Singlehanded: EPIRB or PLB?

[Yealm]

Has there ever been any testing articles by the sailing mags etc on how easy it is to operate a PLB once you've been knocked into cold choppy water?

Having palpitations just thinking how hard it would be to either remember the steps, or to read the small font instructions without glasses, and then fumbling with freezing fingers pressing tiny buttons and keeping orientated correctly !

 

[Daverw]

Not sure it’s very complicate, open flap and press button

 

[westernman]

Has there ever been any testing articles by the sailing mags etc on how easy it is to operate a PLB once you've been knocked into cold choppy water?

Having palpitations just thinking how hard it would be to either remember the steps, or to read the small font instructions without glasses, and then fumbling with freezing fingers pressing tiny buttons and keeping orientated correctly !

 

[Yealm]

Thanks - YouTube is your friend !
But they haven't tested the operation - ie how well signal works with the aerial getting submerged, particularly in typical disaster situations - F6 and above, cold and fatigued, can't hold it straight...


PS
Last season, Ocean Safety told me the Rescue Me company were working on developing a combo PLB/AIS unit.
Any progress update ?

 

[Neeves]

I’m I right in that in Aus and NZ that epirbs are not allowed to auto deploy anyway, so in that case not more than a PLB that floats with a bigger battery

For Australia

The carrying of an EPIRB by a vessel more than 2nm offshore was introduced before PLBs were available.

The legislation may not have kept up with developments. But if PLBs are less reliable because they do not float in the correct attitude - then they are not much use as a vessel beacon and questionable for an unconscious person.

Since Jan 2021 vessels operating more than 2nm offshore must carry an EPIRB and the EPIRB must be held in a Cat 1 float free cradle.

If you sail down the west coast of Tasmania, across Bass Strait, from Cape Leuwin to Adelaide (the Great Australian Bight) or across the north of Australia - say from Cape York to Perth with some exceptions there is no VHF nor mobile coverage . There is, with some exceptions good coverage from Adelaide , Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane to near Cape York. if you want to communicate in there 'dead' areas you either need a Sat phone or SSB. There are some informal SSB radio nets. Weather is provided 4 hourly by SSB at 4 different frequencies. It is possible with the commercial operator that transmits the marine weather to set up a reporting system by SSB, free of charge. The provider will send short email messages to family and they also monitor the emergency frequencies (SSB thus has an extended lease of life here).

There is some commercial marine traffic along the East coast, less for the last 2 years with the absence of cruise ships. There is not much traffic across the Bight nor up the west coast.


If you become an MOB up north the water will be warm - but frequented by sharks. The Great Australian Bight - the water is cold and frequented by sharks.

Don't go overboard.


Different countries, different systems.

Our personal focus, we cross Bass Strait and down Tasmania's west coast is to stay on the boat. We assume if we fall overboard we will not be recovered. We do carry the EPIRB and have a licensed SSB.

Jonathan

 

[Habebty]

PLB for me!

Attached to a lanyard on lifejacket.

 

[SteveAus]

There is a very interesting report into the sinking of a yacht during a race in Bass Strait in rough weather at night about ten years ago. One EPIRB and four PLBs were activated. The PLBs did not operate as well as would have been hoped. The part relevant to PLB / EPIRB performance in essence says that:-

• Two PLBs were activated before the crew entered the water and initially worked well but failed to provide an updated position during the two hours the crew were in the water. (They should have up-dated every 30 minutes).
• Two PLBs were activated after the crew were already in the water. One provided a GPS fix after half an hour. The other failed to provide a fix during the following two hours.
• An EPIRB was activated. Its signal was received but because it was not a GPS capable unit, a fix on its location was not obtained in the following two hours.

All the crew were saved by another yacht competing in the race using positions from the PLBs which were relayed from the rescue control centre to race control to the yacht.

The sinking yacht had sent distress calls on VHF and HF, none of which were apparently heard. Two parachute flares had failed due to wrong deployment, the third was fired successfully and seen by the rescuing yacht.

The report has probably been mentioned on this forum previously. It contains further information about PLB performance as well as a lot of very useful and interesting information and is well worth reading. It can be found at https://www.orcv.org.au/docman-link/safety/3306-port-fairy-incident-report/file.

 

[Neeves]

There is a very interesting report into the sinking of a yacht during a race in Bass Strait in rough weather at night about ten years ago. One EPIRB and four PLBs were activated. The PLBs did not operate as well as would have been hoped. The part relevant to PLB / EPIRB performance in essence says that:-

• Two PLBs were activated before the crew entered the water and initially worked well but failed to provide an updated position during the two hours the crew were in the water. (They should have up-dated every 30 minutes).
• Two PLBs were activated after the crew were already in the water. One provided a GPS fix after half an hour. The other failed to provide a fix during the following two hours.
• An EPIRB was activated. Its signal was received but because it was not a GPS capable unit, a fix on its location was not obtained in the following two hours.

All the crew were saved by another yacht competing in the race using positions from the PLBs which were relayed from the rescue control centre to race control to the yacht.

The sinking yacht had sent distress calls on VHF and HF, none of which were apparently heard. Two parachute flares had failed due to wrong deployment, the third was fired successfully and seen by the rescuing yacht.

The report has probably been mentioned on this forum previously. It contains further information about PLB performance as well as a lot of very useful and interesting information and is well worth reading. It can be found at https://www.orcv.org.au/docman-link/safety/3306-port-fairy-incident-report/file.

Welcome to the Forum! I had not noticed another Australian.

Chilling report.

Essential reading.

Relevant to anyone sailing not far offshore.

Thank you Steve - not a report I had read.

If the events had occurred simply 'cruising' there might have been no other yachts nearby - and we might have been reading of a very different outcome.

Jonathan

 

[Neeves]

This link seems pertinent, though may already have been posted.

What's the best personal locator beacon? FastFind ReturnLink vs ResQLink View RLS

Jonathan

 

[Koeketiene]

In the end, I opted for the Ocean Signal EPIRB1.

The size (AFAIK, the smallest on the market) and the 10 year battery life where the clinching arguments in favour of this one.

Fingers crossed that I may never need it.

 

[Buck Turgidson]

On operation of a PLB in anger.
Mine was used in anger by a friend as his boat was sinking in the Atlantic. I had left it with him when I departed after the previous leg as I did my Life Jacket. I didn't have a yacht at the time and they were more use to him than me I thought.

He had never read the instructions and I don't think even looked at it. Just put it in the chart table and forgot about it until the incident.

It worked as advertised and he was picked up before the boat went down but he said he had a hell of a time getting it to work!

I chose an epirb for my boat.

 

[boomerangben]

Yes don't fall over board has to be rule one.

I have a PLB of my own. I chose that based on the fact the boat could sail very happy onwards without me taking an EPIRB safely nestled in its cradle without me. I can also take it when walking in the mountains or sailing on someone else's boat.

I would also highly recommend a spray hood for the lifejacket.

 

[Graham376]

In the end, I opted for the Ocean Signal EPIRB1.

The size (AFAIK, the smallest on the market) and the 10 year battery life where the clinching arguments in favour of this one.

Fingers crossed that I may never need it.

Much longer in some cases. Just returned on board today and I did the self test on our old non gps Pains Wessex EPIRB. It tested fine despite the battery being 11 years past it's replacement date. I'll most likely bin it anyway as we have a PLB as well with recent battery.

 

[grumpy_o_g]

Actually, they probably won't

To be fully effective, PLB's have to be held with the antenna correctly orientated. They do not float in the correct orientation, even if used with the flotation pouch, and they will almost certainly fail to communicate with a satellite from the wrong orientation if the user is, or falls, unconscious

Beware the terminology here (as previously mentioned). There are companies marketing water activated automatic "PLBs" which are not actually PLBs. They are 121.5Mhz SART beacons and/or AIS transponders and not 406Mhz COSPAS-SARSAT satellite beacon at all

AFAIK (and I;d be delighted to discover otherwise) there are no 406Mhz PLBs that will automatically deploy and be effective without manual activation and orientation

Never the less, it is a 406Mhz PLB that is on my belt at all times when underway but I'm aware that it will be of little use to me if I'm non-compos mentis when I need it!

I suspect the regulations don't allow automatically activated PLB's. The size of both COSPAS and AIS PLB's is now small enough for both to be worn I reckon but that's not cheap. I have a AIS PLB (that can be set to automatically deploy) fitted to my lifejacket but it's set for manual as I can see it going off automatically when I don't want it to. Apart from keeping it out of the way but on me all the time it having it on the LJ also means that the aerial is about as optimum as you can get without sticking your hand up in the air.

Best personal locator beacons and AIS units: 7 top options for boating - Yachting World

 

[SaltIre]

PLB - attached to my lifejacket which I wear all the time afloat/on deck. McMurdo FastFind...

 

[Juan Twothree]

Bet this chap wishes he'd had a PLB.

Don't know any other details, other than someone on the shore heard him shouting.