As pilots, we long ago learned that once we point the nose of our aircraft away from metropolitan areas it is often only minutes before we are over terrain that is sparsely populated at best. West of the Mississippi or over the Alleghenies, it’s not unusual for much of our flight time to be over what seems to be miles and miles of nothing but miles and miles.
That’s what makes investing in a personal locator beacon, or PLB, an easy decision as a belt-and-suspenders backup for the aircraft’s ELT. Plus, if you survive the ditching in the boonies, you can take a PLB with you should you have to hike.