OpenSky Rate Limits

As of July 2022 OpenSky have introduced rate limits that make it useless for aircraft tracking programs such as Virtual Radar Server. Anonymous users are now limited to 8 minutes of tracking calls and registered users get just under an hour and a half of tracking calls per day (https://openskynetwork.github.io/opensky-api/rest.html#limitations).

For most VRS users OpenSky is no longer a viable source of ADSB data. For those users that only want to take the OpenSky feed in short bursts, read on.

opensky-to-basestation

A command-line utility that fetches state vectors from the Open Sky network and converts them into a BaseStation format network feed.

How to install

1. Download the .NET Core 6 runtime for your platform:

   https://dotnet.microsoft.com/en-us/download/dotnet/6.0

   Choose the .NET RUNTIME option. You don't need the SDK version unless you intend building the program. Likewise the desktop version isn't necessary, although it will also work.

2. Either download the pre-compiled binaries from the releases page or compile your own build:

   https://github.com/vradarserver/opensky-to-basestation/releases

3. Unzip the pre-compiled binaries and copy to a folder of your choosing.

Windows

To run the application under Windows:

opensky-to-basestation -rebroadcast

Other platforms

To run the application under Linux and OSX:

dotnet opensky-to-basestation.dll -rebroadcast

Command-line parameters

Usage: <command> [options]

Commands

Command	Description
-rebroadcast	Periodically fetches OpenSky state and rebroadcasts it in BaseStation format on the local network

OpenSky Options

Option	Value	Description
-user	text	OpenSky network username (defaults to anonymous access)
-password	text	OpenSky network password
-rootUrl	url	Root URL for OpenSky API calls (defaults to https://opensky-network.org/api)
-anonInterval	seconds	Seconds between fetches for anonymous users (defaults to 10)
-userInterval	seconds	Seconds between fetches for logged-in users (defaults to 5)
-icao24	hex-list	Hyphen-separated ICAOs to fetch from OpenSky (defaults to all aircraft)
-lamin	degrees	Lower bound for latitude (defaults to no bounding box)
-lamax	degrees	Upper bound for latitude
-lomin	degrees	Lower bound for longitude
-lomax	degrees	Upper bound for longitude

Network Server Options

Option	Value	Description
-port	1024-65535	The port to listen to for incoming connections (defaults to 20003)
-tickleSecs	seconds	Seconds between aircraft list tickles, 0 to switch off (defaults to 25)

Diagnostic Options

Option	Value	Description
-jsonFileName	filename	The full path to a file that the OpenSky JSON will be saved to

Compilation Pre-requisites

You will need the latest version of Visual Studio 2022 Community edition.

When you choose the components to install you need to tick the option for .NET desktop development. In the Individual Components tab make sure that the .NET 6.0 Runtime (Long Term Support) is ticked.