AUTHORS: Yuriy Dachev, Valentin Zlatev

Download as PDF

ABSTRACT: There are actions being taken worldwide continuously to improve the safety of shipping. Nevertheless, sea accidents are not diminishing. According to the IMO SAR Convention, maritime states are required to provide surveillance of the entire coastline under their jurisdiction and to be able to carry out effective rescue operations. The success of the SAR operation depends on the speed of its planning and implementation. The captain of a ship, participating in a SAR operation, must have a clear methodology and criteria, which define the volume of the search. One of the methodologies, offered by the SAR Convention, is 'Expanding Square'. It has weaknesses, one of which is the large area where should be search the object in distress. The article deals with an improved 'Expanding Square' to locate an object in distress in a minimum area with maximum probability of detection. The proposed methodology provides better opportunities for recalculating and repeating of the search and a high probability of discovering the object.

KEYWORDS: SAR operation, objects in distress, expanding square, ellipse of distraction

REFERENCES:

[1] IMO Publishing, International aeronautical and maritime search and rescue manual IAMSAR, Vol. I, II, III, London, 2016.

[2] IMO Publishing, International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS 1974), London, 2014.

[3] SAR Operations-Working with other SAR services, On Scene Magazine, Winter, 2012.

[4] U.S. Coast Guard, SAR Summary Statistics with Performance Measures-Fiscal Years 2000-2003, On Scene Magazine, Fall, 2003.

[5] Use of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) for maritime domain awareness (MDA), Tetreault, B. J., OCEANS, 2005.

[6] Rubinshtein D. N., Search for Objects in Distress at sea, Ministry of Transport, Moscow, 1992.

[7] Egorov G. V., Nilva A. E., Analyze of River – Sea Going Vessel’s Wreck in the Kerch Strait on the 11th of November 2007, Varna, 2008.

[8] Danish sea rescue as a role model, Danish Maritime Magazine, Issue 2, 2012.