MCA launches PLB rescue consultation

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has launched a public consultation into new safety measures set to make the search and rescue response faster and easier for people carrying Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs) on the water.

- Heather Prentice

The MCA is proposing an update to bring PLBS under the same registration requirements that currently apply to Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs).

The change would require people to register their current and any new PLBs with the MCA - free of charge - if they are used in a maritime environment, ranging from sea and coast to inland rivers and lakes.