A plan position indicator displayed contacts spatially, giving operators a two-dimensional picture they could use to plan maneuvers. Radar supplied the information, while the display made its meaning easier to understand in a command center. PPI is credited here with making that command function practical. The Telecommunications Research Establishment worked through dispersed workshops and several sites. Staff could continue experimenting there after their official day ended. That blurs the distinction between private shed invention and after-hours work within a research institution.
Chapter · 1:51:47-1:55:56
PPI turned radar echoes into a command picture
The plan position indicator made radar information easier to understand and use for coordinated night maneuvering.