McMurdo sponsors British helicopter pair in World Air Games

McMurdo supported the British Team at the World Air Games in Turin this month. David Monks and his crew Caroline Gough-Cooper carried the new FAST FIND 210 Personal Location Beacon on board when they flew their helicopter to Turin to take part. 

FAST FIND, the world’s most compact PLB is a vital piece of safety equipment for flyers, when activated it transmits a signal via satellite to Search and Rescue authorities if the team should get into trouble or have to ditch.

The pair flew from the UK, passing over the Alps to arrive at the Games, where they faced fierce competition up against the very best pilots in the world, gaining a creditable 6th place. Caroline has previously won Ladies World Champion twice over The week long competition included various flying disciplines, producing the "World Air Games Champion", who is considered the world’s best air athlete.

Weighing only 150g the FAST FIND will slip into the smallest pocket or grab bag compartment. FAST FIND complies with tough international standards, and meets all US and EU approvals. It operates on the global COSPAS SARSAT 406MHz search and rescue satellite communication system, which is supported by international government search and rescue authorities around the world, so a call for help will be acted upon and fast. The FAST FIND is subscription free and does not rely on commercial call centres.

In addition, the FAST FIND 210 model has integral 50-channel GPS for pinpoint accuracy, further speeding up time of location. It transmits two signals simultaneously, one to the subscription free global 406 MHz satellite system. The other (121.5MHz) is a homing signal designed to speed up the local recovery response process . Once activated, FAST FIND ’s signals will continue to transmit for at least 24 hours, at a powerful 5 watt output, the 406 MHz transmission ensures that a call for help gets through whatever the conditions.

More information is available on the team web page www.britishhelicopterteam.co.uk and there are links to the World Air Games www.wag2009.com/eng and www.worldairgames.org.