Aviation & Aerospace · head to head
DUATS vs SkyDemon
DUATS
Aviation & Aerospace
FAA Direct User Access Terminal System for flight briefings
- From
- $9.95/month
- Rated
- -
SkyDemon
Aviation & Aerospace
VFR flight planning for European pilots
- From
- €150/year
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: DUATS service has been discontinued as of May 2018; SkyDemon the first year costs 118 GBP against a 90 GBP renewal, so the entry price is higher than the ongoing one
- They diverge on capability: DUATS covers Flight briefings, SkyDemon covers VFR planning.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which DUATS and SkyDemon actually diverge.
Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Aviation & Aerospace).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in DUATS
- Flight briefings
- Weather data
- Flight planning
- Flight filing
- NOTAMs
- FAA systems
- Chart databases
- ATC integration
Only in SkyDemon
- VFR planning
- Airspace display
- Weather overlay
- Navigation
- Flight logging
- Traffic receivers
- FLARM
- ADS-B
Both cover
- Weather services
- Data encryption
- Ios support
- Android support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
DUATS
- Flight briefingnot SkyDemon
- Flight planningnot SkyDemon
- Flight filingnot SkyDemon
- Weather briefingnot SkyDemon
SkyDemon
- VFR flight planning and navigation for general aviationnot DUATS
- In flight moving map and airspace awareness on a tabletnot DUATS
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
DUATS
- Service has been discontinued as of May 2018
- No longer available for flight planning or briefing
SkyDemon
- The first year costs 118 GBP against a 90 GBP renewal, so the entry price is higher than the ongoing one
- Extra airfield maps and flight guides are sold as separate annual subscriptions on top of the base licence
- Prices for those additional regional guides are not listed on the store page
Pricing, plan by plan
DUATS
$9.95/month- Basic$9.95/month
- Flight briefings
- Weather data
- Flight planning
- Premium$29.95/month
- All Basic features
- Advanced weather
- Priority briefings
SkyDemon
€150/year- SkyDemon$150/year
- Flight planning
- European charts
- Weather data
- SkyDemon + Australia$220/year
- Europe + Australia
- All features
- Extended coverage
Which should you pick?
Choose DUATS if
- You need flight briefings.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want weather data.
Choose SkyDemon if
- You need vfr planning.
- You work on Ios, Android, Windows, Macos.
- You also want airspace display.
Questions people ask
- Is DUATS or SkyDemon better?
- Neither clearly leads. DUATS starts at $9.95/month and SkyDemon at €150/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, DUATS or SkyDemon?
- DUATS starts at $9.95/month and SkyDemon at €150/year.
- Does DUATS or SkyDemon run on more platforms?
- DUATS runs on Web, Ios, Android. SkyDemon runs on Ios, Android, Windows, Macos.
- What is DUATS best used for?
- DUATS is most often used for flight briefing, flight planning, flight filing, weather briefing. Of those, flight briefing and flight planning are not what SkyDemon is typically brought in for.
- What can DUATS do that SkyDemon cannot?
- DUATS covers Flight briefings, Weather data, Flight planning, Flight filing. SkyDemon covers VFR planning, Airspace display, Weather overlay, Navigation. Both handle Weather services, Data encryption, Ios support, Android support.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
DUATS: Is DUATS still available?
No. The FAA discontinued the Direct User Access Terminal Service (DUATS II) on May 16, 2018.
SourceDUATS: Did DUATS cost money?
No. DUATS was free to all registered U.S. pilots and student pilots holding a current medical certificate.
SourceDUATS: What replaced DUATS?
Pilots now access internet-based weather, aeronautical information, and flight plan filing through the FAA flight service website at no charge.
Source