R

rickmellor

Well Known Member
I'm starting to shop for ELTs but am surprised by what I'm finding. Theoretically COPAS-SARSAT will stop monitoring 121.5 and 243 MHz in 2/2009. I'm sure we could wager on whether or not this will actually happen on that date, but considering that it is a published policy, I would have expected to see more products on the market by this point. I mean, this would seem to be a golden opportunity to upgrade existing customers and eek out higher margins until the market is mature.

In looking around the only FAA-approved, self-activated, 406 MHz ELTs I can find are from ARTEX and their prices start around $900. This even for the non-NAV interface equipped unit. If you want NAV broadcasts you're looking at closer to $2,000!!! :eek:

Does anyone know what's up with this? I'm hoping to have my plane in the air by the end of '07. That would give me just over a year of satellite coverage with the current TSO-C91a units. Call me crazy but I'd like my investment to last a little longer than that. Also, the jump from $200 for an analog unit to $900 for a digital unit seems kind of crazy. Shouldn't other manufacturers be jumping on this bandwagon and shouldn't prices be adjusting downwards by now?

-Rick
 
121.5

I was planning on getting the 406 unit (from whomever), but other expenses (engine) dictate that I'll get one of the $200 units and be real careful.
 
rickmellor said:
I'm starting to shop for ELTs but am surprised by what I'm finding. Theoretically COPAS-SARSAT will stop monitoring 121.5 and 243 MHz in 2/2009.
Click to expand...

AFter listening to a presentation on the capabilities of the new 406mhz ELT's compared to the current technology, I'm siding with the new tech. It's a bit more expensive now, but I seriouslt doubt the price is going to significantly drop where it matches the price of the 121.5 ELT's.

I hope I never need it, but if I do, anyhting that reduces the time of me being found I like.
 
I hope your wrong

Seems to me when the sales volume goes way up (in 2009 when I guess it will be illegal to use your 200 dollar brick) the price should come tumbling down.

I mean think about it...its a box with a chip in it...Look at the price of your PC in recent years...Volume equals low price (relatively speaking). I can't see an reason the 406 units should be any more expensive than the orange brick.

I love the idea of a 406...Especially a PLB, but I doubt a PLB will be a legal substitute for an FAA mandated 406 unit in 2009.

Thoughts?

Frank
 
PLB

I've thought about PLBs but the problem is that I don't think they're self-activated. You could save quite a bit if you got a $200 unit for the regulatory requirements and then also keep a GPS-enabled PLB (Mc Murdo, AeroFix, etc.) with you. In that case if you survive the 'event' then you could activate the PLB manually and get the benefits of positional ELT as well. I guess the only drawback with this scenario would be where you're incapacitated but still alive ... you'd have to rely on the older ELT to show SAR the way. It would have you nearly $2k though.

-Rick
 
frankh said:
(in 2009 when I guess it will be illegal to use your 200 dollar brick)
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Frank, have you read that the older TSO-C91a units will be required to be replaced in '09? From what I understood the older units will still be legal but they won't be monitored by COPAS-SARSAT. I got my info from AOPA's site.

-Rick
 
rickmellor said:
Frank, have you read that the older TSO-C91a units will be required to be replaced in '09? From what I understood the older units will still be legal but they won't be monitored by COPAS-SARSAT. I got my info from AOPA's site.

-Rick
Click to expand...

Nope I'm talking out of the back of my head, but I would probably let the batteries go dead if that were the case.

Either way manufacturers should still be making a lot of 406 units so they should be cheaper.

As to a PLB, the other option is to activate it before you crash..Yes I know one could be a little busy if your engine was puking oil on the windsheild but you could presumably velcro the thing to the panel and try to remember to hit it during the emergency.

Hmm...Wonder if you could remote wire a switch to the PLB somehow...You could then use the inertia switch from the brick.

Frank
 
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