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CANADA: ELT 406 MHz ... The official text

Lycosaurus

Lycosaurus

Well Known Member
You can now find the official text of the proposed regulation here:

http://gazetteducanada.gc.ca/partI/2008/20080809/html/regle2-e.html

While this is a Canadian topic/issue, it also affect US aircraft (see paragraph below). I you fly, or plan to fly into Canada in the near future, you may want to provide comments to the appropriate department (contact information below).

....At present, several countries require, or are in the process of developing requirements, to use ELTs that can broadcast on 406 MHz frequency. Traffic inbound from the United States will have to comply with these proposed amendments before entering Canadian airspace. It is assumed that the cost of compliance will not dissuade foreign commercial operators from equipping with systems that meet the requirements of these proposed amendments, as the cost of compliance has not dissuaded them in the case of long-range over-water flights..... ​


The proposed regulation is up for comments by interested parties. You have 75 days:
...... Interested persons may make representations concerning the proposed Regulations to the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities within 75 days after the date of publication of this notice. All such representations must cite the Canada Gazette, Part I, and the date of publication of this notice. Each representation must be in writing and be sent to the Chief, Regulatory Affairs (AARBH), Civil Aviation, Safety and Security Group, Department of Transport, Place de Ville, Tower C, 330 Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N5 (general inquiries ? tel.: 613-993-7284 or 1-800-305-2059; fax: 613-990-1198; Internet address: http://www.tc.gc.ca)....​

COPA (Canadian Owners and Pilots Association) has opposed the amendment. $2,000 average to install a 406 MHz ELT.
Stakeholders support this proposal with the exception of COPA who has advised Transport Canada that it would oppose these proposed amendments on the grounds that the implementation costs are too high for their segment of the industry ($36,850,000 to equip 18 000 private aviation aircraft). COPA also opposed these proposed amendments on the grounds that the alternate means of emergency location criteria (i.e. automatic activation, capacity of 2.7 nautical miles search radius) do not allow the use of less expensive technologies that are currently available.​
 
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An Observation and Idea

Observation: This is not only for US aircraft flying to Canada but as I read it would also affect those of us transitioning Canadian airspace from one US destination to another. That's relevant around Detroit where Canada is between the Detroit area and much of Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Idea: The allowable alternative would have to be accurate to within 2.7 miles. Current technology for pleasure boats is a class "101" or "D" radio of type DSC which can send emergency message on channel 70 in digital form including exact position taken from any GPS that talks NMEA. While the use of marine radios for aviation is not permitted in Canada, I'll bet some enterprising geek could modify the existing stuff, etc. Just a thought. A Class 101 radio is only about $100 and most of us already have the GPS. The issue would be to whom it would send the signal and, of course, the inertial trigger mechanism.
 
Panic

Yes, that is all from the official text which also goes on to say that you do NOT need a 406 as long as you have an alternate means of which there are several that are quite acceptable
Lets not panic out there.

Alternate Means of Emergency Location

605.41 (1) A person may operate an aircraft that is not equipped with one or more ELTs in accordance with subsection 605.38(2) if

(a) the aircraft is operated using an alternate means of emergency location; and

(b) the alternate means of emergency location is identified in the information section of the flight plan or flight itinerary.

(2) The alternate means of emergency location shall

(a) be capable of providing immediate notification of an aircraft distress situation to either

(i) a rescue coordination centre, or

(ii) a third party that is able to receive and transmit the information to a rescue coordination centre; and

(b) allow the aircraft to be located with an accuracy of 2.7 nautical miles.

(3) If the alternate means of emergency location is a system that uses an emergency locator device carried on board the aircraft, the device shall, in addition to meeting the requirements of subsection (2),

(a) be capable of providing immediate notification of an aircraft distress situation without activation by a crew member;

(b) be registered in the database established for this purpose by the Department of Transport; and

(c) be carried and operated in accordance with the manufacturer?s recommended procedures.
 
Exactly Gil

My 406 MHz PLB is not viable.

Spot is not viable.

APRS is not viable.

I guess I better make a quick trip to Canada before I can't.
 
Welcome to our Canadian regulatory ****.

The process here, though, is a bit twisted. Usually a regulation is enacted, followed by exemptions to the regulation that follow common-sense rules.

An example of this would be an exemption of the ELT 406 rule for US aircraft operating in Canada for less than 30 days (this is a made up example).

The reason it's done that way is to fully paper bureaucrats' behinds with the boilerplate regulation, and then adjust to the political reality when lobbied for exemptions. This way, the bureaucrats are not to blame for lax rules when a situation arises.

So, please don't panic until all of the paperwork is finalized!

BTW, the driver behind this regulation is our Canadian military. Nice to see they are in charge protecting our interests!

Vern
 
It's interesting to talk with the ELT engineers about the G switches used in the new 406 models. These would appear to be the same or similar in design to the old 121.5 models. I wonder where the "increased reliability" of activation and lower chances of false activation are coming from?
 
I think having a GPS enabled, satellite tracked ELT will save many lives and
many dollars in search and rescue. When I fly through the vastness of the Canadian Rockies, it's going to be a good feeling knowing I have one of these on board.
 
Canadian 406 Mhz ELT

NavCanada at EAA said the PLB's do not qualify in Canada even if they are the 406 mhz variety because there is no G switch and require manual activation. A pilot may forget or be incapacitated in event of an true emergency if a PLB is relied upon. They want a self activating G switch.

My question is why can the PLB's use a small battery which I assume is of reasonable cost since the entire unit is fairly reasonable when a fixed aviation unit costs just under $1000 for a bargain basement unit with very expensive batteries. They told me that cheap D cell batteries like some of the 121.5 ELT's use are too weak and would require a bushel of them to power a 406 MHZ. unit. Does this mean a PLB with a toggle switch and a weight to trigger it ala EBC 102A ELT is all that's required since the PLB's seem to have the battery problem solved.

BTW my EBC 102A was bought for $90 when the US first came out with the ELT rule some 35 years ago and that same unit resides in my Cessna 170 today & still functions. I am afraid the US will adapt Canada's rules sometime in the future while we just recently got our battery feature under control by utilizing D cells like the AmeriKing in my RV6.

Dick DeCramer
RV6 N500DD 300hrs
N9007A '49 C170 for sale.
Northfield, MN
 
backwards....

I still think the whole idea is backwards. You don't want to start transmitting when the plane crashes. Even the best activation device may not work or the antenae may be severed. Reasonable idea in 1950 when nothing better was available.

The solution is right in front of us. It's Spot or something like it. You transmit continuously and if something "bad" happens, you will stop transmitting. Where the little dots stop is where to start looking. You're within 60 seconds of the last dot.


John
 
I know this doesn?t affect you guys in the States but they have made it compulsory in New Zealand from July 1 of this year. We now have lots of aircraft that can?t fly more than 10 miles from their home airport

These things are a good revenue collecting item for governments who need to extract every possible cent from its community. If one of these things goes off when it is not an emergency they have all your current details to send the bill

My main gripe with these is we have had several accidents with these units fitted all with the same result. A helicopter (One of the latest Eurocopters with all the whistles and bells) flew into the side of a hill. The government agencies searched for over two weeks and did not find it.
The family of the occupants continued searching after the official search had ceased. They eventually found the aircraft. The official searchers had flown over it several times. The 406 was found amongst the wreckage working its little heart out but alas the Ariel had been broken off.

So one would have to wonder how good these things really are:rolleyes:


Bruce
 
406 ELT - Cheap Solutions?

When I was at Johnson Creek there was a guest speaker from the Idaho Aeronautics Division that discussed how few people have converted their aircraft to the new system and it looks like most will not be converted anytime soon due to cost. I liked his thoughts though, he mentioned that a flight plan can even be a phone call to a friend mentioning where they are going.

For me, APRS or SPOT is a much better solution than either an onboard ELT or PLB and I wish they would allow some of these solutions that are more affordable. Just think if Steve Fossett had a SPOT in track mode on his last flight. Since Fossett's ELT didn't go off, a 406 may not have as well but APRS or SPOT would at least show his last position.
Of course the issue with SPOT is that it is only good if you keep the batteries fresh and turn it on.

I would like to upgrade my ELT and this guest speaker felt there were some cheap solutions coming out soon. Is anyone aware of a $100 - $200 solution in the near future?
 
Broken antennas and G switches that don't lead the causes that will continue to make these new devices only a bit better than the old. Something switched on manually when would be better in most cases other than CFIT.
 
I am very interested in the alternatives especially if they are considerably cheaper. It seems to me to be an opening for a company that develops these to come up with the general aviation requirements. (cheap , reliable, and work when we need it)
I am not flying yet 90% complete90% to go but the money needed to purchase this 406 (just in case I need it ) could be spent on a good quality GPS.(which would be used every Flight)



Bruce
 
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