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A sailor is concerned boaties won't upgrade to the new emergency locator system because they can't or won't pay for the new beacons.
Matt Lovich from Sailors Corner at Auckland's Westhaven Marina said most boaties are aware of the change, which comes into force today.
Old-style 121.5 or 243 Megahertz (MHz) analogue beacons are obsolete since a worldwide switch to the digital 406MHz beacons.