> > When I hit that deer a couple years ago on landing my ELT went off > and was > transmitting. I did not realize it till about 3 hours later. No one > ever > responded, called or even checked and it was on the airport when it > was > transmitting. So, just how good is an ELT really? How long should > it take > for someone to respond to an ELT?
In my case, we were in the desert and were not able to reach anyone on 121.5. I finally managed to contact a passing airliner who then relayed my position to ATC and finally the sheriff who dispatched a helicopter to come look for us. About 5 hours later we saw the helicopter pass by 5-6 miles away. I tried signaling with my mirror but they kept going. After 15 minutes or so they flew up the other side of the valley in the opposite direction. About 10 minutes later they came flying on a course about a mile off of our position but they saw my mirror signal. The observer told me they never got the ELT until they were on the last pass and 5 ish miles away. They spotted us only from the flashing mirror. Having spent 20 years in the guard and doing lots of S&R missions, I can attest that this is more of the rule than the exception. MArk
