ELT for me?
Guys,
The FAA regulation (91.207) below has exemptions listed to the requirements section as well a list of 406MHZ PLB's that can be used in lieu of an ELT if you fly solo, or are engaging in operations pertaining to exemptions 3,4,8 and 9 above. (There is no requirement for the ELT to transmit 406MHZ in the U.S. but satellites no longer monitor 121.5. However, nearly every airliner inflight does)
Otherwise, as Mel stated, you need an ELT installed.
I removed and sold my (now extinct) AK 406MHZ ELT in my Sonerai in lieu of a NOAA/FAA approved PLB and shaved 6lbs off the EW. Another nice feature of the PLB is portability in case of forced landing, hiking trips, etc.
Exemptions: ( Arguably, 3, 4, 8 and 9 regularly apply to some experimental RV Flying operations)
Aircraft while engaged in training operations conducted entirely within a 50-nautical mile radius of the airport from which such local flight operations began;
Aircraft while engaged in flight operations incident to design and testing.
Aircraft while used for showing compliance with regulations, crew training, exhibition, air racing, or market surveys;
Aircraft equipped to carry not more than one person.
V/R
Smokey
https://iflyamerica.org/plb.asp
PLB/ELT article
ELTs & Homebuilt Aircraft
Do I need an Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) in my homebuilt?
Yes, if you are building an airplane that has more than one seat, you will be required to have an ELT. The regulation that pertains to ELT's is 14 CFR 91.207. This section applies to all US registered civil airplanes, whether they are standard or experimental category.
The specific paragraph in 91.207 that applies to homebuilt aircraft reads as follows:
(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (e) and (f) of this section, no person may operate a U.S.-registered civil airplane unless --
(2) For operations other than those specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, there must be attached to the airplane an approved personal type or an approved automatic type emergency locator transmitter that is in operable condition, except that after June 21, 1995, an emergency locator transmitter that meets the requirements of TSO-C91 may not be used for new installations.
Paragraph (a)(1) of 91.207 talks about charter and air carrier operations, and does not apply to the operation of homebuilt aircraft.
Single seat airplanes are exempt from the requirement for an ELT. This exemption is found in 91.207(f)(9), the pertinent part of which is quoted here:
"(f) Paragraph (a) of this section does not apply to --
(9) Aircraft equipped to carry not more than one person."
Thus, a single-seat airplane is not required to have an ELT installed, regardless of certification category.
Note that this regulation speaks specifically to “airplanes”, which the FAA defines as:
“…an engine-driven fixed-wing aircraft heavier than air, that is supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against its wings.”
This being the case, homebuilts other than airplanes (i.e., helicopters, gyroplanes, balloons, gliders, airships, trikes, powered parachutes, etc.) do not require an ELT under this regulation.
There is no mandate I am aware of that you must have a 406 ELT
We're not happy till you're not happy...
The FAA