KTi Safety Alert PLB SA2G GPS 406MHz Personal Locator Beacon

Easy to use
Arrived in time
Gives me confidence to travel anywhere

Fast, efficient fully informed service!
The product is small, lightweight, ideal for bushwalking. It came with very useful extras, a great confidence booster for the lone fisherman and suitable from some aquatic activities.

Quick delivery and great customer service, easy registration. Hope I never have to use it.

Small will be easy to carry
This is a high spec idem

Hopefully we shall not need to find out how effective it is , but, up until now the product & speedy delivery augur well. Just one point to mention regarding registration, I tried twice & the symbols were not recognised. I called Skippers Mate, great service btw, & it was suggested I try a 0 (zero) rather than an "O", and it worked. Why not use the Scandinavian system with a cross through the symbol to remove confusion as with a "continental" 7 so it cannot be confused with a 1 ?
From a marketing perspective I would contact Hema or maybe Mr4x4 (I know they charge too much) to get a product mention as there appears to be little PR in the market place.

Thankfully we haven't had to use this product. We purchased it as a safety measure as we head off around Australia for 6 months. It was easy to register on the relevant Australian Government website and all the information was provided by Skippers Mate.

It is a pleasure to deal with Skippers Mate Extremely professional knowledgeable and quick delivery
Follow up from them was a most pleasing aspect

I received the following response from the manufacturer:
This wording is causing us much confusion in the market. Unfortunately COSPAS-SARSAT dictated that we include that statement in our instruction manual to ensure people would not confuse it with an EPIRB (which has to be self-righting in water). Our SA2G PLB is not self-righting in water and is not an EPIRB. However it is the only PLB currently on the market that is compatible with a life vest - other PLBs do not have a swivel antenna and therefore their antenna cannot be set upright when the beacon is attached to a life vest. We are also unaware of any other PLB that can provide GPS position updates every 5 minutes which could be critical to search and rescue operations under adverse conditions.Our PLB is rated waterproof to a depth of 3 metres for one hour. Provided the beacon remains above the water and the antenna is set upright, the radiated signals are fully compatible with the COSPAS-SARSAT satellite based Search and Rescue system as certified by COSPAS-SARSAT. Australian made PFDs are available with a PLB pocket. If your PFD does not provide a PLB pocket you may need to determine a suitable method of shoulder mounting such as a velcro strap.
When the beacon is above water the SA2G transmits signals of the same strength as an EPIRB to the COSPAS-SARSAT system. Therefore as long as the beacon remains mostly above the water the performance should be no less than that of an EPIRB"
So I guess all good. I would like to see hard belt loop on the unit so it can be hooked directly to the PFD but the carry case will do for now.


On 12/03/2015 3:13 PM, Craig wrote:

Thanks for the response. The 5 min positioning and independent flotation was a key factor in my decision. Not to mention its great to see AU products out there. I appreciate that you are probably getting this type of question a lot…

So given my intended use (Jet skiing) I would expect the PBL would be attached to my PFD for if I got injured or become separated from my ski. I do note that its not an EPIRB and I would need to manually ensure that it set and maintained to an optimal position. I would expect when deployed this would be on the shoulder or upper chest area to allow vertical positioning of the antenna and GPS signal. I would expect that in this situation the unit would be at or just above water surface level but would be impacted with wave wash and intermittent minor submersion etc.

In these conditions does the SA2G operate correctly?

Thanks.

C


[KTI Comment]...

Unless there are no waves at all, any EPIRB or PLB will have an intermittent signal when deployed in a marine situation. This is one of many factors that are managed by the signal processing mechanisms of the COSPAS-SARSAT system. When the beacon is above water the SA2G transmits signals of the same strength as an EPIRB to the COSPAS-SARSAT system. Therefore as long as the beacon remains mostly above the water the performance should be no less than that of an EPIRB with the exception that an EPIRB is designed to operate for a minimum 48hrs versus a PLB for a minimum 24 hrs. The penalty with choosing an EPIRB for your situation is the issue of personal carriage.

I purchased the Kti SA2G PLB for jet-ski trips. I intended that it would be attached to my PFD so I could activate if I got injured or separated from the ski. The SA2G is marketed under boating and aquatic sports sections and is highlighted as being independently buoyant etc.
I received the PLB today (great dispatch from Skippers Mate) but note the manufacture's instructions carry the following warning: "WARNING THIS PLB WAS NOT DESIGNED, TESTED OR INTENDED FOR OPERATION WHILST IN WATER" there is no mention of this in the product specification on Skippers (or any other retailer) the KTI website. For my intended use I would expect to most likely be activating in the water and am now unsure if this PLB would be effective or not. I am seeking clarification from KTI / Skippers.
Recommend that KTI post their user-manuals on their website so these issues can be checked by customers before purchase.

[SkippersMate / KTi Comment]...

"Hello Craig,

Thank you for choosing our PLB product.

This wording is causing us much confusion in the market. Unfortunately COSPAS-SARSAT dictated that we include that statement in our instruction manual to ensure people would not confuse it with an EPIRB (which has to be self-righting in water).

Our SA2G PLB is not self-righting in water and is not an EPIRB. However it is the only PLB currently on the market that is compatible with a life vest - other PLBs do not have a swivel antenna and therefore their antenna cannot be set upright when the beacon is attached to a life vest. We are also unaware of any other PLB that can provide GPS position updates every 5 minutes which could be critical to search and rescue operations under adverse conditions.

Our PLB is rated waterproof to a depth of 3 metres for one hour. Provided the beacon remains above the water and the antenna is set upright, the radiated signals are fully compatible with the COSPAS-SARSAT satellite based Search and Rescue system as certified by COSPAS-SARSAT. Australian made PFDs are available with a PLB pocket. If your PFD does not provide a PLB pocket you may need to determine a suitable method of shoulder mounting such as a velcro strap.

If keeping a PLB above the water is not an option then you may need to consider an EPIRB instead of a PLB.

Regards,
KTI Sales."

I can't comment on the efficacy of rescue since I haven't activated this beacon, and hope never to do so. It is considerably smaller than any of its competitors and a worthy successor to the KTI RB3, which I previously had.