Best Performing VHF Airband Antenna – An Antenna I Use Frequently
Product: Centerfire VHF Airband Base Station Scanner Antenna
Price: $46.95
Cheapest Place to Buy Centerfire VHF Airband Base Station Scanner Antenna: Amazon
Features: 1/4 Wave Ground Plane Antenna, Specifically Designed for Reception Between 108 – 136 MHz Aircraft Band (Airband), No Tuning Required, Aluminum and Stainless Steel Construction, Equipped with SO-239 stud, which can use any 50 or 75 ohm coax cable equipped with PL-259 Connector, Made in USA With Limited Lifetime Warranty
My Rating: 9.8 out of 10
The Joys of the Aircraft Band
I often listen to the VHF aircraft band when there is not much going on with the local police and fire communications.
There is just something I really enjoy about listening to the local airports and air traffic control on a nice sunny afternoon. For some reason, it just really relaxes me as I work in the garage, or when just sitting outside enjoying the day.
There is just something really cool about listening to pilots, air traffic controllers, and ground controllers as they go about their day, defying gravity, and enjoying the wonders of invention and machinery. 🙂
Why I Personally Use The Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Station Scanner Antenna
As I mentioned in my Uniden Home Patrol Scanner Review, I really only believe in using quality scanners, antennas, and equipment. And these are the only products that I recommend to others.
With that said, I just had to review my absolute favorite VHF air band scanner antenna
Why? Because this antenna is simply the best performing VHF air band antenna that I have ever owned.
And I have happily owned and used this antenna for 15 years now. Even at 15 years old, the antenna is still in good shape and works perfectly. Here is a picture of mine sitting on my garage roof.
My 15 Year Old Centerfire VHF Airband Antenna on the Roof
I recently moved, and have not had a chance to mount the antenna properly. Even though the antenna is just sitting on my roof, I am able to pick up the ground controllers from airports over 18 miles away!
My disc-cone antenna, and all of my other VHF antennas simply do not perform at the level of the Centerfire on the VHF air band.
When I want to listen to the VHF air band, this is the only antenna I use because none of the others I have tried even come close to receiving the VHF Air band nearly as well as the Centerfire VHF air band antenna.
Why Should You Choose The Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Station Scanner Antenna?
Pros of The Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Station Scanner Antenna:
- The Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Station Scanner Antenna
- The gain in reception that I have received with the Centerfire antenna is like none I have ever seen before with an aircraft antenna and I have been listening to scanners for over 25 years!
- The Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Antenna has allowed me to personally monitor aircraft at high altitudes well over 60 miles away, listen to ground controllers at least 18 miles away, and control tower controllers up to 30 miles away routinely, and occasionally up to 50 miles away unobstructed.
- The Aluminum and Stainless Steel Construction is of excellent quality. My antenna has been outside for 15 years now and it is still in great shape.
- The only thing you need to purchase in addition to the antenna is a length of 50 or 75 ohm coax cable equipped with a PL-259 Connector on each end. If you need coax cable with the connectors, here is what I use, you can get it here.
- The Centerfire VHF air band antenna has a Limited Lifetime Warranty. If any part of the antenna structure breaks, just give them a call and they will replace it.
Cons of The Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Station Scanner Antenna:
- The bolts that secure the antenna clamp to a pipe or antenna mast that came with the antenna started to rust after about 10 years of being outside. But this is not Centerfire’s fault. This is the fault of the manufacturer of the bolt. But this is a cheap replacement at any hardware store.
- Some minor corrosion formed after about 10 years on the SO-239 Stud. This can be cleaned up a bit, and does not affect the performance of the antenna in any way. This can be expected for anything that sits outside for 15 years in the elements.
Why Should You Purchase The Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Station Scanner Antenna?
- This will be the only VHF air band antenna you will ever need to buy!
- I have not found another VHF air band antenna that pulls in even the weakest signals as well as the Centerfire VHF air band base antenna does.
- I have personally listened to ground controllers at airports over 18 miles away.
- I live 1 mile away from a bay. With that said, on more than one occasion, I personally picked up a the controller in a military VHF control tower over 50 miles away off the coast of San Diego! No other VHF air band or VHF antenna I have tested has been able to pull in signals for me like that.
Do yourself a favor and purchase the Centerfire VHF Air Band Base Station Scanner Antenna.
This is not a very good antenna compared to a lot of other ones out there. It has NO gain, and you can build a 1/4 wave ground plane antenna for dollars. Ripoff and not worth the money IMO.
Further, using mismatched impedance coax is a horrible recommendation.
Stick with good quality 50ohm coax. If the run is over 50ft I use LMR-400 on VHF/UHF.
Some better antennas are available from the following site:
http://www.dpdproductions.com/page_miltenna.html
You will have much better reception with them.
Hi Steve,
Thank you for your comment. Unfortunately antennas can be like opinions, everyone has at least one. Additionally, everyone has an opinion about what they consider the best particular antenna by band or type. You are certainly entitled to your opinion.
I am aware of the DPD Productions antennas and have heard great things about them. I have heard nothing bad about their antennas, but I have no personal experience with them. I am simply writing about an excellent antenna that I have direct experience with. The only thing I would add is that the DPD antennas do appear to be a bit pricier, and they state on their website that they do not really accept returns outside of defective merchandise, but they will attempt to work with the customer to ensure satisfaction. I also did not see any mention of a limited lifetime warranty on the DPD site regarding their antennas.
For $46.95 the Centerfire is an excellent quality antenna. The performance that I have experienced with the Centerfire, along with the antennas durability are definitely worth the price.
Regarding coax, I have used many different quality coax over the years. The sad truth in my experience is that the only time I really notice much difference is when the length is over 50 feet. Other than that, better grade and more expensive coax at lengths below 50 feet do not seem to make much difference in my particular location. And this is an important thing to remember, your particular location, and the antenna location make a huge difference.
As for being able to DIY an aircraft antenna for cheaper, this is definitely true, and has been something I have wanted to attempt myself at some point. There are plenty of plans out there. My only comment on this is that people have varying degrees of mechanical ability, and varying amounts of time available for such an endeavor. For me, it was just easier for me to purchase a good quality antenna and be able to mount it and use it immediately.
Thanks again for your comment.
Best Regards,
Steve
Hi, I was interested in that you mention the range at which you can receive aircraft at altitude being only 60 miles. I would expect a good airband antenna to get high altitude aircraft (30-40,000 feet) out to 200 nautical miles as that’s what I achieve with my folded dipole and have achieved with other airband antennas in the past. May be you are missing out on the best there is or may be I’m just assuming 60 miles is good for your location.
Happy days,
Michael
Hi Michael,
Thank you for your comment. Now that I look at that portion of my post, I see that I should have been clearer in that portion. I meant that I am routinely able to hear the actual air traffic controller working the aircraft, at least 60 miles away. For me, that has been a marked improvement over what I was able to receive over other antennas.
Best Regards,
Steve