Tom

You can normally spot the pessimists - they fly motorgliders :-)

I tried to say I was overstating the bad stuff.

The biggest problems with current 406/121.5 MHz ELTs is finding a
place for them - with a place for the antenna that will actually work
OK. Then there is the question of whether they will activate on impact
- a serious issue in general and I suspect even more so in gliders.
PLBs of course you need to be able to activate the PLB and have it in
a location with good transmission and ideally good GPS reception.

I look forward to a review of SPOT that Equipped To Survive
(www.equippedtosurvive.com) is supposed to be working on. I hope they
test the optional "911" and rescue coordination side of the service -
something that owners are not supposed to do.

I'd hate to see these things ending up pretty orange decorations found
years later at the site of a crash -- that to me means using them in
track mode and making sure people have Internet access to the track
data. I am interested in working with my local FBO and helping
encourage local glider pilots to try these. The real key to making
this work is having some simple procedures for the FBO to have SPOT
account access for each unit and the pilots ensuring they have working
batteries and the units are correctly in track mode. A round trip
check over VHF radio that the FBO is receiving track messages would be
a nice check before setting out too far from home.

14 days of battery life in track more will be great if we get it, I've
not been through one set of batteries yet but I've only used the
device for less than 8 hours. The most convenient and reasonable price
source I've found for energizer AA Lithium batteries is Amazon.com.
BTW in general it is a good idea to look at these (non-rechargeable
lithium iron disulfide) batteries for survival kit items like LED
flashlights, handheld GPS, VHF radios (with AA battery packs), etc. as
they have a very long shelf life, much more capacity than Alkaline and
better low temperature performance. But some electronics (e.g. some
cheaper LED flashlights/headlamps) can't handle the continuous high
power output.


Darryl

On Dec 25, 6:02 pm, 5Z wrote:
On Dec 25, 2:41 pm, "
wrote:

On Dec 24, 11:33 pm, "
wrote:
[snip] Lithium AAA batteries should last a few days in typical use, I've not
tried Alkaline, which will apparently work, obviously with much
shorter life, even if the manufacture says not to. No way to connect
to an external power source, but jury rigging power does not look too
hard. Getting the thing into track mode involves holding down a button
for a long time, but without any clear indication it has gone into
this mode vs. just going to send one message.

Well, I'm not as pessimistic as Darryl... :-)

So, here's my take on it...

The SPOT is designed for HIKERS, not pilots, but IMHO, it's an
inexpensive add on device at only $150 for the hardware and $150/year
for the full service.

An ELT, a 406 PLB, and SPOT each provide an independent and unique
service in case of a crash or emergency.

The ELT, *if it survives the crash*, will transmit a signal for
searchers to find you and the wreckage.

The PLB, *if you are able to activate it*, will transmit your
coordinates and summon help.

The SPOT, as I see it being used, will transmit my position every 10
minutes as I fly, and because I'm airborne, the connectivity to the
satellite phone network should be near 100%. If I become disabled in
any way, the SPOT will either stop transmitting, or will stop moving
and continually transmit my location. If my ELT is not triggered, and
I'm unable to activate my PLB (if I had one), then the last position
provided by the SPOT will give the rescue party a pretty good starting
place.

The website is a bit of a disappointment, but according to a response
from tech support, they are working on that and many improvements are
on the way. A top item is to be able to provide a way for friends to
view live tracks without giving them my personal login information.

The User's Guide claims 14 days battery life if in live tracking
mode. I don't know what they consider a day, but I would guess a pair
of batteries should be good for at least 20 five hour flights. A
quick online search indicates lithium AA batteries are not all that
expensive with 4 packs available for less than $10.

Since getting the unit, I've made a couple of local flights with it in
my shirt pocket and done some live tracks on a couple short drives.
Overall, it seems to be doing everything as advertised, and I can't
wait for a good soaring day or a long road trip.

Consider two recent fatal accidents:

A few days ago in NZ one of the competitors was quickly found after
the telemetry stopped. There's no mention of an ELT, and a PLB would
have been of no use. Replace the GP telemetry with SPOT live
tracking, and a similar outcome would be possible.

A couple months ago we lost a pilot in Colorado when he crashed
shortly after release. There was no ELT onboard, but the glider was
very badly damaged, so the ELT might not have survived. A lot of time
was wasted because the Civil Air Patrol searched much more territory
than necessary. A lost SPOT track would have helped narrow down the
search area.

So, just as with any other such device, it's not a cure all, but may
help with one aspect. And, I can still send my wife periodic position
reports when I make a flight far from home and there's nobody to relay
my position.

-Tom