Civil Air Patrol Team Responds to Emergency Beacon at Greenville Downtown Airport

GREENVILLE, S.C. — A South Carolina Wing Civil Air Patrol ground team swiftly located and silenced an emergency locator transmitter Thursday evening at Greenville Downtown Airport, preventing further interference with aviation communications in the busy airspace.

The mission began at 5:45 p.m. when CAP was alerted to an active ELT signal in the Greenville area. Within two hours, an Urban Direction Finding team assembled at the airport and began searching using specialized radio direction-finding equipment.

After scanning multiple ramp areas, the signal was traced to a maintenance hangar. Working with Greenville Jet Center and airport staff, the team identified the source. With authorization from the aircraft owner, local maintenance personnel accessed the aircraft and disabled the transmitter an hour later.

“The FAA needs any ELT silenced as soon as possible, regardless of whether it is an emergency or an accidental activation,” said Lt. Col. Dave Roberts, incident commander for the mission. “When an ELT broadcasts its distress signal, every aircraft monitoring the frequency in the area will detect it. This is especially an issue on a busy airport, where interference can disrupt communications with air traffic control. It’s a matter of safety to have the signal deactivated as quickly as possible.”

The beacon had reportedly been transmitting for more than three days before the Civil Air Patrol team was called in. Once activated, the trained UDF members were able to track and resolve the problem in less than an hour.

Civil Air Patrol missions like this one underscore the organization’s commitment to supporting aviation safety and the local community. In addition to search and rescue operations, CAP’s trained volunteers regularly respond to emergency beacons to ensure clear skies and safe communications for all who fly.