GADSS & Aviation in Search and Rescue (SAR) Webinar

We are pleased to announce that the IMRF will be hosting a Global Aeronautical Distress and Safety System webinar on 14th May at 8 am (UK Time). This event is the first of the new SAR Aviation Panel.

To register for this webinar click here.

The Global Aeronautical Distress and Safety System (GADSS) was developed following the loss of Malaysian Airlines MH370, which went missing over the Indian Ocean in 2014.

The system was based on the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS). GADSS is designed to ensure that all commercial aircraft over a certain weight and operational type, e.g., passenger aircraft, are fitted with tracking and locating equipment that cannot be switched off and that can also generate a distress alert in flight so that the aircraft can be continually tracked until it lands safely or the crash or ditching location can be found.

The new system, which is coming into effect soon and is being fitted to new airliners and will later be retrofitted to older ones, will impact the entire global SAR system. There are a number of steps in the process whereby rescue coordination centres – both aeronautical and maritime, can be alerted, as well as the aircraft operator and Air Traffic Service. Aircraft can crash and force land in the sea. This means that the maritime SAR system must understand how the GADSS works so that both RCCs, rescue aircraft, and rescue boats can respond effectively and play their part in the process.

If you are a SAR unit operator, SAR crew or managers, please join us for this fascinating overview of this new system.

The SAR Aviation panel will become a regular event to enable participants to present on and discuss aviation SAR subjects and topics, share ideas, showcase technologies, and develop international best practices that the IMRF will then present to the global SAR community. 

It is also hoped that the meetings will influence, guide, and inform international discussion on technical and procedural matters and requirements for maritime aviation SAR through the IMRF’s engagement with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The IMRF will then launch its first official members-only SAR Aviation panel on 21 May. 

For further details on the Panel and how to join, go to Maritime SAR Aviation Panel | International Maritime Rescue Federation (international-maritime-rescue.org)