Vehicle control¶
The Control tool (navigation rail) commands the aircraft directly from the ground station — arm and disarm, switch flight modes, take off, return or land, fly to a point, adjust the active flight, and run the loaded mission. It talks to the flight controller over MAVLink and shows you the FC's own reply to every command.
Read this first — it commands a real aircraft
This panel sends live commands to a connected vehicle. Buttons that can move or disarm the aircraft are deliberately guarded (slide- or hold-to-confirm, see Safety interlocks) — but they still do exactly what they say. Know your aircraft's state and have your transmitter ready to take over before you use them.
Availability¶
| Stack | Vehicle control |
|---|---|
| ArduPilot (Copter, Plane, QuadPlane/VTOL, Rover) | ✓ |
| PX4 (multirotor, fixed-wing, VTOL) | ✓ |
| INAV | not yet — INAV mode changes are done on the transmitter; GCS control is a later phase |
The panel only works over a MAVLink connection. Until a MAVLink vehicle is connected it shows "Connect via MAVLink (ArduPilot / PX4) to command the vehicle." What you see inside the panel also adapts to the vehicle — commands that don't apply to your airframe are hidden (see What each vehicle gets).
Safety interlocks¶
These are the heart of the panel — every action that can affect the aircraft is gated so it can't fire on a stray click.
- Arm is a slide, not a tap. Arming uses a slide-to-ARM control; disarm is a hold-to-confirm.
- RTL, Land, Abort Landing, Takeoff and VTOL transitions all hold-to-confirm. A momentary press does nothing — you must hold the button until it completes.
- Force Arm / Force Disarm only appear after a refusal. If the FC rejects a normal arm/disarm (for example a failed pre-arm check), a separate Force button appears with a longer hold and danger styling. It bypasses the FC's pre-arm checks — use it only when you understand why the normal command was refused.
- Stick-flown modes are locked without an RC source. Manual / Acro / Stabilize / FBWA and similar modes that need live stick input are hidden behind "Show all modes" and stay disabled until there's a usable RC source — either a physical transmitter (the FC reports a valid receiver signal) or active RC control (Kite streaming the sticks to the FC). With neither, the panel shows "No RC link" so you can't switch into a mode you couldn't actually fly.
- Set active WP only unlocks when the mission is in sync. Choosing a waypoint to jump to is disabled until the mission on the map matches the FC's (see Mission control), so the number you pick always maps to the FC's real item.
- Guided-only adjustments are gated to Guided. "Change Alt" only appears while the vehicle is in the guided / reposition-ready mode; otherwise the altitude is mission- or pilot-controlled.
- Every command shows the FC's answer. The footer reports each command as accepted or shows the FC's rejection reason — there's no silent failure.
Arm and disarm¶
The top of the panel reflects the live armed state:
- Disarmed → a Slide to ARM control. If the FC refuses (pre-arm checks), a Force Arm hold-button appears.
- Armed → a Hold to DISARM button (plus Force Disarm if a normal disarm is refused).
Flight mode¶
The current mode is shown large and centred. Below it:
- A grid of quick modes for the common GCS-friendly modes of your vehicle.
- Show all modes reveals the remaining stick-flown modes — selectable only with an RC source (a connected transmitter, or active RC control — see the interlocks above).
Mode colours match the rest of the app (see the quick tour legend).
Takeoff, return and landing¶
- Takeoff (with a target altitude) is offered for multirotor, VTOL and PX4 vehicles. A fixed-wing plane launches via an AUTO mission takeoff or by hand, so the command is hidden there. On ArduPilot, Kite switches to Guided first so the FC accepts the takeoff.
- RTL returns to the launch/home point.
- Land lands in place — hidden for plain ArduPlane fixed-wing (which lands via an AUTO sequence or RTL); QuadPlane uses its vertical QLAND path.
- Abort Landing (go-around) is offered for fixed-wing to wave off an approach and climb out.
- VTOL transition (QuadPlane / VTOL only) switches between hover and forward flight.
Guided flight ("Fly Here")¶
Toggle Guided on, then click the map to send the vehicle to that point at your chosen altitude and speed. The toggle turns itself off automatically if the FC leaves the guided mode (for example you pick another mode here or on the transmitter), so the map interaction always matches the FC.
Why there's no 'set heading' for planes
Set Heading is offered for ArduCopter in Guided only (it simply yaws the nose). It is intentionally not exposed for fixed-wing / Cruise: ArduPlane's guided heading change sets a sticky heading that bypasses waypoint navigation, isn't cleared by a reposition, and can even refuse to descend — which is unsafe to drive from the GCS. To steer a plane from the ground, use Guided "Fly Here" instead; in Cruise the aircraft holds the course you set on the transmitter.
Active-flight adjustments¶
While flying you can fine-tune the current flight:
- Change Alt — repositions to the current position at a new altitude (Guided only; needs a GPS fix).
- Set Heading — ArduCopter in Guided only (yaws the nose).
- Change Speed — sets the target ground/air speed.
- Set Loiter Radius — fixed-wing only (writes the firmware's loiter-radius parameter).
- Set Home Here — sets the home position to the vehicle's current location.
Mission control¶
Commands the mission already loaded on the flight controller:
- Download Mission — pulls the FC's current mission onto the map. This also brings the mission in sync with the FC, which is what unlocks Set WP below. Use it when you've just connected and want to command the mission that's already on the aircraft.
- Start — begins (or resumes) the mission from the current item.
- Restart — rewinds the mission to the first item.
- Set WP — jumps the FC to a chosen waypoint. It's only enabled when the mission is in sync with the FC (just downloaded or uploaded, with no edits since) so the waypoint number maps to the FC's actual item. If you've edited the mission on the map, download or upload it again first.
What each vehicle gets¶
The panel hides commands that don't apply to the connected airframe:
| Command | Copter | Fixed-wing (Plane) | QuadPlane / VTOL | PX4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Takeoff | ✓ | — (AUTO/manual) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Land | ✓ | — | ✓ (QLAND) | ✓ |
| Abort Landing (go-around) | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| VTOL transition | — | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| Set Heading | ✓ (Guided) | — | — | — |
| Set Loiter Radius | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Where to go next¶
- Plan and upload the mission you'll command here: Missions.
- Fly manually from a gamepad/joystick: RC control.
- Keep-in/keep-out areas and return points: Safety.
- Set up the link first: Connecting.