You have to use signal scanners multiple times , scanning for Transmissions and look for Transmission Tower . If you find anything else ignore and keep scanning . Don ' t waste time on beacons or Observation Posts . If you happen to come across a Beacon on your way somewhere you can stop and use it . You can scan multiple times at the same Signal Scanner . I will hit them up about up six times until I find a Transmission Tower . Once you know what each species TT looks like you can sometimes spot them from the air . Barren planets are much easier for crashed ships as there are no trees blocking views . Always go in a in one direction as you search for Towers but you can zigzag left and right . If you find a Tower and scan for a distress signal it will probably reveal a crashed ship far away from your location . Don ' t go directly to it . Use it as a heading beacon and look for more towers and ships along the way . That ' s why my screenshot above has all the markers in a row . I go in a straight line toward the first ship and pick up many more along the way . I strip apart all the ship upgrades and sell them as I find outposts along the way . Don ' t bother negotiating with prices . Just sell them to clear your inventory and fill up again at the next ship . Just repair what you need to get the ship airborne . I sometimes fix the shield to get rid of the annoying sound but you can just turn down volume as well . On my last search I found 4 crashed ships without even using towers . Just saw them while flying over the planet at low altitude . Hope this helps , if you have more questions just ask .