SAR Frequencies
 

Could anyone confirm whether UK Search and Rescue aircraft are fitted with receivers for the 121.650 test and training frequency?
If not, do you have an alternative training channel for locator beacons rather than using the 121.5 live channel?

Many thanks.

We use 122.55 and 245.1 for training homing. We have training beacons to do this.

Thanks for the reply. It would appear that most locator beacons available may not be compatible with current SAR training ops.
As we are in the process of writing the EU standard for this equipment it needs to specify something that will actually be usable in the field.

ionagh

Why would any operational PLB need to operate on the training frequencies. We already have specific training PLBs.:confused:

Is this another example of the EU not knowing what it is talking about:ugh: Operational beacons don't need to operate on the training frequencies they need to be simple, cheap and effective so they are available to most people who may need them. They don't need to have the capability to operate on training frequencies.

HF

Normally 2 types of PLB are available, operational type and training type.
My concern was having training versions specified that were incompatible with actual equipment fitted on SAR aircraft.

The other part of the problem is that these training PLBs have existed for years using non 121.5 frequencies but having put the requirement in print it has elicited the standard response from certain EU quarters of "you can't do that!"

Since we stopped carrying PLBs on 121.5MHz and moved to 406 MHz equipment why are we still concerned about SAR on 121.5?

406MHz is used to talk to the satellites. The beacons still transmit a low power 121.5 signal for homing but it is not used to talk to satellites as the older ones did.