A new class of ultra-comfortable PFDs will reach the market in 2027 thanks to the Coast Guard’s new Level 50 standard, which allows for lower-profile devices to meet legal carriage requirements, the Water Sports Foundation announced. The advancements are increasing the styles of PFDs tailored to specific uses, even as a Coast Guard study found life jacket wear rates for all boaters have increased only 2.8% since 1999.
Researchers at the Coast Guard and the University of Maryland concluded the number of drownings could be reduced by 80% if all boaters wore life jackets, the WSF press release said.
“Many high buoyancy inflatable life jackets, such as ones designed for offshore, open-water environments, are now better able to keep an unconscious person’s head above water,” Lili Colby, industry and non-profit relations specialist at life jacket manufacturer Mustang Survival, said in the release.
Stig Larsson, CEO of paddling apparel and life jacket manufacturer Level Six, reported strong interest in the lighter, slimmer L50 vests he’s debuting next year.
“We just released our 2027 catalog, and I’m amazed by the extremely positive response and high level of interest in L50 products,” Larsson said. “I hope this translates into more paddlers and boaters wearing PFDs.”
For more information about PFD design and usage, the Water Sports Foundation has provided this instructional video.
