NES Radar, developed by [k6lcm], has been released as open source on GitHub under the GPL license. Despite its name, the project does not use radio direction finding or distance measurement; it consists solely of a standard NES cartridge and a specially prepared cable. The display, reminiscent of period games, shows current air traffic. The cartridge contains the software; no additional hardware such as ESP32 or PicoW is included. Users can enter an International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) code such as KATL to view aircraft positions, but the system supports a maximum of 8 sprites. The NES’s second controller connection is used as a serial port; a Python script running on a nearby computer retrieves and transmits aircraft positions. The system is based on the c64u-radar project signed by [k6lcm]; a similar method had previously been used for satellite tracking on the NES as well.
Why it matters
The project demonstrates that a classic game console can be repurposed not merely as a nostalgic device, but as an interface capable of processing and displaying current data. The GPL license provides an accessible foundation for open-source and retro hardware communities interested in examining how it works and evaluating similar applications. However, because the system depends on a Python script running on a nearby computer and serial communication, the NES itself does not constitute an independent flight-tracking device. The limit of eight sprites also leaves open the question of how clearly dense air traffic can be represented on the screen. The project’s similar approach, associated with satellite tracking, provides context for how the same hardware could be used with different types of data.
Background
NES is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we published a news article mentioning this name in the past 90 days; that article is dated August 30, 2026.