Unless the separation between transmitter and receiver is small compared with ranges of interest, bistatic radars have a number of properties which differ significantly from the monostatic equivalents. Some of these produce operational advantages which provide a motivation for deployment, while others merely bring trouble and expense. The paper considers the basic bistatic properties which depend on the target range and direction relative to the baseline. Appropriate formulas are given and comparisons with monostatic radar are made, pictorially wherever possible. The topics covered are (i) the lower-level cover obtained on a curved earth, (ii) contours of constant ‘range’ and echo power, (iii) the effects of beamwidths on resolution cells and the permissible pulse repetition frequency (PRF), and (iv) the width and direction of the receiving arc.