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I have never had an ELT in my sailplane but now have need for one. I
have two questions for the group.
1. Which brand/model is most popular for sailplanes?
2. What is the typical type antenna and placement in a carbon fiber
fuselage?
Thanks in advance for advice.
Terry Edmonds
Ameri King is what I used (Try Craggyaero.com) and I installed it so
the Antenna rises up to the instrument panel cover and thus out of the
Carbon Fiber area.
wrote:
> I have never had an ELT in my sailplane but now have need for one. I
> have two questions for the group.
>
> 1. Which brand/model is most popular for sailplanes?
> 2. What is the typical type antenna and placement in a carbon fiber
> fuselage?
>
> Thanks in advance for advice.
> Terry Edmonds
http://www.kti.com.au/epirbs.htm
The ACK is also popular here in the U.S. Check your fuselage closely
before you assume it won't accommodate an ELT antenna. In my ASW 24,
for example, there's a "window" over the spars where the carbon fibre
is replaced with something else (glass or Kevlar). You can see it by
looking back up through the fuselage in direct sunlight. I assume it's
for an ELT antenna; that's where I mounted mine. It's a homemade device
but I've seen guys use the standard ACK whip antenna and just curve it
up against the top of the fuselage. Tim Mara/Wings & Wheels also sells
a flexible (liferaft?) antenna that you can glue inside the fuselage in
a non-carbon area that accomplishes the same thing.
I don't want to restart the 121.5 vs. 406 ELT thread but be advised
that both the AmeriKing and ACK are the "old" 121.5/243 Mhz type,
although they both have the advantage of using off-the-shelf flashlight
batteries, not a special battery that must be procured from an avionics
dealer. Do a Google search on this newsgroup for ELTs and you'll find a
huge amount of information and powerful debate, some portion of which
is actually useful. :)
Chip Bearden
ASW 24 "JB"
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