- A Falcon 50 was first on the scene in just 10 minutes after the call from Bastia ATC !
12:55 to 13:45 is 50 minutes. It does not say when they took off, just when they arrived on location.
The stuff lives permanently on the rear RHS seat, together with the oxygen cylinder. On that seat is the raft, a bag with the EPIRB, the handheld radio and some other stuff in it, and I keep the 2nd headset on top of it. You can see the bag in this pic, far right. Behind the raft is a fireproof bag for LIPO battery fires 
So the plane is a 3-seater. I can carry 4 and have done so but only on short trips, over land. Also, 4 “modern” people are usually too heavy. You would be OK with three UK Size 8 women 
First of all – well done and congrats to the outcome! A couple of thoughts:
1) getting into the life raft. While this may not have been the case here, IMHO a life raft without ladder is worse than useless, as you will expend a lot of energy trying to get in. Energy you need to stay alive. Again, no idea what kind of raft these people had.
2) 45 mins. If you look at the map, the SAR helo took off from Solenzara (according to the German newspaper), which is the other side of Corsica, pretty much as far away from Calvi as you can get. Seems a bit strange – no SAR in Calvi? Other than that, yes it does take time get everything and everyone going.
Well done. Must have been a very long 12 minutes.
1m waves is quite high, I’d think that would be enough to make me go alongside rather than against.
I never thought about opening the emergency door before, it’s an interesting thought. Easier to exit if all goes well, but you could also be getting a lot of water in, depending in the clearance; in the PA46 it’s probably a good idea – also it gives you access to the wing where you can lay the raft, so you definitely want to exit that way rather than by the door.
I think a life raft with cover is very good to have, not only if you ditch: it will give you shelter if you need to land in a remote zone as well. I always carry mine, but it’s only cockpit accessible when I fly overwater. It doesn’t have a ladder. As long as I’m still able to climb into inflatable boats without the help of one, I’ll skip on the additional weight of a larger raft.
Regarding the EPLB: I’ve bought something to attach it to my life jacket, that way I’m certain I’ll have it with me when I leave. I have a survival kit with rations and first aid tools as well as a portable VHF, but based on some ditchers’ experiences the likelihood of getting out with anything but what you’re wearing is low. So this is more in case of a remote landing.
(Yes, I know I’ve been posting on another thread that I’m always within gliding range of an airport when crossing water, so why do I need to have all that?… Call it plan B.)
Did they have airbags?
We may have done this here recently, but I think the ones with ladders are quite heavy. The RFD or Wilmslow ones tend to be 30kg+ which is a lot to retrieve with one arm from the back seat if flying alone.
One has to get at least one person into the raft, straight out after exiting the aircraft, and then others should be able to get in easily.
For all those who think they can get into a raft w/o ladder: try it in a swimming pool in summer, fully aware what’s to come and no waves or wind. And now imagine being in shock, probably injured, in a swell in wind in the – mostly cold – ocean. Good luck….. Sorry chaps, you are deluding yourselves. All you really have is a fancy piece of ballast.
That’s true (though there are a couple of methods – lots of threads on it here in the past) but you need to balance the risk of not being able to get into the raft immediately outside the aircraft against the likely inability to get a 30kg raft out of the cockpit in the first instance.
That’s why I chose a 10kg raft and my plan is to inflate it immediately outside the cockpit and get into it right away.
If you do what perhaps most people would do which is to inflate it and chuck it into the sea, hoping to swim after it and climb in, that won’t work, partly because getting in will be hard but mainly because the slightest breeze will blow it along the water faster than any sub-olympic swimmer will be able to catch it.
The procedure must therefore be something like
IMHO 30kg+ rafts are OK for a boat, where you have loads of room to move about, usually have somebody who can help carry it, and you inflate it on the deck while the boat is sinking.
The AOPA chapter here in Malta had a visit to the local SAR unit last year. Malta is a rocky island with few places suitable for a forced landing. Much local VFR flying is done at low level (under the TMA) over the sea. We asked what was the “single most important thing we could do” in case of ditching. The answer from the professional who will spot us and pull us out of the water was: “Something which will help us to see you”. His preference was for smoke/flares, or at the very least hi-vis objects such as a life raft. He emphasised how difficult it can be to spot people in the sea with a swell running, as evidenced by the French video above.
Malta is where the TB20 ditched, with “my” life raft. The pilot just got his feet wet. Correct procedure + luck does work
Peter, while your procedure is OK, it unfortunately depends on a set of circumstances that are far from given.
1) the a/c has to be low-wing
2) swell has to be minimal or at least of long amplitude
3) little or no waves/wind
4) luck
2 and 3 above prob80 work in the Med – which on most days is effectively a lake – just don’t try this in the North Sea or similar. I stand by my comments. And yes, flares are essential!
Btw, a quick Google search reveals rafts with ladder than weigh only a few kgs more than yours. See here, for example (click image for the spec sheet). I’m sure there are others.
