EPIRBS - when to use them, when NOT to use them.

[flying dog]

Hi.

 

I don't know why I am posting this but indulge me.

 

Now we all need to carry EPIRBs/ELB/what ever.

 

Maybe it is my illiteracy, but it would be nice if there was help in clearing up when you do and don't use it.

 

Obviously if you crash and need medical attention because you are losing coupious ammounts of blood, or something clearly serious.

 

But as most people are not first aide qualifiied, where is this "magic" line between serious and basically nasty and annoying but that's all?

 

I don't feel like making a bigger mess of my foot just now, so I shall stop here.

 

Anyone?

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

whenever the need may arise that you cannot extract yourself out of the mess you have put yourself in and cannot attract attention by other means phone cooeee, ect. you do not neccesarily have to be hurt. ie just plain old bushwacked.

 

 

[Guest magcheck]

Turn it on early, around the time of your trouble checks - it will be too late on the ground. The great thing about having them registered is that you can always turn it off and call to say it was accidental or no longer warranted.

 

A clear definition is - its a Distress Beacon - which means when life is in imminent danger.

 

Even if you put your plane down in a paddock and feel okay, it may be the case where you put out a mayday on the radio or someone saw you go down, or simply you dont turn up at the other time, it will make it much easier to locate you. May even be getting someone to pass over you and give you a call.

 

 

[facthunter]

Epirb's.

 

The gadget is to let someone (who might be disposed to search for you) find YOU. It saves money in this situation, as the search is simplified, and uses less resources. It is a LOCATOR beacon.

 

IF you have done a precautionary landing and hitchiked into the next town where you can phone those who might be concerned, within the normal expected time, Don't use it.

 

The other possibility is that you are injured and/or in imminent danger, and will need to be removed to a safer place as soon as possible. Nev

 

 

[facthunter]

Response.

 

See how much response you got there. Works great. Nev

 

 

[Guest magcheck]

you can always turn it off and call to say it was accidental or no longer warranted.

I should add that once you turn it on - probably best to leave it on until you are able to call and say you are safe. The reason I say this is that when you set it off initially and it is picked up by satellites or other aircraft - a search commences. First off a call to you (and if you dont respond) a call to your nominated contacts and if they dont know where you are,say you are flying, or cant contact you more actions will commence. If you turn it off (because you landed brilliantly and are uninjured) a search will continue but with much less information. In that case it will be much harder if it doesn't have a gps capability.

 

The reason is that an initial detection may have been made without a position (by the stationary satellites) and then search assets are waiting for an orbiting satellite to locate you. If you turn it off and walk safely to the next town or phone range a more difficult search is underway because your safety still needs to be confirmed. So this may involve getting aircraft to start doing visual searches along your planned track.

 

Hope that helps (it will make my job easier :) )

 

 

[Guest Howard Hughes]

My response would be; use it when you have no other options! :thumb_up:

 

 

[sleemanj]

Nobody is going to criticize you for activating your beacon in a situation where you may soon need rescue.

 

I am sure that emergency responders would much rather find you and your beacon alive and well quickly after an activation which wasn't in the end necessary, than they would spend a week looking for your body when you didn't activate it because you thought "she'll be right" but it wasn't.

 

Activate early, if you wind up not needing it, give a phone/radio call to the police or search coordination, if you can't do that you probably need it activated anyway!

 

In short, if you are at any time thinking "should I switch on the beacon now?", I would say that is very much the time to switch it on.

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

Don't forget to keep flying the aircraft!!! DO NOT become distracted trying to find it and activate it. Become familiar with the unit before you need it. Keeping it in the bottom of your flight bag is not recommended. Think ahead and think the worst, if it does go pear shaped it will probably be better than what you had planned for. Have contact phone numbers handy.

 

 

[HEON]

I was requested to actervate mine while doing a engine out emergency landing in an isolated location by Melbourne radio even though lat/long had been given in emergency call.

 

They probably thought it better to be very sure of the location if the landing not OK to help pick up the bits. I can see their point.

 

Therefore think it would be a very good idea to use it if what is happening COULD become a mess...you may not be able to after the event!

 

 

[Steve Donald]

Turn it on

 

Turn it on as soon as you know you have trouble you may not get an opportunity later, you can cancel it if you sort out the situation, but at least from the moment you activated it help is happening, life threat is time and minutes can decide your or your passengers outcome, be smart switch it on as early as you can, remember you are not 2000 mile off shore and a non tax payer you are entitled to this help, use it.

 

 

[Yenn]

If your outcome is good and you have an aviation radio available you could consider giving a call on the international distress frequency 121.5. If you get a reply advise your situation to be passed on to the rescue services.

 

 

[Tomo]

IF it is registered, which It Should be. Don't be scared to use it. Upon activation, they will ring you - if that doesn't work, the others on your contact list. And if you started off telling someone where you went/going, it should all be relatively simple.

 

They are there to help, and it helps them tremendously if you're registered. Not saying you haven't, just apparently there are quite a lot out there that aren't.

 

Ring up/contact AMSA if you like, and you can talk to them about it all, they are more than willing to help, and that is what they're there for.

 

BTW if you haven't registered, the above link is where you go for it.

 

For more information regarding Search and Rescue go here

 

 

[Steve Donald]

and should u be 2000mile offshore and a non tax payer.........You are still entitled to activate the SAR organisation

I Think you missed my point or i did not explain myself well, but SAR service is paid by the taxpayers of Australia and there to use when needed and as others pointed out make sure you regisiter you epirb beacon, makes their job easier , i listed my survival equipment as well as many others do, ie 2 days supplies food and water shelter first aid kit, list of contact phone numbers ect.

 

what i do object to is non residents using this service and not paying for it, as this desolves funding for our own operations. up goes our tax again for freeloaders. give them the bill i think.

 

 

[Guest magcheck]

what i do object to is non residents using this service and not paying for it, as this desolves funding for our own operations. up goes our tax again for freeloaders. give them the bill i think.

Dont be too concerned about that, Australia is part of a number of international agreements and we accept a responsibility for our area. Many Australians are rescued by overseas countries all the time. When a job is on the best possible available assets and resources are always used.

 

 

[Admin]

The economic value put on a life in Australia as at 2007 is $3.5m.

 

Back in the mid nineties I had to do research on this for a paper that I was doing in New Zealand and the value then over there was $2.5m - this meant that if a person was killed in a car accident due to road conditions, if it could be fixed by roadworks the max they would spend on the roadworks was $2.5m. If 2 people were killed they could spend $5m on roadworks to prevent it happening again.

 

So, that is what we are all valued at...$3.5m

 

Does that mean that the entire Australian population is worth $80,500,000,000,000

 

 

[JG3]

you could consider giving a call on the international distress frequency 121.5.

 

And also call on the area frequency. The line-of-site range to high-flying jets will be considerable, and they have means to forward a message for you.

 

JG

 

 

[Steve Donald]

Oh GUESS , i will have humble pie for tea, yep there is more to it, ....

 

 

[Guest Mark Mac]

Turn it as on as part of your Emergency Landing Drill.

 

Regardless of what heroic actions poeple think they might be able to do, there is absolutely no gaurantee you will be able to activate anything once you are tangled in aluminium and the temperature is dropping outside.

 

'Oh I didn't want to trouble anyone' makes the most tragic epitaph.

 

 

[Relfy]

As Steve and others have said, activate it before you commence your off field 'arrival' as emergency services need to be immobilised straight away to give any injured parties the best treatment as soon as possible.

 

Trust me, you won't annoy any emergency service by activating it and having them respond to your location after you have encountered a problem forcing you down. You will be congratulated. AUSSAR in Canberra will get the call from the activation and farm it out to local units ie rescue aircraft/helos, police, firies, ambos etc and a call will probably go out over the relevant area frequencies for other aircraft to attend and assess. You will be located quickly and the emergency assessed and finalised more efficiently.

 

Now if you don't activate it and a search is commenced the difference is enormous with multiple agencies involved, extremely expensive equipment being pulled off other important duties to take part in the search and most importantly, a delay in anyone coming looking for you.