As a professional skipper and regular offshore sailor, a question I am often asked by boat owners and new skippers, “which beacon should I get? is AIS or PLB better for me?” Well, let me make a case for BOTH…PLB vs AIS Beacon \u2013 Which One\u2019s Going to Save You
\nWhat\u2019s the best beacon or PLB for me? Let me explain how they work and suggest, perhaps you might need both\u2026
\nYou\u2019re bobbing around in the drink. Not planned. Not ideal. So, which emergency beacon\u2019s going to get you spotted, scooped up, and sipping tea in the cockpit again?
\nThat\u2019s where understanding the difference between a PLB and an AIS beacon really matters. They\u2019re both small. They both have buttons you hope never to press. But they do very different things, in very different ways.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s a PLB?
\nA PLB is a Personal Locator Beacon. Think of it as a direct phone call to the international rescue network. When you trigger it, it sends a distress signal via satellite (the COSPAS-SARSAT system or the European Gallileo system), along with your GPS position, to a global emergency coordination centre.
\nFrom there, the alert gets relayed to the local coastguard. They\u2019ll launch a full-scale rescue, with helicopters, lifeboats, all the bells and whistles. It works anywhere in the world, land or sea. But, and this is important, it can take a bit of time. The signal\u2019s going via space, then bureaucracy, before anyone launches. If you have one of the newer return link service versions. you\u2019ll get a notification that your signal has been received, either way of a flashing light or a scrolling message on a screen. This is reassuring but if you are bodily in the water, without an immersion suit then time is of the essence. If you\u2019ve just climbed into a liferaft or are clinging to an upturned hull, then you have a little more time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What\u2019s an AIS Beacon?
\nAn AIS beacon, on the other hand, is localised. It sends your GPS position straight to any nearby boats (including your own, assuming it\u2019s equipped with DSC and AIS receiver) via Automatic Identification System (AIS)\u2014the same system that shows ships on your plotter if you have one, or on your separate AIS screen like I have on my own boat.\u00a0
\nSo when you fall overboard and trigger it, your crewmates get your exact location on their chartplotter or AIS screen within seconds. If another boat\u2019s within 3\u20135 miles (range varies with antenna height), they\u2019ll see you too. No middlemen, no satellites, just real-time help, right there.
\nIf you\u2019re a solo sailor and plop overboard out of sight of anyone and miles away from the nearest boat with AIS receiver, then you\u2019re whistling in to the wind waving an AIS beacon about. But, let\u2019s say you are sitting in your liferaft,\u00a0 and you spot a ship not too far away, your AIS beacon can be used to accurately locate you.
\nIf for some reason your AIS system isn\u2019t functioning, perhaps your VHF antenna has been damaged, or you\u2019ve dismasted, a quick way to view and MOB during this time is by way of a a handheld VHF radio equipped with AIS, such as the one I have reviewed from Icom. The Icom 94 AIS unit could be a lifesaver in an emergency.,\u00a0
\nSo, which is better?
\nNeither is \u201cbetter\u201d they\u2019re different tools for different jobs:<\/p>\n
PLB
\nAIS beacon<\/p>\n
Alerts the coastguard via satellite
\nAlerts nearby boats via AIS<\/p>\n
Global coverage
\nLocal coverage (~5 miles max)<\/p>\n
Slower response (but big rescue)
\nFaster local help (if someone\u2019s near)<\/p>\n
Registered to you, works anywhere
\nUsually integrated into lifejackets<\/p>\n
No satellite gear? Doesn\u2019t matter
\nNo AIS on your boat? No local help<\/p>\n
\u00a0
\nIf you sail offshore, you want a PLB. If you\u2019re regularly inshore or coastal, or racing with crew, get an AIS beacon. Ideally? Carry both. One gets your mates to turn the boat around. The other brings the helicopter.
\nOne finds you fast. The other finds you from space.
\nAnd remember: none of these work if they\u2019re sculling about at the bottom of your kit bag. Clip them on. Learn how they work. You\u2019re not going to read the manual when you\u2019re armpit deep in cold water watching a mast vanish behind a mountainous wave.\u00a0
\nI have created a buyers guide to Personal Locator Beacons, showing the best beacons on the market right now.
\nThe post PLB vs AIS Beacon \u2013 What\u2019s the difference and which one will save you? appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As a professional skipper and regular offshore sailor, a question I am often asked by boat owners and new skippers, “which beacon should I get? is AIS or PLB better for me?” Well, let me make a case for BOTH…PLB … <\/p>\n