We show you a collection of the best free Android apps to plan flights with your drones safely.
Do you need to optimize the control of your drone from your mobile device? Do you want to know if there is something similar to Mission Planner for Android? Or, do you want to download an app and make the most of your device? You are in the right place! In this article, we will show you the best free drone apps for Android you need to control and adjust your device exactly to your needs. You just have to read the reviews and see which one best suits your team.
Drone applications are becoming vital to the day-to-day jobs of pilot operators. If it is a flight mission for a farmer to inspect the state of the crop and the vegetation index to verify the flight zones, you are allowed to fly your drone. What if you knew that some of these apps could transform your drone into an amazing tool that collects data and analyzes it using just images? All you need is a great smartphone or tablet. You can connect it to your drone to take advantage of these best apps made just for drone pilots.
The best free and essential Android apps for drones
In this section, we will present all those applications for drones with similar functionality to Mission Planner that you can find on Google Play. In all of them, you will enjoy an endless number of functions. So you can fully exploit the characteristics of your device. Do not miss it!
Google Earth
When you are going to fly your drone, the first thing you need to do (after registering it,) is figure out a place to fly it. You can use the Google Earth app to find exceptional places to fly. It is free for your mobile device and available on the web as well.
With the right to generous zooms, instant localization and an address search system and even a commercial establishment, you can have in your pocket one of the most powerful satellite and map systems in the world.
Download Google Earth App Here
Airmap
First of all, Airmap is the best drone app to check no-fly zones. I use it frequently when traveling or when I am inside the airport and need permission to fly my drone. This application collaborates with the Federal Aviation Administration by authorizing your flight plans within the regulations.
Airmap also comes with three different types of notices. A red notice means you cannot fly your drone in that area and will require manual approval from the FAA. An orange notice means that you can only fly within a certain altitude as shown on the map, and the process may be automatically approved if you plan to fly below the specified altitude. Finally, the green notice means that you can fly your drone.
After you submit your application, this drone app will display a weather forecast for you to review. It will give you important aviation data such as wind speed, weather visibility, and wind direction. This drone app is a must-have for all drone pilots. Airmap is not only a great drone app, but it also helps you avoid legal hassles and process flight authorizations for you. Airmap is the preferred method of obtaining FAA clearance.
Download Airmap App Here
Also, read our reviews of the best drones with 4K and HD cameras.
Dronecast
Dronecast is one of the most complete applications for flying drones that you can find on Android. From weather information to flight paths, it’s a great plugin.
Just enter the platform and find out the weather forecasts in real-time in exclusion zones thanks to its integration with Airmap within the US, UK, Europe, Asia, and more.
It has great customization according to your drone model and flight capacity. You will get a forecast of the next 7 days to plan future flight missions. It is totally free, without advertising.
FreeFlight Mini: for Parrot drones
If you have a Parrot drone, then this application on your mobile will suit you like a glove. Its intuitive interface will greatly simplify the task of piloting for beginners, achieving a fully professionally planned flight, regardless of your level of knowledge on the subject.
If you wish, you can complement the functions of this application with a Joypad created by the brand or use simple touch controls. These will pair with your DJI or Parrot device via Bluetooth Smart. This gives you the ability to not only plan your flight bbut alsoto easily drive in real-time.
In this way, when you tilt your mobile in one direction or another, the drone will take the same position and inclination. So you can take precise shots and fly through difficult places. It is compatible with Parrot Mambo, Swing, Minidrones, Airbone Night, Cargo and Hydrofoil. You will be the king of stunts!
Download FreeFlight Mini
UAV Forecast for Drone Pilots
How can you know if the weather, temperature, and wind direction are good to drive your drone on the route you want? Then install UAV Forecast! This is a weather app that will show you in a very intuitive way when the air conditions are perfect so that your device can fly smoothly.
Taking into account the speed of the wind, its direction, the ambient temperature, the intensity of the sun, the density of the clouds, or the weather, this app to fly drones makes a sum of factors and determines whether or not it is good to fly as you had planned. Likewise, it will inform you about the areas that are excluded, i.e., those where you will not be able to fly.
To get a precise technical measurement, all you have to do is look at your map to see in which sector you want your drone to fly and the approximate day you will do it. Using Google Weather and other components, you will be able to know exactly what the weather measurements are. The app is free and has an annual subscription to use it without limits.
B4UFLY: check the allowed airspaces
This is an application similar to Mission Planner that does specific mapping and allows you to check which airspaces you can fly in. It is designed to let you know all the sectors where this type of device has permission to fly.
The tool is based on maps, so it will show you graphically and intuitively where there are or are not flight limitations, shading in green the places where you can plan a route and, in red, those that you can’t.
This is complemented with maps and weather-type incidents. So you can see in real time when the weather is good to fly.
DroneDeploy: mapping for DJI drones
DroneDeploy is a very good DJI mobile application that will help you to control drones and flights with commercial shots. This is because its system provides automatic data capture, flights and routes for you to explore interactive and realistic maps. So you can take perfect shots in real-time.
You can also use a free planning mode so you can fly autonomously from your device as if it were a video game. All this while the app shows you the images in the resolution that your drone allows and with the possibility of sharing these images live on your social networks.
Without a doubt, it is an ideal software for maps and aerial images, whether it is for construction, mining, insurance, surveying or agriculture. And it is that you will be able to monitor and analyze more than 30 million hectares in 160 countries around the world. And as if that were not enough, it is a completely free app.
Also, read our reviews of the best drones for GoPro and other action sports cameras.
Pix4Dcapture: Plan your flight
Pix4d is one of the applications with the greatest compatibility with flying devices on Android. So it will turn your equipment into a professional mapping tool. Among other functions, you can complement this software with the Pix4D and Capture photogrammetry system, a perfect tool for obtaining RGB and thermal images.
In this way, your maps will be more precise and optimal and you will be able to see them in 3D to carry out precise flight planning and even indicate to the drone where to take the shots. Later, you will be able to process the images you make through a cloud service directly from your desktop.
In short, you will be able to produce complete georeferenced maps. So you will be able to adapt to all types of tasks. This is a very useful feature for other drones to follow the same route and to obtain similar shots in real-time. The app is completely free.
Download Pix4Dcapture App
Drone Buddy: weather, no-fly zone and more
This is the best drone app for both beginner and professional pilots. Drone Buddy is a full-featured tool to successfully drive your device. All this is presented in a simple interface and is characterized by being very precise. Among other functions, it allows you to plan flights and shots in advance, fly in real-time and carry out live broadcasts.
On the other hand, it has a very practical control panel. So you can modify the routes according to the speed and direction of the wind together with a stabilizer to avoid accidents. Said panel also includes the Kp index and information on cloud density, possible visibility, solar behavior and other parameters that will be very useful when modifying your route.
Drone Buddy is an app for flying drones. It has several configuration options (imperial and metric). It provides you with the rules and conditions of the airspace where you plan to fly. And as if that were not enough, it has great compatibility with all kinds of DJI and FPV devices. Its download is free and you have different Premium options to expand its benefits.
Aloft
Aloft is one of the best apps for Android drones and is also very complete. It offers weather and airspace reports, flight data logging, audio and video streaming, and much more.
All these tools and functions allow the user to fly their drones in a safe and reliable environment. It is also a service approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and free for Android phones.
This is our list of the best applications for drones. Each of them has different characteristics to make a safe and professional flight. We know that they will be useful to you. Let us know your thoughts and if you know others write a comment!