Those of you who follow my adventures know that I can fly to wherever there's a communications emergency. Regular folks need a plane, and what do private pilots need? They need two-way radios, of course!
A recent story on
TodaysWirelessWorld.com explained how many private pilots wouldn't consider taking to the air without a backup radio. "Imagine what happens if an airplane's primary radio fails in flight," the story says. "You're thousands of feet in the air at the controls of an expensive aircraft with no ability to monitor weather and emergency channels or communicate with control towers, ground crews, and other pilots. Getting down safely suddenly becomes more theoretical than a sure thing."
The story goes on to review some key considerations for a pilot using a handheld aircraft radio as a backup:
- Mind your power supply. "While rechargeable Lithium-Ion batteries usually