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February Deadline For Emergency Beacons Approaches
An anonymous reader writes "In two weeks, older emergency locator beacons will no longer be monitored by satellites. USA Today noticed that 85% of private aircraft in the US have not switched to the 406 MHz beacons. I thought I'd send up a flare about this. And this should not be relevant to the airplane which landed in the Hudson River today, as that was a commercial plane and its location was known by a number of bystanders, one of whom helped crash TwitPic."
If you have $15000 to spend on a toy, you are a rich man.
You really think so?
Plenty of people spend A LOT more on second vacation homes, a boat, or even a sports car. Most of them aren't what anyone would consider "rich". It all depends on what you value. Some people just value being able to fly more than going up to a lake cabin.
AccountKiller
Ya, people simply don't realize you can actually own a plane for less a month than what people often pay for a car; and way less than a used fishing boat.
People forget owners of nice fishing boats are likely are better off than many plane owners.
If you have $15000 to spend on a toy, you are a rich man.
Maybe considered a rich man by someone living in a 3rd world country, but not by US standards.
Billybob Bubba Jr., who lives down the street and works for the city parks department and digs holes for a living is not a rich man, yet he can manage to afford a $15K bass boat.
Tyrone Washington, who lives in the projects and collects a welfare check (paid for by us taxpayers) is not a rich man, yet he can afford to spend $15K per year on bling, new name-brand designer clothes, and 30" chrome spinning rims for his $40K used Escalade.
Biff Gaylord, who lives in a small townhome with his buddy, and works as a hairdresser is not a rich man, but can afford a $15K Honda motorcycle.
But the government did NOT require a retrofit on existing cars. To this day there are used cars for sale that have no airbags (because they never did).
They should only cost maybe $300 tops and be legal for any licensed A&P to install, but because of artificially imposed bureaucratic bullshit the avionics makers and installers are forced to go thru, these new ELT's instead cost thousands of dollars to purchase and have installed.
Most people simply don't understand. The only thing preventing the light piston GA from becoming safer is the FAA! If the FAA's certification process were slimmed such that it actually made sense, allowing for competition to boot, owners would be more than happy to have the latest and greatest safety equipment in their planes. Many of the certification requirements date back to the late 50s and 60s, which predate computers and many technological advances. Until such time, the FAA and Congress is squarely responsible for maintaining the status quo for piston aviation safety.
If you must blame someone for many categories of aviation accidents and fatalities, look no further than the FAA! The sooner the public at large realizes the FAA is in fact the problem, the sooner they can be revamped allowing for increased safety.
It is an understatement to say, piston aviation safety has increased over the years in spite of the FAA. The FAA will tell you otherwise. The economics of aviation and owners will tell you the truth.
Really? Crowded skys? When I'm flying, I only see other aircraft at or near airports. Most of the time, it's me and the wild blue yonder. As for the cost, I fly a Beechcraft Skipper. The plane cost less than my pickup truck, and my truck is a basic GMC model, not a fancy one. My plane get's better fuel mileage than my truck and can get me any place faster. You need to really look into general aviation to understand that it isn't a rich persons hobby, it's everybody's hobby. You can easily buy a plane for under $20,000. In fact, my last plane was a Cessna 150 which I bought for $14,000. Flying is only expensive if you make it expensive.
Bill
It's my Sig and you can't have it. Mine! All Mine!
If you have $15000 to spend on a toy, you are a rich man.
Two words: "bass boat."
"Make it ten--I am only a poor corrupt official."
--Captain Louis Renault (Claude Rains), Casablanca
Many private pilots are upset about this requirements for new equipment on their aircraft. I can understand their side of the issue. In many cases their existing equipment has been working fine for many years and now has to be replaced. In addition many equipment manufacturers take advantage of this to price gouge a bit. Plus there is something that is not addressed by many here - install. Aircraft are regulated much more than automobiles. To simply install a part can have a lot of requirements. For an ELT to be replaced it must be done by a Certificated Mechanic with at least an Airframe rating or an authorized repairman working under his/her shops certificate. The ELT can't be some j-random unit, it must be one that is certified for use on that specific model and type of aircraft (like saying that this part is only for Ford F-150s made in 1980 - 82 with the serial number range of such and such) there is a host of paperwork and testing to be carried out to get one certified if it is not already. Assuming that this is a drop in replacement of a unit with identical form factor and weight and power draw etc... there will be STC paper work, weight and balance etc applied. It is not as simple to get a plane with the new ELTs to be legal. Even with the requirement, the actual install is faster and easier then the rest of the regulatory stuff. This all translates to a hidden cost that is added to the purchase price. The customer can end up with a huge bill after buying a $200-$300 part. Not fun.
The flip side is this. Yes, the old 121.5 ELTs work. Yes, the new ones can also broadcast in 121.5 too. My job and the FAA's job is not to fix planes. Our job is our customer's safety. That is the whole point to this and many other things we do. The bottom line is the 406 ELTs will help Search and Rescue assets quickly and accurately respond to aviation emergencies. Even with a good fix on a 121 ELT the search area yeilded can still be as large as 100 square miles. 406's can reduce that same search area to 1 square mile. This will save lives. So, while I can feel empathy for my customers that do not want to get this new ELT and can in some cases ill afford it, I want them to be safe too. BTW- The money thing does not impact me as I do not profit from the install directly - I'm on an hourly rate. I would suggest to aircraft owners that they contact their local Avionics shops. Look to the smaller ones as they can usually take time to work with a customer as an individual rather than as a overall policy. Talk with several and make sure that they answer all of your questions. Get several quotes first. Then schedule your appointment. At this point in the game I would say that if you are an infrequent flier consider storing your plane for a while and wait the higher prices out. If you truly need your aircraft to be functional after the drop dead date get cracking as slots in your local shops will fill rapidly once the deadline is close.
Either way, stay safe.
Maric