Personal Locator Beacons

On July 1, 2003, the FCC authorized the use of Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs). PLBs will provide a distress and alerting capacity for use by the general public in life-threatening situations in remote environments after all other means of notifying search and rescue (SAR) responders (e.g., telephone, radio) have been exhausted. For example, if you are a hiker, camper, backpacker, kayaker, etc. and are out of cell phone range, a PLB, which is a small transmitter that sends out a personalized emergency distress signal, is a highly effective and internationally recognized way to summon help.

License documents are neither needed nor issued for Personal Locator Beacons. You are provided authority to operate a PLB in places where the FCC regulates radio communications as long as you use only an unmodified FCC certified PLB. An FCC certified PLB has an identifying label placed on it by the manufacturer. There is no age or citizenship requirement.

When you buy a PLB, it is mandatory that you register it with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). This will provide necessary emergency information to Search and Rescue personnel to facilitate knowing who you are, where you are and how to handle any pre-existing medical problems when they reach you. The registration can be done by:

• Mailing your beacon registration form to:
  SARSAT Beacon Registration
  NOAA, NESDIS, E/SP3, RM 3320, FB-4
  5200 Auth Road, Suitland, MD 20746-4304
  
• Faxing the signed form to NOAA at 301-568-8649
• Registering online at NOAA Beacon Registration

PLBs transmit distress signals on 406 MHz which is an internationally recognized distress frequency to the COSPAS-SARSAT satellite system. This system is an international program to which 36 nations belong. In the United States the 406 MHz signal is monitored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center (AFRCC). Once a signal is received, the satellites can "fix" on the signal using a Doppler Shift location method, or, when a PLB is hooked up to a GPS, the GPS coordinates can be instantly transmitted without waiting for an orbiting satellite. The signal is then relayed to a Local User Terminal (LUT). These small satellite tracking stations are located all over the world and provide the link between the satellites and the Mission Control Center (MCC), which in the USA is NOAA. This signal is then passed on to the Air Force to begin the Search and Rescue procedures.

Each PLB is equipped with a unique identifying code which is a 15 digit alpha-numeric code. This code is transmitted in the electronic burst to the satellites and is linked to a computer database maintained by NOAA to provide your name, address, phone number and any pertinent information such as medical problems, to Search and Rescue personnel.