Ahem. Where was I before I got sucked into a flaming contest? Oh yes - field data on the subject TPA.

I have checked out a few other forums and basically found that people know of this bag but haven't actually used one or encountered any objective evaluations of same. I did find a one paragraph reference from a hiker who reported that since the bag depended upon reflectivity for effectivess, he found cold spots - namely, where his body met the bag and the back met the ground. Not much data on other variables, though.

I tried contacting several of the references provided by the manufacturer of this bag. To date, not one of them has replied to me. Don't read anything into that - just a report.

I guess I'll have to think about getting one donated an putting it through an immersion test. Lest I get flamed anew, recall that my interest is in determining if this product has any redeeming features for a short-term immersion situation.

Let me know if you hear anything or have an experience with the product.

Sarah-Jane Prew the author of Survival for Aircrew says in the book, i quote "try this in a swimming pool. Get in one of these bags, fasten it over your head and float as still as possible in the survival position. Keep still for some time and you will probably begin to feel a bit cold. Then remove the bag and as the body heat rushes out and the cold water rushes in, you will realise just how warm it kept you."

From my experience of trying this with a normal orange survival bag in Chichester harbour, I had a similar experience but I cant say how much more effective the Land/shark is.

First time poster - long time lurker.

Forgive me if I'm missing something obvious, but how do you deploy the Land Shark bag in an immersion situation? If you're in a liferaft, you might be able to get into it OK. If you're already in the water, the bag is going to fill with water as you try to get into it. I suppose you could always climb into it before you are swept overboard or before you abandon ship...

Seriously, how do you propose to utilize it?

Doug

Hint: It's not a dry suit.

I absolutely understand it's not a dry suit replacement. My comment about donning it before being swept overboard etc. was tongue in cheek. While it might be good kit, I don't see how it would be deployed in an immersion situation without filling with water. It would seem to offer little shelter benefit if filled with water. It isn't a wetsuit either :-)

It will fill with water and you put it on, wet. What water is in the bag will be warmed by your body heat. Outside the bag, you'd be trying to warm the ocean. I would try to get it as tight as possible to avoid having to heat any more water than necessary.

This is exactly right. BTDT and it works. As Sarah notes, it's easy to experience what a difference it makes. In my experience it will do a few degrees (2-4?), better than just a plain non-reflective bag. That's a good deal better all things considered. The plain bag works as well, just not quite as good and they don't cinch up closed like the LAND/shark does. That is a huge advantage in the water.

The plain bag was popularized over here by Ken Burton and was well known in survival circles as a Burton Bag, which he handed out to those who took his aviation overwater survival courses in the 80's and early 90s (still have a couple). The LAND/shark evolved from that after Neil attended one of Ken courses (I was there). Next year, Neil brought prototypes of the LAND/shark, if I recall correctly, or it may have been to another event, maybe one of my early life raft tests. Been a while. <~>

It is far better than nothing, but it isn't a substitute for an exposure suit or similar products. OTOH, it isn't as bulky or as expensive. It has its place in the range of options for those who might end up in the drink, depending upon location and operating and carriage environment.

So it DOES operate on the principle of a wetsuit, although somewhat less efficient, Thanks for the info.

I appreciate the serious discussion and observations. This is precisely what I was looking for originally.

By definition, a survival situation is one where every piece of available gear has to be carefully evaluated for whatever advantage, no matter how slight, that it may offer. Your comments have convinced me that carrying these bags makes sense as a short-term survival aid. I plan to add four of these units to my ditch bag.

I recommend you take one to a pool and practice using it. In the water off Oregon you won't have a lot of time to figure it out before you start losing motor function. Get very familiar with it in a benign environment.