat 120XLT
Yaeusu VR500
[img]images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]
The Basics
You might be wondering how it is that you can listen to ATC at home. ATC and all radio communication works the same way reguardless. Your AM/FM radio is more or less the same thing as a typical scanner. Each "station" has a frequency, much like your television has different channels. The difference between a regular radio and a scanner is the amount of channels you can tune in.
Most FM radios tune in a range from about 85-108 MHz. Aviation transmissions occur over the next step, namely, 108-136 MHz. If you wanna listen to ATC, then you have to get a radio that "plays those channels." There is more to it than this, but this is just a simple introduction.
One thing to note, as is apparent from your regular FM radio, is that the farther away you are from a transmission source, the weaker the signal is. This is also true for Aviation frequencies. Also, aviation frequencies are what are called VHF. VHF, whose technical stuff isn't really important, is a line of sight communication. This means that if there are buildings/mountains/obstacles between you and the transmission source, your receipt will be limited. This is important for many scanners to understand because often times you will not here communications from the ground, but will have very little difficulty hearing communications from airborne aircraft.
Now that you know the basics, you can go out and buy a scanner relatively cheaply at RadioShack or even at eBay. Just make sure that it is able to pick up the 108-136 MHz frequencies, commonly called the AirBand or Aviation Band. Once you have that, you can tune into any frequency and listen away. A whole list of frequencies is available for tons of airports at http://www.airnav.com. Models range from about $80 for cheap Uniden units to thousands for professional. You can get a base unit (like a little radio) or a handheld unit. The features vary by model so shop around. My first unit was a uniden bearcat 120XLT which picked up aviation, fire, police, and marine transmissions. I have since upgraded to a Yaesu VR500. This model is called a "wideband" receiver because it receives all frequencies from 0.5 to 1300 Mhz. (The exception being some 800 MHz frequencies because they are block and used for cellular phone transmissions) Well I hope this satisfies your curiosity in how to get started in scanning! If you have any questions, please post them here, I will try to answer them for you.
Some Pictures
Uniden Bearcat 120XLT
Yaeusu VR500
[img]images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]
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