VAF Forums - 121.5 ELT phase out

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121.5 ELT phase out

In October 2000 the International Cospas-Sarsat Program, announced at its 25th Council Session held in London, UK that it plans to terminate satellite processing of distress signals from 121.5 and 243 MHz emergency beacons on February 1, 2009. All mariners, aviators, and individuals using emergency beacons on those frequencies will need to switch to those operating on the newer, more reliable, digital 406 MHz frequency if they want to be detected by satellites.

Read about it:

http://www.sarsat.noaa.gov/phaseout.html

I have no plans to upgrade to the 406 MHz ELT anytime soon. The price will come down but we will all be required to switch when the FAA gets around to requiring it.

Gary A. Sobek
RV-6, N157GS, RV-6, 1,749+ hours flying, SoCAL

Things can change

I know artex has a unit for less than $1000. So it is not as bad as you might think. Still when you could get an ELT for $200-$300 it does hurt a little, but at least you are getting something for the extra money, accuracy, which may save you life, plus 5 year battery.

http://www.artex.net/documents/ME406.pdf

One draw back besides the cost is you now need two antennas one for 400Hz and another for the lower freq. As far as 121.5 and 243 MHz, these freq will be monitored for a long time to come. Also 121.5 and/or 243 MHz will be used for local direction finding, so you need both. On the plus side the 400Mhz is way more accurate, and could save your life.

The personal hand held 400MHz units are nice and cost in the $600 range. These are little units are small and can be carried in your hand. They don't meet the aviation requirment but they are nice and can be used for other purpose than aviation. These personal units are better than the least Artex has units above in one way, with built in GPS. You don?t get GPS with aviation 400MHz ELTs until you get into the big bucks. The new 400MHz has the ability to transmit the exact lat-long interfaced with a GPS input.

If you want an ELT 400MHz with nav capability they cost about $1700. The nav interface is another $1500. So for over $3000 you can have the full meal deal.

The 400MHz date could be moved back down the road , so 121.5 & 243 MHz may be around for a while longer than 2009. The 243MHz may drop out but 121.5 MHz will always be used. I am all for the new technology and a baisc unit without GPS provides very good position.

Cheers George

I was reading one of the aviation mags recently (Pilot Getaways?). In their article about this phase out, they talked with ACK. ACK says they will have a 406MHz ELT out next year. Only a few hundred dollars ($500-$600 - can't remember) and it will 'drop in' to their existing cradles. You will need to add a 406MHz antenna.

Supposedly they even include pins to accept data from your GPS. If the ELT activates, they will include the last position it received from the GPS.

Kevin

Quote:

SATELLITE PROCESSING OF ELT SIGNALS ON 121.5 MHZ TO END IN 2009
The FAA issued a notam Wednesday announcing plans to end satellite processing of emergency locator transmitter (ELT) distress signals broadcast over 121.5 MHz and 243 MHz on February 1, 2009. This comes at the request of the Cospas-Sarsat program, an international search and rescue program that uses satellite-aided tracking and is part of a transition to 406-MHz ELTs whose signals provide more information with greater accuracy than the current ELTs. "AOPA recognizes the benefits of the 406-MHz ELT but opposes any attempt to force pilots to upgrade. The unit alone costs about $1,000, with installation adding more to the cost. So the decision whether to upgrade or to keep the 121.5-MHz system should be left to the discretion of each aircraft owner," said Rob Hackman, AOPA manager of regulatory and certification policy. ELTs that transmit over 121.5 MHz will still satisfy FAA requirements and be legal after the transition date, but they will provide limited assistance in the event of an accident because a satellite will no longer receive their signals. They will still be monitored by the FAA and Department of Defense from the ground. The new 406-MHz ELTs use digital technology to transmit information specific to you and your aircraft, including your GPS coordinates and personal contact information.

The above quote was taken from the AOPA ePilot email I received today. If I am to read this statement correctly the FAA requirements are not going to require us to change to the 406 MHz ELT's on February, 2009. Our existing ELT's will continue to meet the requirement after that date. The change will involve the use of satelites to monitor the frequency. The 121.5 MHz frequency will continue to be monitored from the ground. So as far as legalities of carrying the 121.5 MHz frequency ELT's after Feb 2009 we will still be in compliance if we do not convert to the new frequency ELT's.

Of course every pilot will have to weigh the issue for themselves of whether they want to upgrade to the better technology to allow for easier location by emergency responders in the event of a mishap that will require the use of the ELT. But it appears that the FAA is not planning to force us to transition to the newer technolgy if we already possess an ELT.

Steve
RVBYSDI

elt's -- 406, 121.5, and epirb's

my current strategy (subject to change without notice when somebody points out what a bad idea is it) is to use a 121.5 mhz elt to satisfy the regulatory requirement and obtain one of the relatively inexpensive (~$595) epirb's for that "added benefit". of course, if the 406 mhz elt's get down into that range, then i'll just get one of those.

john

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnp

Sounds like a acceptable idea to me.

As long as the 121.5 equipment is still legal, I would see no reason to change.

ELT Single Antenna

FYI,

Artex does make a single antenna that transmits all three frequencies and an ELT that will feed it on just one coax. I'm installing it on a Hawker 800 now. Way to $$$ and heavy for us though :(

I talked to our DAS admin and local FSDO recently about this and I can find no plans to force experimentals to the 3 freq requirement.

Will,
Avionics Engineer, Gulfstream