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Every plane you see in the sky – you can now follow it from the cockpit in 3D
118 points by coolwulf 3 days ago | 29 comments
  • tetris11
    I'm currently flying at Mach 10 on a custom call sign, breaking all kinds of barriers on a single heading. I cannot be stopped.

    https://flight-viz.com/cockpit.html?lat=40.64&lon=-73.78&alt...

    • diavelguru
      did this https://flight-viz.com/cockpit.html?lat=40.64&lon=-73.78&alt... flew over Mexico then got to Antartica and it started going backwards. was hoping to get to South America. Fun!
    • nomel
      If you wait long enough, it looks like things go very wrong around the poles.
      • diavelguru
        yes just saw that!
  • coolwulf
    Creator here. I posted Flight-Viz a few days ago (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47603966) and the feedback was great. Since then I added a cockpit mode that follows any liveflight with real 3D terrain.

    How to try it: go to flight-viz.com, click any plane, then click "Cockpit" in the action buttons. You'll get a first-person view wit h real buildings, terrain, atmosphere, and a HUD showing altitude/speed/heading — all driven by live ADS-B data.

    Hao

    • _HMCB_
      This is so cool. But on iOS, clicking the plane flashes the mini modal/popup but the it immediately disappears. There no way, on touch, to keep it open long enough to click a cockpit view button, assuming there is one.
  • lastdong
    This is so impressive, love it!

    A bit of feedback: Clicking exit cockpit goes back to the previous page (in this case this HN thread).

    Not sure if just me, but I really had to search hard for the actions under menu and the cockpit button.

    • grg0
      Double-clicking on an airplane should send you to the cockpit view imo.
    • batisteo
      You lucky, on Firefox mobile it does nothing.I can only see the one random flight, in this case already on the ground
  • sssilver
    Interesting, I wonder if it would be possible to visualize the most dramatic parts of every flight -- takeoffs and landings.
  • matmo
    Would be nice to pair this with something like FlightRadar where you can see relevant flights in proximity to you and select them.
  • RichardHesketh
    The FlightRadar24 app has had this feature for quite some time. I like your implementation though - it’s very easy on the eye.
    • coolwulf
      Thanks for letting me know. I actually didn't know about this feature in FlightRadar24 app.
    • culi
      Paid feature though
  • igtumt
    this is interesting and how much of the rendering/logic is running in WASM vs JS?
  • grg0
    This is great, smart application of graphics and public data.
  • Chrisszz
    Commands are not that handy but from someone that has the flying in his heart since he was child I must admit that it's cool to have the cockpit view
    • nomel
      You can get "introductory" flights for pretty cheap, where they let you fly a bit.
    • rogerrogerr
      If you go hang out at your local small airport on a weekend, I guarantee someone will give you a ride. In the US, at least.
  • bigfudge
    Is it possible to pan?
  • gorfian_robot
    I wish it had all the small aircraft not just commercial flights
    • mayneack
      Pretty sure it does https://flight-viz.com/cockpit.html?lat=34.026608&lon=-118.3...
  • vixalien
    it doesn't seem to show most flights or airports in africa
  • metabagel
    Perhaps this should be submitted under "Show".
    • wkjagt
      Creator posted it as Show HN last week: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47603966

      Current post is by someone else

      • mikestew
        Current post is from the creator (not that I particularly care one way or the other):

        https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47694065

  • Markoff
    Cromite on Android 15 stock Pixel ROM:

    Error constructing CesiumWidget. Visit http://get.webgl.org to verify that your web browser and hardware support WebGL. Consider trying a different web browser or updating your video drivers. Detailed error information is below:

    RuntimeError: The browser supports WebGL, but initialization failed. Error at new kL (https://cesium.com/downloads/cesiumjs/releases/1.125/Build/C...) at DEe (https://cesium.com/downloads/cesiumjs/releases/1.125/Build/C...) at new dd (https://cesium.com/downloads/cesiumjs/releases/1.125/Build/C...) at new li (https://cesium.com/downloads/cesiumjs/releases/1.125/Build/C...) at new Go (https://cesium.com/downloads/cesiumjs/releases/1.125/Build/C...) at new ji...

  • deadlinermusic
    Love this. How do you modify the flight number?
    • gramie
      If you click on a city's name, you can see a list of all flights arriving and departing. Some of the arriving ones will be in flight, and you can click on the flight number to view it, then "Cockpit" view to see (roughly) what the pilots are seeing.
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