What emergency supplies do you carry in your flight bag?

[Pugs]

I wouldnt carry any of that crap thats required if it wasn’t…..required lol. In reality if you crash they will either be on you within a couple hours (if you have a PLB or 406ELT) or you will have been dead on impact or just after and never get to use any of your camping/dirty harry cosplay equipment either way.

Maybe. Several instances of people getting the plane down broken but safe and being in good comms but with weather keeping help from getting too them for a couple days. Does seem like a long list but if I flew remotely most of it makes sense.

Does anyone ever get ramp checked for survival gear up there?

 

[OneCharlieTango]

The fishing equipment has never made sense to me. I haven’t fished in nearly 20 years and I’ve never cleaned and cooked a fish in my life. People say it about guns, but it’s true about fishing gear: I’m more likely to harm myself with a fishhook than I am to catch a fish.

 

[Pugs]

The fishing equipment has never made sense to me. I haven’t fished in nearly 20 years and I’ve never cleaned and cooked a fish in my life. People say it about guns, but it’s true about fishing gear: I’m more likely to harm myself with a fishhook than I am to catch a fish.

Get hungry enough you'll learn . One of the things that was taught to us in the USN survival schools was to always stay busy. Building shelter, gathering food/water, prepping to signal, be doing something to keep your mind active and working through the problem. I guess fishing when you really don't need to could fall under that classification.

An extreme example - https://www.granitechief.com/blog/air-force-pilot-crashes-in-the-sierra-nevadahero-or-traitor/

 

[Daleandee]

Get hungry enough you'll learn . One of the things that was taught to us in the USN survival schools was to always stay busy. Building shelter, gathering food/water, prepping to signal, be doing something to keep your mind active and working through the problem. I guess fishing when you really don't need to could fall under that classification.

Good advice! Keeping busy and focused will help prevent negative thoughts from hampering your will to survive. The ability to build a fire is paramount for signaling, cooking food, and giving strength to your mental state of mind.

 

[DavidWhite]

Maybe. Several instances of people getting the plane down broken but safe and being in good comms but with weather keeping help from getting too them for a couple days. Does seem like a long list but if I flew remotely most of it makes sense.

Does anyone ever get ramp checked for survival gear up there?

Never heard of anyone getting ramp checked for survival gear. In my experience most companies don’t do a good job maintaining the contents of the survival kit and most pilots are indifferent about it being there in the first place. The last one I opened up was good and moldy/mildewy.

 

[Stewartb]

The fishing equipment has never made sense to me. I haven’t fished in nearly 20 years and I’ve never cleaned and cooked a fish in my life. People say it about guns, but it’s true about fishing gear: I’m more likely to harm myself with a fishhook than I am to catch a fish.

In Alaska the fishing gear requirement includes a gill net.

Most of these imagined scenarios forget one thing. Injury. Imagine surviving a crash and dealing with shelter, fire, food, etc, with broken ribs, broken legs, a brain concussion, etc. Get your biggest, strongest friend to whack you as hard as he can with a baseball bat and go set up camp with what’s stowed in your plane. Make it more interesting. Put your gear in a pond. Now you’re surviving.

 

[EdFred]

In Alaska the fishing gear requirement includes a gill net.

Most of these imagined scenarios forget one thing. Injury. Imagine surviving a crash and dealing with shelter, fire, food, etc, with broken ribs, broken legs, a brain concussion, etc. Get your biggest, strongest friend to whack you as hard as he can with a baseball bat and go set up camp with what’s stowed in your plane. Make it more interesting. Put your gear in a pond. Now you’re surviving.

True, but to be able to climb out be able to survive and not pack anything because "well, the odds are I will be stuck in the plane" is not the best approach either.

 

[Stewartb]

Stuck in the plane is your idea, not mine. Survival is mostly about the guy, not the gear.

My own unplanned overnighters have changed my survival gear. My chances of being stranded are usually weather driven. Spend an unplanned night in wet clothes with temps dropping to single digits and your gear will change, too. There was no emergency to warrant a beacon, just discomfort. Staying in the plane is the last thing I’d do.

I’ve advised lots of guys about survival gear. Pick a rainy, chilly, windy autumn night, tie one arm behind your back, and take your family camping with only what you keep in your plane. You’ll have a new perspective in the morning. When my daughter was young we played this game to where my daughter could survive in a situation where I didn’t.

 

[cowtowner]

If anybody thinks that they can survive with the kit in their plane, watch these videos

 

[NoBShere]

This thread remind me of the Simpsons episode where Homer gets a gun. He then uses for everything, turn on the lights, change the channel on the Tv, turn off the lights, etc.

 

[Sinistar]

Regarding ELTs.....Personally, I like the security of the PLB. I too have a moving map Garmin hiking/trekking GPS, but if I've got a busted leg or am bleeding out flipping on that PLB will be my most valuable asset

Question (not criticism). Wondering if you would prefer a inReach instead of the PLB and hiking GPS. There is a subscription at $12/month which is probably more than what some want. However the Iridium message capability + SOS seems to be worth it. And the larger inreach has a passable onscreen GPS built in. Not for everyone but just thought I would mention it.

 

[Tantalum]

Question (not criticism). Wondering if you would prefer a inReach instead of the PLB and hiking GPS. There is a subscription at $12/month which is probably more than what some want. However the Iridium message capability + SOS seems to be worth it. And the larger inreach has a passable onscreen GPS built in. Not for everyone but just thought I would mention it.

Thanks! I actually had one in my hand at West Marine but the subscription, even if just $12, seemed like more than what I needed for a "get out of jail card" .. I would eventually like to do some more back country stuff, portions of the PCT and JMT, where a tool like that would be great

 

[MarkH]

Thanks! I actually had one in my hand at West Marine but the subscription, even if just $12, seemed like more than what I needed for a "get out of jail card" .. I would eventually like to do some more back country stuff, portions of the PCT and JMT, where a tool like that would be great

I have one and pay the subscription and I think it is worth it.

Obviously the PLB feature has a lot of value for me, but even without it, there is still value for the money.

My favorite features are weather and text messaging. I rarely use it, but I like that I can send a text if I lose cell service. This was a big benefit for me in my last job because in some places I worked I did not have cell coverage. I used it more in driving than flying, it was nice to be able to send a quick text rather than having to find service, and then text. Also, (this is more something I want to use than something I have used), if you go airplane camping, you can pull a weather report over the SATCOM even if you don't have cell service or internet.

Also you can get text METARs for flight planning.

 

[David Megginson]

Of course if you land in a gun free zone state you will get in trouble. If they find out about it of course.

My airport had already made it clear that no firearms are allowed to be on the airport property.

Canadian here — I wouldn't hesitate to carry a shotgun or rifle (after appropriate training in handling it safely) if I were flying in the Arctic, for protection against polar bears, but anywhere south of, say, 55–60°N, it seems kind of pointless. If it's just a matter of staying alive for a few days, freeze-dried rations in the back of the plane are a lot more reliable than hunting (plus, if you wander miles from the plane looking for game, you might miss rescue).

 

[EdFred]

Canadian here — I wouldn't hesitate to carry a shotgun or rifle (after appropriate training in handling it safely) if I were flying in the Arctic, for protection against polar bears, but anywhere south of, say, 55–60°N, it seems kind of pointless. If it's just a matter of staying alive for a few days, freeze-dried rations in the back of the plane are a lot more reliable than hunting (plus, if you wander miles from the plane looking for game, you might miss rescue).

That's why you leave the food out and draw the bear in. A bear will feed you for a while.