When Pan-Pan Becomes Mayday
Search and Rescue in the 21st Century
By Paul Cianciolo, FAA Safety Briefing Magazine Associate Editor
The general aviation accident rate is continuing to decline, but that does not mean search and rescue service workers are out of a job. We still saw 242 accidents in fiscal year 2022. There were 42 people rescued from 28 aircraft incidents that the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center managed in 2022. Many crashes are survivable if rescuers can get to you in time. Here’s how to make their job easier.
Simplest Solution
File a flight plan when flying under visual flight rules (VFR). The FAA will initiate a search if you are more than 30 minutes overdue. Asking for VFR flight following always helps, especially if you fly long distances or over remote terrain.
Timing is everything. On Nov. 14, 2021, a 53-year-old pilot and his 13-year-old daughter disappeared over heavily wooded state game lands in Pennsylvania. The FAA issued an alert just after 7:30 p.m. about the overdue aircraft.
In coordination with the FAA, Civil Air Patrol’s National Radar Analysis Team used radar data to determine that a crash was likely and appeared to be survivable. The Air Force Rescue Coordination Center then activated a search mission, knowing that the sun had just set, there was freezing rain, and the probable crash location would be hard to reach. More data would increase the chance of finding the potential crash.
What wasn’t clear was whether any cell phones or other electronic devices were onboard. Since these can be very helpful to those searching for you, here’s a tip. If your Spidey-senses are tingling and you think an emergency could be brewing, you might want to turn your cell phone on and/or turn airplane mode off to help provide critical location data. Many cell phones and smartwatches also have crash-detection modes and can provide easy ways to contact emergency personnel once activated. More data makes it easier for searchers to find you.
Signaling Satellites
Another way to increase your chances of being found is to install an emergency locator transmitter (ELT) that is also GPS-enabled using 406 megahertz (MHz). The accuracy of a standard 406 MHz beacon is 2–3 nautical miles, but if the beacon is equipped with a GPS receiver, activation coordinates could be within 100 yards.
A quick note: the FAA does not require the 406 MHz ELT, but if you are relying on the 121.5 MHz ELT, you might consider upgrading — especially if you intend to fly over less populated areas. Here’s why: In 2009, satellites stopped monitoring 121.5 MHz ELT signals. An FAA study also indicated that 134 extra lives and millions of dollars in search and rescue resources could be saved every year if everyone upgraded to a 406 beacon. If you decide not to install the newer 406 MHz version, or if your aircraft is not required to have an ELT under 14 CFR section 91.207, you might consider carrying a 406 MHz personal locator beacon (PLB) secured by a clip or in a pocket.
If you do install a 406 ELT, the key to success is registration. With a 98% false alarm rate, accurate registration information means that most inadvertent activations can be resolved with a phone call. Go to beaconregistration.noaa.gov to register and update your ELT information, including when you deactivate an old beacon. Make sure to recycle the batteries and dispose of them properly to avoid searchers having to dig through a landfill — been there, done that, not fun. Moreover, an inadvertent beacon activation could interfere with an actual distress situation.
Make sure to include the phone number of the cell phone you fly with in your ELT registration. Also, include your cell phone number in any flight plan to give searchers extra data to aid your survival.
Beyond Beacons
An ELT may not always work correctly after a crash. In the case of our missing airplane in the middle of Pennsylvania, nobody knew if there was a cell phone on board. It was not until a 911 call from the spouse came in at 10 p.m. — two hours into the search — that searchers obtained this valuable piece of data. The local sheriff’s office made the connection to the 911 call and the search for the missing airplane. The pilot’s phone number and bonus data about an onboard iPad became integral to the mission.
Civil Air Patrol’s National Cell Phone Forensics Team was activated to fine-tune the search areas by combining cellphone tower and distance information, the last known radar hit, and GPS information from the iPad. The data from the tablet made all the difference, providing local search and rescue teams with a location accurate to within 11 yards.
Just after 2 a.m., search teams found the survivors. The dad was cuddling with his daughter for warmth because they were exposed to the elements and began suffering from hypothermia. Rescuers carried them nearly a half-mile in the freezing rain to waiting ambulances.
It’s All in the Data
Using 21st-century technology and the tools to analyze location data makes search and rescue operations more efficient. If you are not already using Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B), consider installing it. File a VFR flight plan and ask for flight following. Make sure people on the ground have information about any personal electronic devices onboard. Upgrade your ELT. The speed of finding you when needed depends on how much data is available for the search.
Rescue Coordination Centers
Air Force: 1–800–851–3051
Alaska: 1–800–420–7230
Coast Guard: 1–855–406–8724
Paul Cianciolo is an associate editor and the social media lead for FAA Safety Briefing. He is a U.S. Air Force veteran and an auxiliary airman with Civil Air Patrol.
