Personal Locator Beacons

petem

petem

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They each have a unique serial number programmed in which includes the ID of the country of registration. You can take it anywhere but it you permanently export it, you are supposed to have the serial number reprogrammed to reflect its new location.
 
maby said:
They each have a unique serial number programmed in which includes the ID of the country of registration. You can take it anywhere but it you permanently export it, you are supposed to have the serial number reprogrammed to reflect its new location.
Click to expand...

If it's an UK registered boat, do I still need to re-program it?

It's in Spain at the moment but could easily be in France or somewhere else next year.
 
I have a similar device which was bought in the UK but lives permanently in Spain, I've never bothered to re register.

I'm thinking of adding this small sat phone https://buy.garmin.com/en-IE/GB/p/592606

Seems a lot more you can do with it and they do a month by month contract for as little as €20, I'll only need it for meaningful crossings.
If I didn't already have an PLB I think a sat phone would be my first choice.
 
petem said:
If it's an UK registered boat, do I still need to re-program it?

It's in Spain at the moment but could easily be in France or somewhere else next year.
Click to expand...

I don't think you need to - you can activate it anywhere in the world and you will eventually get help. As I understand it, the issue is primarily operational with potential impact on how quickly you get that help. When a PLB is activated, the request is picked up by the worldwide operators (Inmarsat?) and they use the unique serial number to work out which PLB they are hearing and to route the request onwards. The serial numbers include a country code which indicates where the device has been registered and the initial request for help is forwarded to the nominated organisation for that country. For a UK registered device, that will be HMCG (I think). The message will include the latitude and longitude that was transmitted by the PLB and, as such, it does not matter if you are out of the UK, but the local management organisation are going to first try to conduct some checks to see if it is a false alarm, and then begin to mobilise search and rescue. HMCG have no control over the S&R teams in Spain or France, so they will have to route the request on to the appropriate local organisation - with possible delays and misunderstandings. So, while it is not essential, there is some merit in having it registered with the S&R organisation covering the area where you are most likely to require assistance.
 
Both mine are reg with Falmouth despite the boat Med based .
I believe they do a verification call before sending a copter out .Thats important imho.

So,s there’s an additional layer of communication before anyone sends a rescue copter .Falmouth to where ever in the Med .
We have a life raft too , and summer boat so in a risk analysis way I feel happy with the perceived delay a none country reg might make ?

How ever bear in mind on the reg form you have to put a contact number for verification.

Reflect a moment .........

Surely it’s easier and in my view quicker for Falmouth to ring my sister in the U.K. ( mob + home ) to verify I have a boat and it’s somewhere in the med ( she roughly knows the whereabouts) than say a local French or Italian guy ?

So the “ loss in translation “ cock up is less in my view doing it this way round .

Once there’s been the verification I,am more confident Falmouth can liaise with said authorities to initiate the copter , than locals Fr or IT or who ever attempting to speak to my sister .

Having said that if the boat was based in the S China sea or Australia then it makes sense then to go through the process of local registration, and find a local person for the verification call .
 
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petem said:
If it's an UK registered boat, do I still need to re-program it?

It's in Spain at the moment but could easily be in France or somewhere else next year.
Click to expand...

you do not need to reprogram it, I have one, registered in the UK with Coast Guard in Falmouth. I bought one just in case, instead of flares which I loath - nasty dangerous things. EPIRB is arguably better as it will set itself off and run for 48 hours instead of (I believe) 24 hours, I phoned the UK office up about it being in the boat in Spain, no problem at all. They just need to know the details of the registered owner etc. I shall test it tomorrow check it still working
 
Porto, / Kashurst, thanks - you seem to saying roughly the same thing. I think that there's some comfort to be had by Falmouth being the first point of contact and having them phone around to try and locate you.

I'm not sure I like the idea of the Spanish / French doing this, too much scope for a language issue and also not being found due to them having a siesta, party, shot for august, etc :)!

I'll order a UK programmed one, hopefully I'll never need to use it.
 
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