If you send an SOS message on a SPOT and want to cancel it, ...
Do you think the responsible sheriff would call off the SAR and go away with no other explanation than a Spot "Cancel SOS" message? Do you think he should? Do you think people with Spots should expect that? Do you think they will expect that? YMMV
Dale B. Dalrymple
I don’t understand the point of your questions… or the YMMV gibberish.
If someone sends a SPOT SOS, and later decided that no rescue is necessary, the right thing to do is send a “Cancel SOS.” Turning it off or sending “Check-in/OK” isn’t the answer. This is true, regardless of the circumstances of the original SOS message and the decision to cancel it. This is also true, regardless of what anyone thinks the authorities will do when they receive the “Cancel SOS” message.
I doubt that “the responsible sheriff would call off the SAR and go away with no other explanation than a Spot Cancel SOS”, but I’ll bet they would scale back their SAR efforts, take fewer risks with their SAR personnel, and leave their helicopters on the ground. However, my original post is correct, regardless of what the sheriff decides to do.
