Reading a bunch of the ETS survival stories, it seems to me that most if not all of them could have been solved rather quickly if the survivor had used a cheap FRS walkie talkie that's available in just about every retail electronics store now.

FRS radios have limited range on the ground because their 900 mhz waves don't deal well with obstacles, but given a clear line of sight path, say to an airborne rescuer, they can cover considerable distances, even tens of miles. The smaller models weigh just a few ounces and run on standard AAA or AA penlight cells. They are far less expensive and cumbersome than PLB's. Just about everyone can carry one.

So this suggests a few very simple procedures:

1. Designate FRS channel 9 as an emergency communications channel for remote areas, similar to how CB channel 9 was used for roadway emergencies. "Privacy codes" (subaudible tone squelch) should of course be turned off when the radio is used that way.

2. Equip SAR crews with FRS-capable radios and SAR aircraft with external antennas to improve coverage and enable direction finding. External antennas are illegal for civilian FRS use but it should be feasible to obtain an FCC waiver specific to SAR users.

3. SAR crews looking for a specific person should broadcast a message saying so, at least once every 3 minutes, maybe using a recorded message so the SAR operator doesn't have to keep talking into the radio. That means if the survivor is trying to conserve battery power by leaving the radio turned off, he can turn it on for a few minutes every hour and receive the broadcast message and respond to it. Of course if the survivor sees or hears aircraft, he should turn on his radio immediately.

4. Random civilian aircraft should also listen on FRS channel 9 just as they listen on 121.5 mhz and so forth, so they can hear if someone is in trouble.

5. Various technical improvements can be thought up but the above is the basics.

Thoughts?

More people are buying FRS/GMRS combo radios (that's what I'm using now) and only channels 1-7 share frequencies, so I'd propose using channel 1 462.5625 or 2 462.5875, which even covers the single-channel FRS units.

It would be very hard to get people to observe a channel plan unless you could broadcast a message on all 38 CTCSS tones to both "break in" to people who have set quiet codes and to get them to stop using an emergency channel.

I think that the idea is good, but will take time to get traction.

I thought that channels 1-7 were FRS-only, 8-14 were shared between FRS and GMRS, and 15-22 were GMRS-only. So channel 9 is available on all of these radios. Is there even such a thing as a single-channel unit? And is there such a thing as a GMRS radio that doesn't cover all the FRS channels?

I'm not too worried about the interference issue since in remote areas there's not much traffic anyway.

PaulR
Maybe I can answer some of your questions concerning the FRS, or Family Radio Service. First there is already a “recognized” channel for emergencies. As I understand it channel 1 is designated unofficially as a National Emergency Channel. In the GMRS radios, channel 11 is the recommended National Emergency Channel. These channel(s) are monitored by volunteers, such as, REACT (remember those folks from the CB craze days?) and sometimes some HAM operators will monitor the frequencies. More information can be found on the website www.g-r-m-s.com. Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) will use either channel depending on the radios they have at the time.

FRS and GMRS (General Mobile Radio Service) differ, but use almost the same frequencies. The frequencies cover the 462 and 467 MHz range, not the 900 MHz. FRS is mandated by the FCC to only use ½ watt of power for transmitting, whereas GMRS can use up to 5 watts mobile and 50 watts maximum for repeaters. Since GMRS is operating at more power you will need a license. The license is available through the FCC by applying and sending in $75. Given the low power of the FRS radio it is still possible for an aircraft to hear an emergency call if the pilot has a radio and is listening. I am not sure if the FCC restricts in flight use as they due cellular phones. If you are on a hill and talking, you could actually talk for up to 70 miles or more with only ½ watt of power. GMRS does allow for repeaters on certain frequencies since the FCC restricts the use of repeaters and repeaters are expensive to build and maintain do not be surprised if you find almost all of them are “private” and you cannot use them.

Most of the models of radio available from the major manufactures (Icom, Motorola, Midland etc.) have models with the standard 22 channel and 38 sub-channel (CTCSS) ability. It is really up to the end user to monitor any frequency for emergency calls.

I recall a incident where I was hiking in the mountains with some friends and we used the compact 2-way radios for keeping in contact. One person in our party started a conversation on another channel with a young lady in a camp ground about 22 miles from our area. Some other users had heard us talking and they changed to a sub-channel on the same frequency to avoid us. Somehow the gal in the camp had her husbands radio on their sub-channel and the one she was talking to our companion on our sub frequency. Imagine the surprise we had when we learned she was hearing the other group calling for help. Since we could not hear their exact conversation we had to use her as a relay. Once everyone was one the same frequency and not using a sub frequency we were able to hear the call ourselves. The other group (rock climbers) had an injured climber and needed help. My group began hiking in their direction (downhill) and since I also carry a HAM radio, I called for help on a nearby mountain top repeater (I should note there is absolutely no cellular service in this area.) We arrived at the injured climbers’ area about dusk, same as the Sheriff's SAR and since I am an EMT-I, I determined it would take too long to evacuate him out for a ground ambulance. He had fallen and broken his femur, so I had the SAR team call for lifeflight. He was air lifted within the hour and flown to the hospital. The Sheriff’s dept. gave everyone involved a letter of commendation. It wasn’t until then I actually learned the name of the gal our companion was talking to. Sometimes you never learn who all is involved in your rescue. Obviously there is a need for using communication of this type to call for help. I sometimes monitor the 2 channels mentioned in my personal scanners.

Take care,

Stargazer

ASAP = Always Supicious, Always Prepared

A very small correction to Stargazers description.

What stargazer refers to as sub-frequencies, are not on a different frequency. The system uses a technique variously called, sub-audible tones, Private Line, or half a dozen other names. What happens is the radio transmits a low frequency audio tone at the same time it transmits the voice. The low frequency tone is filtered out and not heard by the operator. The radio is capable of transmitting many sub-audible tones and if the system is employed, it will only open the squelch on the receiver when the transmitted sub-audible tone is the same as the tone set on the receiver. For example. Suppose 4 radios are using FRS channel 1. With no sub-audible tones employed, all 4 radios will hear all conversations on that channel. Now if radios 1 & 2 employ a sub-audible tone say, tone #1, then radios 1 & 2 will only hear each other. But radios 3 & 4 will hear everything on the channel. If radios 3 & 4 now employ sub-audible tone #12, they will hear each other, but not radios 1 & 2.

Notice that they are all still on channel 1. Channel 1 can accommodate only one conversation at a time, so if radios 1 & 2 are talking, radios 3 & 4 will not hear them and if they begin transmitting they will interfere with radios 1 & 2, and garbage will result.

Techno-babble aside, the point is that when you are employing sub-audible tones, the frequency may be in use even though you do not hear anything. Most sub-audible equipped radios have a monitor button, which when pressed, temporarily opens the sub-audible tone squelch so you can listen for other conversations before transmitting. Listen before you transmit.

Also, you can hear a weak station better if you turn your sub-audible tone off. This has more to do with how the sub-audible tone system works than any change in receiver sensitivity.

More techno-babble. I have been playing with these (gmrs, & frs) radios for a long time. The newer walkie-talkies that work on both services, GMRS & FRS, usually transmit on GMRS at the lower power level specified for FRS. Even on GMRS only frequencies. I have checked several different brands and so far they all transmit at ½ watt OR LESS. Just because you are using a GMRS frequency, do not assume you will have better range.

We travel a lot and spend much time in remote areas. More and more we are seeing signs posted saying that the local “rangers” monitor FRS Ch#1.

If you have no other communications device, or are operating in an area with poor cell phone coverage I strongly suggest you and all members of your party carry FRS or GMRS radios. They are cheap and they work. Consider it a very loud whistle.

For those that have little experience with radio use, I will put together a suggested operating technique guide and post it in this thread for comment.

The following is a “Beginners Short Course” for those who are considering FRS radios for communication,

First, the FRS radio system was not designed for emergency use. In fact, specific appeals to the FCC to designate channel 1 an emergency or call channel have been disapproved. FRS is at best, a weak alternative to almost every other communications method and should not be relied upon as an emergency device.

That said, FRS can be a useful tool for communication. The equipment is cheap, readily available and easy to use. Perhaps its greatest asset is in helping to prevent emergencies. Keeping in contact with nearby members of your group is the best way to insure safety. Also, there are millions of them out there. More and more folks on trail and in the backcountry are carrying these for personal use. Although not designed for emergency use, they can augment your other gear and help, should an emergency arise.

Some general info about FRS and the radios used in that service. FRS is a license free low powered radio service with 14 frequencies. Power is limited to ½ watt (very low power) and radios cannot be modified in any way. The range is short, about ¼ to ½ mile thru woods but can reach 2 or more miles across water or other clear signal paths. Voice quality is very good and there is no “skip” or long distance interference from distant stations.

There is a way to limit who you hear on a channel. It is called sub-audible tone, PLL, CTCSS, PrivateLine or a bunch of other names. To use this feature you select a channel and then one of usually 38 sub-audible tones. When you transmit, a low frequency tone is transmitted along with the voice. The tone is filtered out and you will not hear it. But the receiving station, if it has this feature enabled will only turn on the speaker when it hears the specific tone it is listening for. This is very useful in eliminating bothersome chatter from other users as well as electronic interference from cash registers or similar noisy devices. Still, only one conversation can take place on a channel at a time. But if the other radio is using a different sub-audible tone than you are, you will not hear it. Many vendors make it sound like you will have 14*38=532 useable channels, but this is not an accurate representation of how it will work.

Radios run the complete line of complexity from very simple to complex such as those with built in voice scramblers, GPS and locator systems. Cost is equivalent to features. Most are walkie-talkies, although a few mobile units have been on the market.

Suggestions for selecting a radio. If you are not used to using walkie-talkies, or are planning to provide radios to those who are not already trained in radio use, such as children, it is best to keep things very simple. Look for a radio with minimum features. Here is what I consider to be important.

-Simple operation. No complex menu settings or multi-button pushes. Avoid the ones with weather alert, scanners and other features unless you and all potential users are familiar with these functions. The one we use the most has only basic functions. These are:
On, off, Volume, frequency, Sub-audible tone (more about that later) and keylock.

-A large clear display with easy to understand text display. It is better to have a word, i.e.: locked rather than a cryptic symbol (picture of a key). Back lighting is nice to have, but it must turn off quickly after use.

-Replaceable batteries, type AA. Many use rechargeable batteries, but these will probably be dead when you want to use the radio. Instead, get a pack of rechargeable AA batteries and a charger (About $18 for 8 batteries and charger at Sam Club). This will allow you to save the cost of disposable batteries so that you will use the radio instead of leaving it behind because the batteries are dead. If necessary you can stop at any store and pick up some disposable batteries if your rechargeable batteries are dead. Consider getting a set of lithium AA batteries for each radio. Keep them in your pack for emergency use only. They will store for many years, are very light weight and should you need them, will provide good service.

-Stay away from gimmicky models like wrist radios or helmet radios. Likewise those with permanently connected headsets or other such odd configurations. Stay with standard walkie-talkie configurations.

-About GPS combined units. There are several radio/GPS combined units on the market. I have not used any of them. However many military have purchased these and their comments are significant. Mostly they complain about the complexity of operation. As this is directed at new radio users, I would be skeptical about recommending such units.

OK, so now you have your radios. How do you use them? First, I suggest you do not wear them on your belt. If you have a backpack or shoulder bag, fasten the radio to the shoulder strap as high as you can get it. Be careful of the antenna. Make sure it cannot move around and poke you in the eye. Wearing it higher will significantly improve reception.

Select a channel for your groups use. Lets say you listen around a bit and do not hear anything on channel 5. OK, we will use channel 5. Note, Channel 1 is becoming a calling or emergency-monitoring channel. Although not an official rule, it seems to be catching on. Therefore please do not conduct operations on channel 1. We will discuss that later.

If desired, select a sub-audible frequency. Assume you want to use tone 15. Your display wilI probably show you a large 5 and a smaller 15 or something similar. If you do this, be sure and check all radios to be absolutely sure that they are programmed correctly. We check our radios every time we turn them on.

Now, just press the button and talk. Release the button to listen. Do not yell into the radio. It does not make the signal stronger, it only distorts the audio. Talk “across” the mike, not directly at it. Holding the radio slightly sideways and talking “across” the mike will make for clearer audio and reduce the popping noises that happen when we say things like “Pepper”. Only one person can use the channel at a time. In the beginning of your radio experience, use it a lot. Try it in various situations like car-to-car, car to mall, around the house, in the woods etc. As you gain experience you will be better understand the many limitations of these radios. The range of these radios is described as “line of sight”. That means it will not go beyond the horizon. Neither will it penetrate mountains or large metal structures. However the signal does bounce well and coverage in a mall or large building is pretty good, but very spotty. It will work well in one place and not at all a few feet away.

About Channel 1. As mentioned previously, this is becoming a calling and emergency channel. We travel a lot and are seeing more signs that say local “rangers” (Park Service or whatever) monitor FRS channel 1. It is important that you program one frequency for channel 1 with NO sub-audible tone. You want to hear everything on that channel and you want to be able to find it quickly and not have to re-program your radio to remove a tone or whatever. You can help in the monitoring effort. As these radios have very short range, the more ears the better. If you are walking with another member of your group, one of you should switch to Channel 1 and just monitor. If you are alone, keep your radio on channel 1. If you get to a really high spot, like the top of a mountain or a scenic overlook, take a few moments to listen on channel 1.

Channel 1 as a Call Channel. If you are traveling alone, monitor channel 1. Someone looking for you (non-emergency) knows which channel you might be listening to. Otherwise you would have to try all 500 or more combinations of frequency and sub-audible tone. When you call someone on Channel 1, make sure you have good communications and then please move to another channel. We usually keep channel 2 programmed with no tone so that we can just say “switch to channel 2, no tone” which will be easy for the other station to do. But wait for the other station to reply before switching. The other station should reply, “OK channel 2 no tone is OK” or something similar. You want to be sure he heard you and got it right. He might think he heard some other channel. If there is no response in a few moments, go back to channel 1. Changing frequencies is a good way to loose somebody if you are not careful.

Emergency Use. Ok, so you are walking along a path with the radio on Channel 1. You hear a weak child’s voice saying “Somebody Help me” and then silence. What should you do? First, don’t move from that spot. A few feet away you might not be able to communicate. Answer the call; see if you can talk to the person. If you can, then perhaps you are in a position to use your cell phone to call for assistance. If you cannot establish contact with the person, but you can call for assistance, call 911 or the local emergency number. Do not run off trying to find the person. Locating a lost individual is tricky business. It is even harder with children. Best thing is to get as much help as you can. If you cannot communicate by any other means, switch to channel 1 and call for assistance. Perhaps someone else will hear you and be able to make a call for assistance by cell or other communications mediums. It is very important that you make others aware of the situation. Get as much help as possible.

Teaching your kids. If a child can answer a phone, he/she can use the radio. Do whatever is best to teach them how. Make a game of it, anything; as long as they use it, they will gain experience and confidence. Most important is to keep in touch so that things do not get out of control.

Hope this helps and I would encourage comments and additions.

Nomad, thanks for the excellent post.

I wasn't aware of the channel 1 issue and in fact have been using channel 1 for random chatter, since it's easy to remember. Wow, oops. I'll switch to a different channel for that.

I think unlicensed FRS units with external antennas, scramblers, more than 1/2 watt of xmit power, etc. are not allowed under FCC regs, though maybe GMRS licensees can use those devices on the shared FRS/GMRS channels.

It occurs to me that emergency crews etc. could be equipped with radios that send all 38 subaudible tones simultaneously during their voice transmissions. That would let them talk to people who have tone squelch enabled, for example to let them know that someone else is trying to use the channel for emergency. It would be fairly straightforward to make an external mic that plugged into existing radios, that generated all those tones.

The cheaper units mostly don't support subtones at all. Subtones seem worthwhile to me if you're in an area with lots of users, but in remote areas I guess they don't matter.

Unfortunately I've never seen an FRS radio with the simple interface that old CB units used to have, namely a clearly marked rotary knob to select the channel. They all have pushbutton menus and LCD displays that are confusing for inexperienced users and therefore require practice. That makes it impossible to lend a unit to an inexperienced user and later tell him over the radio "there's some interference in this channel, let's switch to channel 3" because if he gets confused by the menus, you may lose contact for good. If you know of any low-cost models with a simple knob, let me know.

The small, low-cost units generally use AAA batteries, which I guess is fine, just like AA's are fine. The Garmin Geko GPS receivers and plenty of small flashlights use AAA's, so it's possible to standardize on all-AAA batteries in your outdoor equipment.

I have heard that Motorola FRS radios use some kind of audio compression that increases the range when talking to other Motorola units, but which distorts the sound when talking to non-Motorolas. That seems unfortunate. I have two Motorolas right now but I think I'd buy non-Motorolas if I were doing it again. (I've only used my Motorolas to talk to each other, haven't tested against other brands yet).

My Motorolas are pretty sturdy and work well, but they had molded plastic belt clips that broke off. So there's now no way to attach them to a belt or lanyard except by putting them in a pouch. If I buy more units, I'll look for sturdier clips or lanyard points.

I agree with you about fancy built-in features like GPS, but one cute feature I've seen (and in some very cheap radios, too) is a built-in LED flashlight. That's simple enough that it won't confuse anyone, and it can come in pretty handy.

Nomad:
Thanks for correcting my small goof. I was sitting and typing the reply out and listening to my HAM radio at the same time. Must have been a combination of "fat fingers," slow typing and thinking too much. I mixed up the CTCSS tones for HAM SSB. Honest mistake and I am glad you caught it. <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

Thanks again,
Stargazer