I'm not sure TSO is a requirement. I have had non-TSO'd equipment installed
in certified aircraft by avionics shops who took care of the 337.

I agree that carrying an ELT of some kind is responsible but it grates to
see obsolescent equipment mandated by what could be seen as a CYA scenario.
To mandate parachutes be worn by the pilot and then mandate the ELT to be
fitted to the glider seems nonsensical. In Colorado's rough terrain, it
doesn't seem reasonable to me that a parachuting pilot would necessarily
land near the wreckage.

My plan is to buy a 406Mhz GPS unit that will be attached to my parachute
harness. If an outlanding is imminent, I will turn it on. If the landing
goes well, I will turn it back off and contact the SAR folks ASAP to say
nevermind. I would plan to contact contest managers in advance to state my
position and, if they didn't agree, I'd just stick with the OLC.

BTW, I just turned my handheld comm to 121.5 and got a strong ELT signal.
Since I'm in my home office in suburban metro Denver, It's a fair guess that
an aircraft at KAPA 4 miles away has a tripped ELT although there are
several glider owners within that range may have ELT's installed.

Bill Daniels

"Rex" wrote in message
oups.com...
BE VERY CAREFUL.
If you own a sailplane with a STANDARD AIRWORTHINESS CERTIFICATE, and
you choose to install an ELT, it must be one that is TSO'd and the
installation must be done in accordance with an STC or a FAA field
approval.

I have seen and heard about many pilots who have purchased these units
from their favorite vendor and stuck it in their glider. If you do
not do a legal installation, you may be putting your insurance coverage
in jepardy.

If the contest committe would abolish the pst and tat and go back to
real glider racing ie AST, the hysteria about installing ELTs would go
away. We would narrow the search pattern for lost pilots and in most
cases increase the odds of having witnessed losses. This would be REAL
safety reform.

I do believe that installing ELTs in gliders that are flown cross
country in general is good and a responsible thing to do. I find it
ironic that years ago the SSA went to bat for the "good of soaring
pilots in the US" and lobbied the FAA for and exemption to the ELT
rule.

I quess I should probably shut up and lick my chops in anticipation of
all the ELT sales that I am about to be flooded with.

(sigh)

Rex Mayes
Williams Soaring Center