An Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) is a safety device carried by a vessel to alert search and rescue services and allow them to quickly locate you in the event of an emergency. When activated it transmits a coded message on the 406 MHz distress frequency which is monitored by the Cospas-Sarsat satellite system. The alert is then relayed via an earth station to the nearest Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC). With an EPIRB you can summon help wherever you are on the planet, subscription free, no matter how remote!
The McMurdo SmartFind G8 AIS and the Kannad SafePro AIS are the world’s first EPIRBs to include 406MHz, 121.5MHz, AIS and GNSS (better known as GPS) to accelerate search and rescue. The unique power of these new award winning beacons is in the flexibility and additional tracking capabilities long demanded by maritime customers. This will further reduce rescue times by combining the global location power of 406MHz with the localized rescue capacities of AIS, first introduced to the world in McMurdo’s AIS MOB range.