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Repeater Beacon

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Using a second beacon as a hilltop relay: the placement rules, the frequency split, and the honest limits of the trick.

Repeater Beacon

A beacon behind a ridge is often unheard. A second beacon on the ridge, listening on one channel and retransmitting on another, can bridge the gap. This page is that trick, done honestly.

The concept

UnitFrequencyRole
Field beacon433.500Transmits the distress signal
Relay beacon (ridge)RX 433.500, TX 433.700Listens and repeats
Search team433.700Hears the relayed signal

The relay sits high, hears the field beacon, and re-transmits the same Morse on a second channel. It is a manual, one-way repeater.

Placement rules

  • The relay must see the field beacon (line of sight) or the relay is pointless (see Mountain Effects on Radio).
  • The relay must see the search area.
  • The two antennas on the relay need separation: at least 2 m between them, or the relay desenses itself on its own transmit.

The firmware side

The relay beacon is just a beacon in SEARCH-adjacent operation: its firmware listens on channel A and, when a burst is decoded, transmits it on channel B. This requires the frequency settings to be programmed accordingly; the standard firmware supports fixed-frequency RX with TX on a separate channel in the appropriate build.

The honest limits

  • The relay doubles the equipment and battery burden.
  • The relay is one-way: it does not acknowledge, and its own failure is silent.
  • A real repeater is a licensed, maintained installation; a beacon used as one is a field improvisation with a shelf life.

When it is right

A one-afternoon field exercise with a known terrain gap, where a human can babysit the relay: this is where the trick shines. For a real incident, the Incident Command system already has better tools.