File photo of Emergency Locator Transmitter (Image Credit: airstore.eu )

By Dylana Kneeshaw

MISSING SEARCH EQUIPMENT

Civil Air Search & Rescue Association searching for missing equipment

Mar 9, 2020 | 11:31 AM

KAMLOOPS — UPDATE: CASARA says the equipment has been located.

EARLIER: The Civil Air Search and Rescue Association (CASARA) is hoping to have a piece of search equipment returned to them, after it went missing this weekend.

Larry Calvert, the Air Deputy for the Kamloops Region says on Saturday (Mar. 7), the organization was running an air location practice exercise with a training Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) in Pritchard.

ELTs send out a distress signal by radio, which aircrafts can receive to find the location of the transmitter.

Calvert says aircrafts carry this equipment so if a crash occurs, the transmitter can be triggered and send a signal for search teams to pick up on.

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“We set out two ELTs, and one of them was by Pritchard. And after our second aircraft honed in on it, someone, after 3:00 p.m. and before 8:00 p.m. that evening, picked it up and took it away,” he says. “It’s of no use to anyone else, so we would really like to get it back.”

The practice ELT is a small, orange plastic box, which Calvert says is about 4″ by 6″ by 2″, with a small antenna sticking up. He says the practice versions run on a different radio frequency than the emergency frequency used in actual searches.

Calvert figures the item must have been picked up by someone in the Pritchard area, and hopes whoever has the ELT will get in touch with CASARA to return it. He notes that there won’t be any questions asked and they’re not looking to penalize the person who may have the equipment.

“So either a good Samaritan found it, and plans to turn it in — and our name is all over it so they should be able to do that — or someone thought it might make an interesting prank. But it won’t do that either because it’s not on the emergency frequency. So they can have it turned on all they want, and nobody is going to know about it.”

Anyone with information about this equipment, or who wants to drop it off for CASARA is asked to call 250-804-6163.