What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

ELT Activation - After Stepping up on wing

L

lndwarrior

Well Known Member
While pre-flighting yesterday I hear a beeping coming from the cockpit. All switches are off. A quick glance at the ELT indicator light shows nothing, and besides, the ELT sound is a whoop-whoop, right?

So I'm thinking it may be my high/low voltage buzzer, but the alarm light is not blinking. So I continue to pre-flight while trying to figure out what the beeping is.

Then my phone rings - its' the Air Force asking about my ELT going off!

I look back in the cockpit and notice the ELT light flashing.

I have a new ACK-E04 406 elt bought and installed last August.

When the annunciator lights up, there is a delay between flashing which may be why I missed it the first time. Also, I was doing this in bright sunshine so maybe that contributed to me missing it the first time.

Also, I was expecting to hear the same "whoop-whoop" that you hear over the radio. I was just wrong about that.

Anyway, I'm trying to figure out what to do next? The only thing I could have done to trigger it was climb up on the wing - and I'm a slow moving old guy who weighs about 150 pounds so this should not have triggered it.

Any suggestions as to why this triggered and what should be my next steps in resolving this?

TIA,
Gary

PS: It was somewhat comforting to know that should I really need this device the Air Force response time was just about 2 minutes from activation.
 
ELT Activation

The Kannad that i am installing in the RV 7 signals on 403 and 121.5.

If you tuned to 121.5 you should have heard it going off.

Could the ELT have come out of its holder when you stepped on?

Normally a VERY bad landing or a pretty good jolt is what is necessary to set them off. Otherwise a 150 lb pilot stepping up on the wing should not have set it off at all.

Perhaps it has gone faulty and needs a check?

Dave
 
sounds like something may be defective in your unit. I forget the spec, but I thought it needed at least a couple G's of acceleration to trigger it.

Larry
 
This (and the name) looks very similar to the AmeriKing unit. They have been effectively shut down due to certification issues with the FAA - is this a resurrection?

In any case, I had an issue with uncommanded activation. The problem was the battery in the remote and research showed this to be a known issue. If it starts running down or the terminals get corroded, it can send an "activate" signal to the ELT. They are supposed to last 3 years but I now include inspection of terminals and replacement of the battery each annual.
 
ELT Activation

Had my ACK E-04 go off on a slow taxi test before first flight. Got a call from a friendly guy at Trenton AFB (Canada) a few minutes later - just wanted to check if I was OK. It hasn't happened since and I assumed it was something dumb I did. Proved the system really works though.
 
Just installed an ACK E-04. Have experienced 2 activations, each while climbing out of my 7A. I had installed unit between seats so thought we might have hit it with our heels....but I doubt it.

Have now reinstalled under pax seat, so we'll see.

Sounds like a call to ACK is a good idea.
 
A small drift here. I was training a pilot to get insured in a Turbo 210 yesterday. He went over the brief before takeoff and told me all the things he would do for a forced landing. I suggested that he include manually activating the panel switch on the ELT. And of course, pop the door latches before touchdown. History of ELT activation and NON activation based on the G switch is well known. They seem to go off when you don't need them and fail when you do. Just a heads up.
 
I have also had an accidental activation of my E-04 shortly after installing it. I was doing my runup when I heard the beeping and started trying to track down the source; took me a bit to see the annunciator light flashing. No idea how it was triggered (could have hit the button on the panel by accident), but haven't had a recurrence since.
 
paul330 said:
This (and the name) looks very similar to the AmeriKing unit. They have been effectively shut down due to certification issues with the FAA - is this a resurrection?

In any case, I had an issue with uncommanded activation. The problem was the battery in the remote and research showed this to be a known issue. If it starts running down or the terminals get corroded, it can send an "activate" signal to the ELT. They are supposed to last 3 years but I now include inspection of terminals and replacement of the battery each annual.
Click to expand...

Nope; not the same unit, but you can be forgiven for wondering. Even ACS gets confused; when I ordered my ACK they first told me they no longer stocked the unit, except that they were talking about the AmeriKing. Once we got that sorted out, no further problems!
 
ELT inadvertent activation

Maybe some of the ELT activations mentioned, especially when transmitting, has to do with the remote cabling used ?

In a very recent install using a 'plug & play' :rolleyes: harness, supplied by a well known company, it was just standard tefzel despite the supplied ACK E04
install manual specifying sheilded wire. It's a good idea (some would say mandatory) to get the latest version of the manual just before doing any wiring ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top