Search and Rescue - Lasers and Signaling Devices

[IncreaseMyT]

Thank you.

This actually happened to a guy we know that took the charter boat out of Fort Myers to the Dry Tortugas. They left him. It is about 126 miles offshore to get out there from here, so by the time they got back and realized they were missing someone he had been in the water for 48 hours before they went back and grabbed him.

His consolation was free boat rides for life lol. Not sure that would make up for it. But if the PLB can go 70 miles if you set it off in the Tortugas it should be able to get to Key West, cause thats about exactly how far it is.

 

[JXT71]

A day or so late, but I'll still post this. I found some of the earlier disregard of advice and information posted by experienced and knowledgeable personnel in this thread to be astounding.

I thought I was maybe just being stubborn, or too focused on training to see the bigger picture. I contacted my local SAR Air Ops, ASTREA (part of San Diego's Sheriff Dept), and asked them what they thought of this.

They said that although flashing a laser at an aircraft is a felony, it is a good way to get their attention in a life or death situation. It would not pose an issue if they had NVGs on. However, it isn't the best option due to its focused beam. The pilot said that a flashlight would give similar (and likely better) results with their NVGs. They said they could even detect someone's cell phone screen from miles away. A strobe light would be even better, as it differs from background light sources, and a flashing light draws attention far better than a beam. In the daytime, a signal mirror would still fare better than a laser for the same reason.

Most of that has already been covered, but here it is once again from the people that would be looking for you.

[EDIT: Cleanup]

 

[tursiops]

Thank you.

This actually happened to a guy we know that took the charter boat out of Fort Myers to the Dry Tortugas. They left him. It is about 126 miles offshore to get out there from here, so by the time they got back and realized they were missing someone he had been in the water for 48 hours before they went back and grabbed him.

His consolation was free boat rides for life lol. Not sure that would make up for it. But if the PLB can go 70 miles if you set it off in the Tortugas it should be able to get to Key West, cause thats about exactly how far it is.

Not sure what your point is. The PLB doesn't talk to a land station, in Key West or anywhere else. It talks to a satellite, which is WAY more than 70 miles in altitude!

 

[IncreaseMyT]

Not sure what your point is. The PLB doesn't talk to a land station, in Key West or anywhere else. It talks to a satellite, which is WAY more than 70 miles in altitude!

My point is that it was stated in the thread that someone was found 70 miles off Miami with a PLB

I don’t know how a PLB works

 

[Dan]

Thank you.

This actually happened to a guy we know that took the charter boat out of Fort Myers to the Dry Tortugas. They left him. It is about 126 miles offshore to get out there from here, so by the time they got back and realized they were missing someone he had been in the water for 48 hours before they went back and grabbed him.

His consolation was free boat rides for life lol. Not sure that would make up for it. But if the PLB can go 70 miles if you set it off in the Tortugas it should be able to get to Key West, cause thats about exactly how far it is.

PLB would send signal directly to SAR satellites. So it’s global. Wherever you are in the world, once you press that red button, they’ll get your distress signal.

 

[IncreaseMyT]

PLB would send signal directly to SAR satellites. So it’s global. Wherever you are in the world, once you press that red button, they’ll get your distress signal.

I hear that, just nice to be able to justify it with a real world experience.

 

[Dan]

My point is that it was stated in the thread that someone was found 70 miles off Miami with a PLB

I don’t know how a PLB works

 

[Dan]

I hear that, just nice to be able to justify it with a real world experience.

Thanks for sharing such information!

 

[chillyinCanada]

I still find myself wondering how well all of it would come together in Maldives or Raja Ampat or off Sipidan or even more remote locations.

 

[Dan]

I still find myself wondering how well all of it would come together in Maldives or Raja Ampat or off Sipidan or even more remote locations.

I think it is better to have PAB than PLB in those places. I’m going to test my PAB (Nautilus Marine Rescue GPS) in Banda Sea, Indonesia when I on Blue Manta in September.

One of SB member one time posted his experience with PLB when he was in Manado, Indonesia. A BaSARnas (Indonesian SAR officer) showed up in the dive resort where he stayed looking for him. Apparently he accidentally activated his PLB when he was floating on the surface waiting to be picked up. I’ll do a search in SB thread later and post his post here if I find it.