Summary of Form Changes

Summary of Beacon Registration Form Changes (22 November 2021)
This summary describes changes made to the current ELT, EPIRB, and PLB forms to allow registration
of 23-hex beacons (in addition to the current 15-hex) and to align form content and order with that of
the registration website. Note that because second-generation (23-hex) SSAS beacons are not being
developed at this time, the SSAS form has been updated to include only the non-23-hex changes.
1. Reduced the size of the header information; removed the unnecessary colon before the web
address. Moved contact information from the header to the bottom of the form in a 1-line
format to allow space for 23-hex information. Added a note in the upper right-hand corner to
direct the registrant to a separate page of instructions and information.

2. Added a separate Beacon ID line for 23-hex beacons, based on information from SARSAT
technical staff stating that these IDs will appear in 6-6-6-5 format (ref. document C/S T.018
Section 4.5.11, “Beacon Labelling”; https://cospas-sarsat.int/images/stories/SystemDocs/
Current/T018-JUN-7-2021.pdf). This information made it undesirable to simply add 8 boxes to
the current 15.
3. Moved the space for the manufacturer’s label (“For manufacturer’s use only”) to the upper
right-hand area of the form. This allows space necessary for a separate 23-hex line and
reorganization of fields for Checksum, Serial No. (see #4), Manufacturer, and Model Number.
Manufacturer labels are primarily affixed by hand, so the new location may help to ensure that
no owner-entered UIN information is affected by its imperfect placement.

4. Added a field for Beacon Serial Number (already being collected in the online RGDB system)
after the checksum field; it is variable in length, so the field is a blank line instead of boxes
(whereas checksum is always 5 hex characters).

5. Added the abbreviations for checksum (CHK) and serial number (S/N) that are currently used
by ACRArtex on their manufacturer label (see sample below); RGDB staff receive owner calls
related to those terms, so referring to the three abbreviations (UIN, CHK, S/N) used on
manufacturer’s labels may help reduce confusion. (UIN is spelled out in the new instruction
sheet.) Switched the order of “Manufacturer” and “Model” since the model info appears on the
manufacturer label along with Checksum and Serial No., but the manufacturer name usually
does not, and placed all four items in a single line on the form, below the beacon ID fields.
Removed “No.” after “Model” since this entry is usually a combination of letters and numbers.

6. On the EPIRB form, moved the “deployment type” question to the vessel information area to
match its entry location in the online system. Changed the wording to “EPIRB Deployment
Type” and added “Not Known” as a third choice (after Category I and II) to the form as a
possible selection for this question and the S-VDR question, which aligns the form with the
website.

7. In the “Purpose of Registration” section, removed the checkbox option to use the form to
receive a replacement decal since owners do not send in forms for this purpose. Also combined
the other options to be “New/Change of Ownership” and “Update/Renewal” instead of having
separate checkboxes for “New Registration,” “Renewal of Registration,” Change of Ownership,”

and “Change of Registration Information.” Because of the different allocation of characters in
the 23-hex ID, added a separate line for replacement option (“old ID no.”) and removed
“unique” from the phrase.

8. Changed the wording for the Owner/Operator name field (was “Last, First, Middle Initial”) to
“Owner, operator, agent, or company name.” The RGDB has only one field for this, “Name,” and
there is great variety in how the field has been populated.

9. Removed the option to provide a fax number for any contacts (in the owner/operator and
emergency contact information sections), since RGDB does not communicate with an owner or
emergency contact via fax (and neither do SAR forces in a distress activation) and the fax
option currently appears in the online pull-down list as “Fax (do not use)”; also removed
“other” since that option is only used by RGDB staff if the owner didn’t select home, work, or
cell; added the header “Telephone (include area code)” and provided a solid-line field instead
of one with parentheses for area code (easier to complete if handwritten); removed the
repeated “type” information from the box line, making it a header instead (Home/Work/Cell).

10. Extended the line for E-mail address to increase legibility of handwritten registrations.

11. In the Usage section for all beacon types, reordered the options since the majority (72%, based
on RGDB data) of registrations are private/non-commercial; changed “Non-commercial” to
“Private/Non-Commercial.”

For ELT, EPIRB, and SSAS, re-formatted fields in this section from 2 columns to 1, which allows
for more space in the “Additional Data” field (the PLB form was already in 1-column format).
Added the text “Flight Plans, etc.” (ELT) and “Float Plans, etc.” (EPIRB & SSAS) after “Additional
Data.”
For ELT, added the words “Name or Code” after “Principal Airport.”

For EPIRB, changed the order of fields to match database entry; made the changes to this
section as noted in #6; moved the small text that was underneath entry lines for “Length
Overall” (ft) and “Capacity” (crew & passengers) to the right of those words; added # to “crew
and passengers” after RGDB staff reported owner confusion with that field (owners often enter
the vessel length again, or don’t complete the field); changed “telephone” to “phone” and
abbreviated “numbers” in the “Vessel Phone #s” category heading; added field for AIS MMSI #.
For PLB, added the word “Vehicle” before “Type” to match website; added fields for Radio Call
Sign, MMSI #, AIS MMSI #, and aircraft tail #, with text indicating to complete those fields if
Boat or Aircraft was checked in the Vehicle Type field.

12. Removed the signature and date lines at the bottom of the form (not required).

13. Created an additional “Instructions” page providing brief explanations of some of the
information requested on the form (based on owner queries received by RGDB staff). This
page is not specific to beacon type and is in addition to the current “Important Notice” Privacy
Act Statement information page (updated July 2021) that also applies to all beacon types.