EMERGENCY POSITION-INDICATING RESCUE BEACON

Emergency position-indicating rescue beacons (EPIRB), Emergency Locator Transmitters (ELT) and Personal Locator Beacons, are radio transmitters that operate as part of the Cospas-Sarsat Satellite System. When activated, the beacons send out a distress signal that allows the beacon to be located by the satellite system and search and rescue aircraft to locate the people, boats and aircraft needing rescue. They are a component of the Global Maritime Distress Safety System.

EPIRBs are used for maritime emergencies, where ELTs are used in aircraft applications and PLBs are used for personal use.

The basic purpose of the emergency beacons is to get people rescued within the "golden day" when the majority of survivors can still be saved.

Between 1982 and 2002, these systems enabled the rescue of 14,700 people. As of 2002, there are roughly 82,000 registered beacons, and over 500,000 of the older unregistered type.Most beacons are brightly-colored, waterproof, fit in a cube about 30 cm on a side, and weigh 2-5 kg. They can be purchased from marine suppliers, aircraft refitters, and (in Australia and the United States) hiking supply stores. The units have a useful life of 10 years, operate across a range of conditions (-40°C to 40°C), and transmit for 24 to 48 hours. As of 2003 the cost varies from US$139 to US$3000, with varying performances. Although modern systems are significantly superior to older ones, even the oldest systems provide an immense improvement in safety, compared to not having a beaconhe basic purpose of the emergency beacons is to get people rescued within the "golden day" when the majority of survivors can still be saved.

Between 1982 and 2002, these systems enabled the rescue of 14,700 people. As of 2002, there are roughly 82,000 registered beacons, and over 500,000 of the older unregistered type.