DroneScoutSee the other traffic around your flight
Keeping clear of other aircraft is your duty as a pilot, not a nicety. DroneScout shows the other drones broadcasting Remote ID around you — and, with an ADS-B receiver, manned aircraft — on one live map.
Free to download. Optional Silver, Gold and Platinum subscriptions. · Last updated: 2026-10-10
Separation is your responsibility
The rules put the job of avoiding other aircraft on the remote pilot:
- US (Part 107.37): a small drone must yield the right of way to all other aircraft, and may not fly so close to another aircraft that it creates a collision hazard.
- EU (open category, UAS.OPEN.060): the remote pilot must keep a thorough visual scan of the airspace around the drone to avoid any risk of collision with manned aircraft, and stop the flight if it poses a risk to other aircraft. The UK rules say the same.
Your eyes stay the primary tool. But a drone the size of a dinner plate is hard to spot at 300 m, and a helicopter coming in low behind a tree line arrives fast. More traffic information means fewer surprises.
Other drones on your map
Most new drones broadcast Remote ID: their position, height, speed and where their pilot stands, once per second. DroneScout shows each one live on the map — free. Tap a drone to see its track, height and pilot location, so you can tell whether another team is working the same field and where to find them. Step by step: Detect your first drone.
With a phone alone, you'll see DJI drones up to about 1 km away (Android) and Bluetooth drones up to several hundred metres. DroneScout Bridge receives every Remote ID transport — on iPhone too — and extends that to about 2 km.
Manned aircraft next to drones
With Platinum, DroneScout also shows manned aircraft that broadcast ADS-B, on the same map as the drones:
- from an ADS-B receiver with the GDL 90 protocol, connected over Wi-Fi — it works without mobile coverage and sees low-flying aircraft near you;
- with network ADS-B as a fallback when you don't have a receiver with you.
Not every manned aircraft broadcasts ADS-B, especially light aircraft and some helicopters, so keep looking and listening. Set-up: See manned aircraft with ADS-B.
Check your own drone before you fly
DroneScout shows your own drone's broadcast too. Before a job, check that it's actually transmitting, that your operator registration number is in it (required in the EU and the UK, and often forgotten), and that the Compliant check in its details is green. An empty operator ID is an easy fine. More: Test your own drone's Remote ID.
Built for working in the field
- Groups (Gold or Platinum): put your own and your team's drones in a group with their own colour, so other traffic stands out — and mute alerts for them. See Group drones.
- Alerts (Silver, Gold or Platinum): a notification when a new drone comes into range, also with the screen off. See Keep scanning in the background.
- Flight history (Silver, Gold or Platinum): a record of every drone seen during your operation, with tracks.
- Satellite and terrain maps, offline maps (Gold or Platinum): for sites without mobile coverage. See Offline maps.
- Send detections onwards (Platinum): to your own server, to CalTopo for search and rescue teams, or to the Drone Radar network. See CalTopo.
What it doesn't do
DroneScout is a traffic information tool, not a certified detect-and-avoid system. It sees only drones that broadcast Remote ID and aircraft that broadcast ADS-B. Keep visual line of sight where the rules require it, and use observers where your operation calls for them.