ADSB.im is an all-in-one feeder image for single board computers. It lets a single SDR feed several different aggregators across several RF protocols, and recent versions include containers for ACARS and VDLM2 with ACARS Drama as a built-in destination.
That makes it the fastest route to a working feeder: write an image to an SD card, tick a few boxes in a web interface, and you are done. No Docker, no command line.
What you will need
- A single board computer. This guide uses a Raspberry Pi 4, and a Pi 5 costs roughly $80–$100 new.
- An RTL-SDR dongle, around $30.
- A VHF air-band antenna.
- An SD card and a machine to write the image from.
Step 1 — Write the image
Download the image for your platform from adsb.im/download. This guide uses the Raspberry Pi build; several other boards are listed.
Extract the .img file and write it to your SD card. The adsb.im documentation recommends the official Raspberry Pi Imager, which also lets you set your Wi-Fi credentials up front so the board is reachable as soon as it boots.
In the Imager, choose Use custom and browse to the .img file you just downloaded.
Step 2 — Initial setup
Boot the board and connect to its IP address in a web browser. The ADSB.im setup page loads.
Give the feeder a station ID. Make it unique, and include the ICAO code of your nearest major airport — that helps a lot on our side. Under the ADS-B feeder options, select None (no-ADSB), then hit Submit.
Step 3 — Enable the ACARS container
Once the image has finished its setup, scroll down to the non-ADSB containers. You can enable ACARS containers, VDLM2 containers, or both, depending on how many SDRs are connected and what works in your area. The ACARS Drama Club Discord is a good place to ask what tends to work locally.
This example uses one SDR and one ACARS container. Click enable next to ACARS decoder, then enter your feed ID and the frequencies to scan. 131.550 is the default ACARS frequency, but there are others. Leaving the field blank is fine — sensible defaults are used.
Step 4 — Assign the SDR
On the SDR Setup page, ADSB.im lists the SDRs it can see on the board. Assign the one you want to the ACARS container. For gain, -10 selects automatic gain control.
Once assigned, the page looks like this. Hit Apply Settings.
Step 5 — Turn on data sharing
Go to Data Sharing and select ACARS Drama as a destination, then hit Apply Settings again.
Step 6 — Confirm the feed
That is the whole setup. Email feeders [at] acarsdrama [dot] com with your feed ID and approximate location and we will confirm we can see your data arriving.
You can add VDLM2, or a second ACARS feed, by repeating steps 3 to 5 with another SDR. The Data Sharing page also lists other ACARS projects you can feed at the same time.
Thanks to the adsb.im project for including ACARS Drama in their image.
Got a feed running? Email feeders [at] acarsdrama [dot] com with your Feed ID and approximate location and we’ll confirm we can see you in the data — Sky Drama Farmers get complimentary Jumpseat membership.