So, completed a permanent install of Pilotaware Rosetta into our Jodel at beginning of year, just before first Covid lockdown. Have had limited air trials and with bearing less targets set to 'medium', +/-500ft and 3D switched to on, C/S filter active. PAW is connected by Farnell cable to our Funke transponder with ADSB-out and aircraft hex ID added to both devices. External antennae fitted to metal plate below fuselage with spacing of around 1m between PAW and transponder aerials.
The issue we are seeing is multiple bearing less target reports in quick succession (I believe for the same aircraft). Some of these appear to be transmitting either ADSB or PAW, but we are getting bearing less alerts for the same targets. Could be antenna blanking with the direct target information dropping out, replaced instantly with a bearing less alert, then back to direct target information.
Its very distracting and not helpful to the point that we are considering disabling bearing less all together.
Question - is it possible for an aircraft to transmit both direct ADSB information (say from a Skyecho) and bearingless information simultaneously (say from Mode C transponder)? I am certain this appears to be the case occasionally. I imagine that this would happen if the target flyer had different hex ID in different devices, but assuming that is not the case, could this be due to Mode S 3D multilateral targets falling back or going in and out to bearingless due to blanking or loss of radar interrogation?
Also, the bearingless reports sometimes seem continuous over and over for (apparently) the same target, a continuous running alert report, whereas I thought there would be maybe one report at distant range, then one at closer range, in which case one might expect maybe three alerts over a few minutes.
The direct targets seem to work fine, occasionally disappearing and reappearing.
How is the Mode S 3D multilaterated /bearingless process supposed to work. I would like to think they would be exclusive, i.e. once you had a multilaterated target it would stay that way and not be mirrored by a bearingless report.
We would like to retain bearingless targets for the potentially useful level information, but unless we can eradicate some of the clutter and confusion of alerts, it will have to be disabled in favour of direct target info only. Hopefully, things will improve as more people fit and fly with EC devices following the CAA funding offer.
We have now reset settings to 'ultra short range' to see if things improve.
Thanks.
