Nautilus Marine Rescue GPS and Nautilus PLB

[CWK]

1. Is it time for a Nautilus Marine Rescue GPS forum?
2. I would like to see a Nautilus PLB. Any chance of that in the near future?*

*Note: I do have a Marine Rescue GPS but may be diving in places where there may not be an AIS enabled VHS marine radio within 50 miles (Banda Neira is one such dive destination that comes to mind). In such places, the Marine Rescue GPS distress signal would not be picked up by anyone and a PLB that sends a signal direct to the rescue satellite network would be preferred.

 

[Kevrumbo]

1. Is it time for a Nautilus Marine Rescue GPS forum?
2. I would like to see a Nautilus PLB. Any chance of that in the near future?*

*Note: I do have a Marine Rescue GPS but may be diving in places where there may not be an AIS enabled VHS marine radio within 50 miles (Banda Neira is one such dive destination that comes to mind). In such places, the Marine Rescue GPS distress signal would not be picked up by anyone and a PLB that sends a signal direct to the rescue satellite network would be preferred.

This is the problem when you try to adapt a Man Overboard (MOB) protocol and technology from blue water open ocean yacht racing to the unique scenario of an isolated drifting Diver Missing/Lost-at-Sea:

Where divers get confused in the application, and assume "instant" local alert and rescue capabilities of an AIS/DSC VHF radio unit (i.g. current Nautilus Products like their Marine Rescue GPS), over a 406 MHz PLB is in the classic MOB (Man Overboard) Scenario:
Tactically this is fine for example, if you're crewing a sailing vessel in the biennial Transpacific Yacht Race from San Pedro Calif to Honolulu Hawaii, and you fall MOB during rough seas at night: Along with your crew, there will be anywhere from twenty to forty or so sailing yachts out there with AIS/DSC within VHF range in the otherwise traceless open Pacific Ocean ready to immediately assist in picking you up.

AIS/DSC VHF MOB devices are not meant to replace but rather augment PLBs. That said, since they alert nearby AIS-equipped vessels, such as the boat from which the person fell overboard, to assist in the search-and-rescue effort, these devices can reduce rescue times substantially. A PLB, on the other hand works worldwide -well beyond VHF range- to summon rescuers. It’s important to keep a PLB around if venturing far out to sea and away from other boaters.

A Lost-at-Sea/Missing Diver can be considered a special case of a "delayed" MOB Scenario: Delayed in the sense that an elapsed normal recreational depth dive time is about 50 minutes to an hour -->if the Diver surfaces after an hour and does not see any sign of the diveboat, then the Diver has to manually call or activate a VHF DSC Distress Beacon such as the Nautilus Lifeline first generation or current Marine Rescue GPS, but the caveat still being the limited range of the VHF signal along with hoping there are other boats or land stations in the vicinity with VHF transceiver reception capability. Again, if you're at a remote divesite hundreds of kilometers away from the commercial shipping lanes or land VHF receiving stations, then the direct to satellite PLB distress beacon is your last resort.

Again IMO/IME, a tropical squall & thunderstorm in zero visibility is the most common post-dive surfacing condition with a potential adrift lost-at-sea worst case scenario which you should smartly prepare yourself beforehand with at least a PLB:

A Nautilus Marine Rescue GPS/VHF Radio Transceiver Beacon may not save you in this instance due to "rain fade" signal attenuation, and the chances that any boats with marine VHF Radio DSC/AIS capability may be out of reception range of your distress signal by the time the squall clears and the weather & sea state moderates again. . .

 

[Dan]

1. Is it time for a Nautilus Marine Rescue GPS forum?
2. I would like to see a Nautilus PLB. Any chance of that in the near future?*

*Note: I do have a Marine Rescue GPS but may be diving in places where there may not be an AIS enabled VHS marine radio within 50 miles (Banda Neira is one such dive destination that comes to mind). In such places, the Marine Rescue GPS distress signal would not be picked up by anyone and a PLB that sends a signal direct to the rescue satellite network would be preferred.

From your posts in this thread: Best signaling devices from the searcher’s point of view - update, you have decided to get ResQLink+ PLB. What were the reasons you selected it?

 

[CWK]

@Kevrumbo
In some circumstances, the Nautilus would be more effective than a PLB.

I dive quite a bit in the Maldives where there are lots of LOBs that would have AIS. I have not seen any SAR assets in the Maldives that could be deployed in response to a PLB activation. I suspect that the Nautilus would be more effective in attaining rescue in the Maldives.

I am headed to Tubbataha later this week. I believe that my LOB, as well as other LOBs at Tubbathah, have AIS. The Philippine Coast Guard's nearest station to Tubbataha is some 180Km away at Puerto Princessa. The Nautilus should be more effective than a PLB in procuring rescue.

I have both the Nautilus and a PLB. They are both GPS beacons but have different characteristics. I see them as being complementary products. In the final analysis, having both the Nautilus and a PLB provides the best probability of rescue.

@Dan_T
I selected the ResQLink+ over other PLBs simply because I could get one mailed to me in Malaysia with a Malaysian country code. I had previously contacted a vendor of the PLB1 in Singapore who was unable to mail one to me because the PLB1 contains Lithium battery and is listed under Dangerous Good in Singapore.

 

[Kevrumbo]

In some circumstances, the Nautilus would be more effective than a PLB.

I dive quite a bit in the Maldives where there are lots of LOBs that would have AIS. I have not seen any SAR assets in the Maldives that could be deployed in response to a PLB activation. I suspect that the Nautilus would be more effective in attaining rescue in the Maldives.

I am headed to Tubbataha later this week. I believe that my LOB, as well as other LOBs at Tubbathah, have AIS. The Philippine Coast Guard's nearest station to Tubbataha is some 180Km away at Puerto Princessa. The Nautilus should be more effective than a PLB in procuring rescue.

Again you are assuming there are always going to be marine vessels and or terrestrial watch stations with VHF reception within range to pick up an AIS/DSC distress beacon -there is no guarantee that anyone will even know you're missing if you exclusively rely on a Nautilus MRG in lieu of a 406Mhz PLB.

The point is @CWK, you may not be aware of any deployable SAR assets in the Maldives in response to a direct to satellite PLB distress beacon activation, but unlike the Nautlius Marine Rescue GPS -->YOU are being directly tracked AND IDENTIFIED AS IN KNOWN DISTRESS 24/7 VIA THE COSPAS-SARSAT SATELLITE SYSTEM!!! Do you understand? As long as the battery holds out on the PLB, you are being monitored worldwide.

If you set up your PLB Emergency Contact smartly beforehand, both national SAR assets as well as your Liveaboard or Land-based Dive Operation will know where to send aircraft to locate you as needed, and/or then finally dispatch search crews & rescue boats to eventually pick you up. . .

 

[Dan]

I’d only use my MRG with the liveaboard that I’ll on it for the duration of the trip. The minute the boat is no longer in line of sight (horizon) and I’m floating at sea, then there goes the PLB1 406 MHz beam on straight up to the sky.

 

[CWK]

The point is @CWK, you may not be aware of any deployable SAR assets in the Maldives in response to a direct to satellite PLB distress beacon activation, but unlike the Nautlius Marine Rescue GPS -->YOU are being directly tracked AND IDENTIFIED AS IN KNOWN DISTRESS 24/7 VIA THE COSPAS-SARSAT SATELLITE SYSTEM!!! Do you understand? As long as the battery holds out on the PLB, you are being monitored worldwide.

PLBs with class 2 batteries are rated for 24Hrs at –20°C, which may be about 48Hrs in warm water. Compas-Sarsat cannot track you 24/7 as you suggest. PLBs are not too useful if there are no SAR assets at hand.

Again you are assuming there are always going to be marine vessels and or terrestrial watch stations with VHF reception within range to pick up an AIS/DSC distress beacon -there is no guarantee that anyone will even know you're missing if you exclusivly rely on a Nautilus MGR in lieu of a 406Mhz PLB.

When I dive LOBs, I know there are vessels with AIS within range. Even when I dive resorts in the Maldives, there should be LOBs within range. There are over a hundred registered LOBs in the Maldives.

Even if there are no LOBs in the vicinity, SAR should have been alerted as part of the lost/missing diver protocol. SAR ships may be called out in heavy weather. They would have AIS to rescue their own crew should they be swept overboard in rough seas. SAR ships should be able to locate the Nautilus signal.

As I have already mentioned, I have both the Nautilus and a PLB. It is irrelevant to me that a PLB may have some advantages over the Nautilus. The Nautilus also has some advantages over a PLB. I do not rely exclusively on either.

 

[CarcharodonCarcharias]

@Kevrumbo - I think @CWK has both a Nautilus and a ResQLink+. So that should cover both the AIS/DSC VHF and 406 MHz option right?

@CWK - what is the dealer's name for PLB1 in Singapore?

Tks!

 

[CWK]

@CWK - what is the dealer's name for PLB1 in Singapore?

Pamarine - Marine and Offshore, Rescue and Safety

 

[Kevrumbo]

Compas-Sarsat cannot track you 24/7 as you suggest. PLBs are not too useful if there are no SAR assets at hand.

You are mistaken -COSPAS/SARSAT Satellite System is monitored 24/7 worldwide, unlike local VHF AIS/DSC reception coverage which can be unreliable to variable at best. If you leave your dive itinerary and dive operation info with your designated PLB Emergency Contact, then they know where to look for you even with no organized narional SAR assets as you claim in the Maldives . . . Does that make sense? Do you understand??