New distress beacons will save lives

Boaties, aviators and trampers will all be affected by a change to a global satellite system and are being urged to upgrade their emergency distress beacons.

The satellite system supporting 121.5 MHz/243MHz distress beacons has been significantly degraded and will cease operation altogether in February 2009.

New Zealand Search and Rescue (NZSAR) Manager Duncan Ferner says after that date the satellites have no way of hearing anyone who gets into trouble and tries to summon help using a 121.5MHz beacon, nor will the satellites be able to provide rescuers a location.

“Whether they are for aviation, marine or land use all emergency beacon users should check what type of beacon they have and, if it’s a 121.5, disable the beacon by physically disconnecting the batteries. They should then dispose of it carefully and get themselves a new 406 MHz beacon and register it for free.

“Somewhere on its body it will be marked with an operating frequency. If it doesn’t say 406MHz, it will more than likely need to be replaced. If in doubt, take it to a beacon supplier for verification,” says Duncan.

As well as being the only beacons monitored by satellite from 1 February 2009, 406MHz beacons have a much more powerful life-saving capability because they are faster and more accurate.

121.5 beacons were detected by orbiting satellites which could take several hours to process a signal and determine its location and even then an approximate location was all that could be provided to rescuers.

406MHz signals can be received by both orbiting and geostationary satellites and have a unique identification code, which is part of its signal. If the beacon is registered with Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand, the code provides vital details to rescuers including the owner’s emergency contact details. From these, it’s possible to find out more about the party in distress and their intentions.

The old beacons could provide a search area of around a thousand square kilometres within the New Zealand land mass and about 900 to 1500 km from the coast whereas the 406s are picked up across the entire globe and can narrow down the search area to approximately 20 square kilometres, and even down to a few square meters if the beacon is GPS enabled.

Already some commercial users are required to have the new beacons fitted and Duncan says NZSAR have set up a website (www.beacons.org.nz) where people can check what rules apply to them, how and where to get a new beacon and also where to hire one from. He says this is a wise and increasingly popular choice.

“We’ve now had several incidents where parties have had the foresight to hire a 406MHz beacon before going tramping. In each case the parties got into difficulty and required assistance but were able to be found and helped quickly and safely.

“The truth of the matter is that even our most experienced skippers, pilots, hunters or trampers do get into trouble and given our sometimes extreme environment this trouble can quickly escalate into life-threatening situations.

“Having a 406 beacon will quickly help rescuers know you are in trouble, where you are and what kind of help you may need. They will save your life – it’s as simple as that.”

For more information go to www.beacons.org.nz.