Inav MCP server

<!-- mcp-name: io.github.starlordz12/inav-mcp -->

iNAV MCP Server

An MCP server that lets Claude configure, diagnose, and troubleshoot an iNAV flight controller over USB — built primarily for flying wings (elevon FPV wings like the TBS Chupito and Mojito), and also for conventional fixed-wing planes.

It talks to the FC through a single serial connection, using the iNAV CLI for configuration writes and a small built-in MSP codec for live/binary reads. Every write is dry-run by default, auto-backs-up first, refuses while the board is armed, and reads back to verify.

Recorded against a live iNAV 6.1.0 flight controller over USB.

⚠️ Safety: Always remove props from the aircraft before any motor test.

This tool never switches the FC into MSP-RX mode and never arms the aircraft.

Requirements

• Python 3.10+
• An iNAV flight controller (developed against iNAV 8.x/9.x) connected over USB
• The serial port the FC enumerates as (e.g. COM3 on Windows, /dev/ttyACM0 on Linux)

Install

From PyPI (once the first release is published):

pip install inav-mcp

From source (for development, or to run the latest unreleased code):

# from the repo root
python -m venv .venv
.venv/Scripts/python -m pip install -e .          # Windows
# source .venv/bin/activate && pip install -e .    # Linux/macOS

For development (tests):

.venv/Scripts/python -m pip install -e ".[dev]"

Try it without a flight controller

You don't need any hardware to confirm the project works — the test suite runs fully offline (no FC required):

.venv/Scripts/python -m pytest        # Windows
# .venv/bin/pytest                     # Linux/macOS

All 186 tests should pass. To actually use the server, though, you need a flight controller flashed with iNAV firmware (developed against iNAV 8.x/9.x) connected over USB — without one, the connection tools have nothing to talk to.

Register with Claude

Add the server to your Claude (Code or Desktop) MCP config (~/.claude/settings.json or the Claude Desktop config). Replace the paths below with wherever you cloned this repo — the command points at the Python inside your .venv, and cwd is the repo root.

Windows:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "inav": {
      "command": "C:\\path\\to\\inav-mcp\\.venv\\Scripts\\python.exe",
      "args": ["-m", "inav_mcp.server"],
      "cwd": "C:\\path\\to\\inav-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Linux / macOS:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "inav": {
      "command": "/path/to/inav-mcp/.venv/bin/python",
      "args": ["-m", "inav_mcp.server"],
      "cwd": "/path/to/inav-mcp"
    }
  }
}

The server speaks MCP over stdio. You can also run it directly with the installed entry point inav-mcp.

Typical workflows

The server ships prompts that walk Claude through the common jobs — just pick one:

• newfixedwingsetup — gather hardware details → defineaircraft → review → apply.
• troubleshootnoarm — decode arming-prevention flags → guided fixes.
• configuremodes** — identify switches from live RC → suggest a layout → assign modes.

Or drive it conversationally, e.g.:

"Connect to my FC on COM3 and tell me why it won't arm."

Shortened. The full README is on GitHub.