Circular Letter
MSC.1/Circ.1181
ADOPTION OF AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNATIONAL AERONAUTICAL AND MARITIME SEARCH
AND RESCUE (IAMSAR) MANUAL
(11 July 2006)
1.
The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC), at its eighty-first session (10 to 19 May
2006), having been informed that the International Civil Aviation Organization
(ICAO) had approved the amendments to the IAMSAR Manual prepared by the Joint
ICAO/IMO Working Group on Harmonization of Aeronautical and Maritime Search and
Rescue, and that they had been endorsed by the Sub-Committee on
Radiocommunications and Search and Rescue (COMSAR) at its tenth session (6 to
10 March 2006), adopted the annexed amendments in accordance with the procedure
laid down in resolution A.894(21).
2.
The Committee decided that the amendments should enter into force on 1 June
2007.
SECTION 1.
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE IAMSAR MANUAL – VOLUME I
Delete
present paragraphs 1.3.1 and 1.3.2 and add the following text:
"1.3.1 As
Party to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS),
the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, or the Convention
on International Civil Aviation, a Party undertakes to provide certain
aeronautical and/or maritime SAR co-ordination and services. The international
community expects these commitments to be fulfilled.
1.3.2 These
services can be provided by States individually establishing effective national
SAR organizations, or by establishing a SAR organization jointly with one or
more other States. The role of agreements and plans in establishing SAR
services will be discussed throughout this Manual.
1.3.3 Every
State should have in place statutes and related provisions that establish a
legal foundation for establishing a SAR organization and its resources,
policies, and procedures.
1.3.4 SAR
managers should seek legal advice on how domestic and international laws
pertain to SAR policies and procedures.
1.3.5 State
legislative provisions should be aligned with accepted principles of
international law, and may serve purposes such as:
- recognizing
the SAR function as a State responsibility;
- implementing
IMO and ICAO requirements and standards;
- designating
SAR agencies and their general responsibilities; and
- defining the
jurisdiction and legal authority of the RCC in accordance with relevant
standards of ICAO and IMO.".
Move
the legal advice found in sections 5.4.18 to 5.4.20 to section 1.3 and renumber
the three sections as 1.3.6, 1.3.7 and 1.3.8 respectively.
Add
following at the end of section 1.5.6:
"Legislation
could provide for use of military and other public resources to support
SAR."
Delete
the word "particular" in the fifth sentence of section 2.2.8 and
substitute with the word "pre-planned".
In
section 2.2.4, add the following new sentence after the first sentence:
"If
alerting posts are used, the RCC or RSC should ensure that the alerting post is
well-qualified to carry out its responsibilities.".
In
section 2.2.10, the first sentence should start:
"SAR personnel
should have national legislative authority for ..."
and
the second sentence should start:
"Except in
rare cases, related communications ...".
Replace
first paragraph in section 2.3.11 with following:
"RCCs
perform administrative and operational duties. Administrative duties, including
planning, co-operation with providers of facilities, exercises and case
studies, are concerned with maintaining the RCC in a continuous state of
preparedness. In areas of low SAR activity the administrative duties are of
high importance since they are the best way to keep the staff in readiness for
SAR cases. The administrative duties should be shared so that more than one
person is capable of performing these duties. Effective administrative actions
help to ensure proficient SAR operations. SAR operations are the responsibility
of the SMC and this responsibility may be met by the RCC chief or by other
properly trained staff of the RCC. Personnel from services or organizations
providing facilities can be used as part of the RCC team if they are duly
trained and qualified. They will normally serve in support of expert functions
such as firefighting, or air or marine safety. The RCC must be prepared to
undertake and continue operational duties 24 hours per day. This level of
readiness requires that multiple persons be trained and qualified to assume SMC
duties.".
In
section 2.3.11(a), edit the last sentence to read:
"...
oversee, if not delegated, the daily operations ...".
In
section 2.3.11(b), edit the first sentence to read:
"... who
are trained and capable of planning ..."
and
edit the last sentence to read:
"...
continuous staffing, or only has one trained and capable RCC person on duty,
provision ...".
In
section 2.3.11(c), edit the first sentence to read:
"An SMC
should be designated for each specific SAR operation, and adequate numbers of
personnel qualified to perform the SMC function must be readily available on a
24 hour basis.".
Delete
present paragraph 5.2.13 and replace it with the following:
"5.2.13 A
SAR plan may be supported by legislation or regulations if necessary, or may be
a self-supporting memorandum of understanding (MOU) between appropriate
agencies. Ratification of an MOU at the Ministry level recognizes the
importance of SAR, while allowing for an easier revision process than
higher-level agreements would allow.".
Add
to the end of paragraph 5.2.14:
"Appendix I
contains sample text and guidance for a national SAR plan.".
Add
new paragraph 5.2.15:
"5.2.15
Appendix [M] [K] contains sample text to describe arrangements for the division
of responsibilities between the Rescue Co-ordination Centre (RCC) and the Air
Traffic Services (ATS) provider as component organizations contributing to the
national emergency response system for aircraft.".
Renumber
old paragraphs 5.2.15 to 5.2.18 as 5.2.16 to 5.2.19.
Delete
first paragraph of present paragraph 5.3.6 and replace with the following:
"SAR
operations are normally carried out under the direction and supervision of an
SMC who is usually the supervisor of the RCC or RSC watch team. In multiple
incident situations this officer could be SMC for all incidents, or for some of
those incidents, the SMC role could be delegated to another suitably qualified
member of the watch team. The SMC should in all cases be supported by RCC watch
team members to undertake functions in the co-ordinating process such as
communications, plotting, logging and search planning. For complex cases or
those of long duration the assisting team must be replaced at regular intervals
as well as the SMC. The SMC must be able to competently gather information
about emergencies, transform emergency incident information into accurate and
workable plans and dispatch and co-ordinate the facilities, which will carry
out the SAR missions.".
- Delete present
paragraphs 5.4.17 to 5.4.20 and the subtitle "Legislative Support".
Renumber
sections 6.3 to 6.6 as 6.4 to 6.7.
Insert
following new section 6.3:
"6.3
Applying Risk Management
6.3.1 A similar
process to reducing system problems could be used to examine how risk
management methodology can be applied to improve SAR response and SAR system
performance. This process can be applied to any State regardless of its
political system or organization structure.
6.3.2 Search and
rescue (SAR) organizations have a lot to learn from the emergency management
community where risk management principles are used so that the uncertainties
that exist in potentially hazardous situations can be minimized and public
safety maximized. Emergency managers commonly use three phases to describe
their response to natural or technical disasters. They are preparedness (i.e.,
the pre-disaster phase), response (i.e., the immediate post-disaster phase),
and recovery (i.e., return to a normal state). From a SAR perspective, we could
call these phases pre-incident, incident response and post-incident with each
phase requiring attention from SAR practitioners as they have a need to
understand their particular role at that time, whether lead or support, and the
interaction that is occurring within a broader government context.
6.3.3 The
application of risk management can bring order to the uncertain environment in
which SAR organizations exist. It is a very valuable tool to determine future
work priorities and to improve the ability to meet the organizational objective
of finding persons in distress and removing them to a place of safety.
6.3.4 Risk
analysis is a valuable tool for managers of SAR organizations as it can set the
resource priorities for an organization and its output can be used externally
to promote SAR issues. SAR organizations are encouraged to undertake a risk
analysis process and to use the information gained to advance the objective of
saving lives.
6.3.5 An example
of a Risk Management Process is at Appendix [N] [L].".
Insert
new Appendix as follows:
"MODEL AGREEMENT FOR THE DIVISION OF
RESPONSIBILITY BETWEEN THE SAR AUTHORITY AND THE AIR TRAFFIC SERVICES PROVIDER
IN PROVIDING EMERGENCY RESPONSE SERVICES FOR AIRCRAFT
1.1
The purpose of this document is to outline the division of responsibilities
between the SAR Authority and Air Traffic Services (ATS) provider as component
organizations contributing to the national emergency response system for
aircraft, and to propose a model arrangement for co-operation between the
parties.
2.1
The responsibility for the various aspects of the national emergency response
system required under the Convention on International Civil Aviation may fall
within two or more agencies of the national government. The SAR Authority has
broad responsibilities under annex 12 for SAR response, (and ancillary
functions are described in annexes 10 and 15) and the ATS provider has broad
responsibilities under Annex 11 for aviation SAR alerting. ATS also provides
in-flight emergency response services for aircraft and assists Rescue
Co-ordination Centres (RCCs) with their SAR response task by providing access
to its aeronautical expertise and resources.
3.1
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) may be in force for a period of five years
from the date of commencement and be extended for a further period or periods
as agreed by the parties in accordance with the following principles:
1) No variation
is to be made to either the MoU or the agreed operational procedures dealing
with in-flight emergencies or SAR alerting procedures without the consent of
both parties.
2) Where the
parties agree to an alteration to this MoU, the alteration must be expressed in
writing and be ratified by the signatories of both parties to this MoU, with
sufficient notice to allow adoption of any agreed amended practice.
4.1
This MoU and associated operational information contained in the associated
procedures is designed to facilitate a system for effective operational
interface, and to positively manage the transfer of operational responsibility,
between the ATS provider and the RCC during aircraft emergency phases.
4.2
This MoU does not alter the respective statutory, administrative or other
obligations of the parties and any specific requirement under this MoU shall
not involve any alteration to those obligations.
5.1
There should be regular consultation between the agency managers to review the
operational procedures to which this document applies.
5.2
Such consultation should occur whenever either of the parties considers changes
to the procedures to be appropriate to meet operational commitments, and at
least, once every 12 months from the commencement of this MoU.
6.1
The overriding principle governing the relationship of the agencies and the
performance of activities covered by this MoU is that the safety of life is
paramount.
6.2
All services related to the MoU are to be provided in accordance with the
agreed practices laid down in this MoU and the agreed operational procedures.
Such services may include the provision of assistance to aircraft in distress
in the states Search and Rescue Region (SRR).
6.3
When handling an aircraft emergency or responding to a SAR incident, there is a
need for the RCC and the ATS provider to work co-operatively and effectively
together. It is important that there be no ambiguity with respect to the agency
taking the lead and the agency providing support as an incident progresses. The
lead agency role is determined by mutual agreement according to the division of
responsibilities at paragraph 9.