Choosing a Ground Control Station

Problem definition

How do I choose a ground control station when my fleet uses MAVLink-based autopilots?

Steps

1. List your protocol requirements

   Record which protocol dialect and message set your flight stacks document.

2. Check ground station support

   Open the ground station's official documentation and check protocol and mission features.

3. Test against SITL

   Connect the ground station to a software-in-the-loop vehicle and verify telemetry, parameters and mission upload.

Guide

Judgment criteria

• A ground station fits when its documented protocol support matches your flight stack.
• Mission feature support must be verified in the official docs, not assumed.

Common risks

• Choosing by feature list without checking protocol compatibility.
• Assuming mission features work identically across firmware versions.

Checklist