Fitting an AIS receiver is all very well – and a huge step forward from no AIS at all – but it is still a bit like riding a bicycle without lights: it rather assumes that other people don’t need to see you so long as you can see them.
AIS B – the cut-down, small craft version of AIS is the equivalent of fitting lights to your bicycle: it allows you to be seen as well as to see.
Cosmetically compatible with Icom’s chunky IC-M505 and IC-M603 radios, the MA500TR is a Class B AIS transponder that will broadcast position, track, and speed data derived from its own, dedicated GPS. At the same time, it monitors both AIS channels for incoming information about other vessels, and displays it on a big, four-inch monochrome LCD in a variety of graphic and alphanumeric formats that include the popular “radar” display and useful text lists that can be sorted by range, closest point of approach (CPA), or time to CPA.
It’s expected to sell for about £700.
www.icomuk.co.uk
01227741741