Target Radar.

[ballsacre]

Please excuse my naivety, as I am sure you will appreciate I am a complete novice, could someone please inform me if civilian aircraft have 'target radar' installed on board?.

[Capn Bloggs]

If you mean can we pick up other aircraft with the onboard weather radar, the answer is yes, quite well (provided you know their initial altitude, which you get from the TCAS).

[ballsacre]

Capn Bloggs, thank you for your reply, that is the information I require.
ballsacre.

[Checkboard]

IF you mean "can we see other aircraft on radar with any reasonable hope of avoiding them, or even finding them" the answer is "NO".

The occasional aircraft will place a return on weather radar - but as the beam only sweeps horizontally at a fairly narrow altitude range, it is a very hit or miss (and very much mostly miss) to see an aircraft return on weather radar.

There is a Traffic Collision avoidance system which uses a radio beacon on each aircraft (obviously this can be turned off in times of war!) to show (and thus avoid) traffic.

[Capn Bloggs]

Well Checkboard, if you know how to work out the tops of painting weather, then you'll know what tilt to set to pick out other aeroplanes.

[BOAC]

Like Bloggs I have used it quite successfully to pick out traffic 'of interest' - it requires a little more skill than just switching it on and letting it sweep, however.

[Checkboard]

If I know where it is - yes, I can usually find it - but that defeats the point, now, doesn't it.

(and yes, I can tell you the radar top of a storm return )