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Old June 21st 10, 11:55 PM posted to rec.aviation.piloting
Brian Whatcott
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Posts: 915
Default Use of 121.5 ELTs to be illegal in U.S. in about 60 days.

Jim Logajan wrote:
Within 60 days of being published in the Federal Registry, use of 121.5
MHz ELTs will be forbidden by a re-write and re-title of
47 CFR section 87.195:

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_publi...C-10-103A1.pdf

"The manufacture, importation, sale or use of 121.5 MHz ELTs is prohibited."

The original text of 47 CFR section 87.195 may be read he

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-...998&TYP E=PDF

Two issues:
1) There are ELTs that support both 121.5 and 406 MHz, yet the
one-sentence regulation doesn't acknowledge their existence, so it can
be interpreted to mean their use too is prohibited.

2) There are going to be a lot of seriously annoyed and ****ed owners of
"older" equipment.


The basis for banning the sale of ordinary 121.5 ELTs (one exception) is
that there is no sattelite facility to listen on this frequency and
(apparently) the uch better success rate of locating 406.0 406.1 ELTs.

It seems evident that any ELT which can offer an emission which is
listened for (on 406.0/ 406.1) will be encouraged.

Brian W