|
 |
 |
 |
|
Home
|
|
USCG AUXILIARY NEWS
|
PUBLIC COMMENT SOUGHT ON FATE OF
LONG RANGE NAVIGATION SYSTEM
The land
based navigation system may be
decommissioned later this year
The
Coast Guard Auxiliary wants to inform all mariners that the US Department of
Transportation, in coordination with the
Department of Homeland Security, is seeking public input on the fate
of the Long Range Navigation System,
otherwise known as LORAN-C.
The
land based navigation system,
operated by the US Coast Guard, may
be scheduled for decommissioning later
this year. At question is whether the system should be decommissioned,
maintained "as is," or up-graded to
an enhanced LORAN system (eLORAN), which could be used either
as a back-up to the GPS (Global Position Satellite) System,
or a complimentary system to GPS. .
The
public is invited to submit their thoughts and comments,
which must be received on or by February 7th of this year.
To learn how to submit those comments,
visit
http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/eLORAN/E6-22421.pdf,
or call
the
U.S. Coast Guard Info line at 1-800-368-5647.
|
COAST GUARD AUXILIARY REMINDS BOATERS ABOUT NEW RULES FOR EMERGENCY
BEACONS
Boaters Must Not Operate 121.5/243 MHZ Emergency Position Indicating Radio
Beacons (EPIRBs) after December 31, 2006
WASHINGTON - The Coast Guard Auxiliary is joining with the United States
Coast Guard to remind all boaters that beginning January 1, 2007, both 121.5
and 243 MHz Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs) are
prohibited from use in both commercial and recreational watercraft. Boaters
wishing to have an emergency rescue beacon aboard their vessel must have a
digital 406 MHz model.
The January 1, 2007, date to stop using 121.5 MHz EPIRBs is in preparation
for February 1, 2009, when satellite processing of distress signals from all
121.5/243 MHz beacons will terminate. Following this termination date, only
the 406 MHz beacons will be detected by the International Cospas-Sarsat
Satellite System which provides distress alert and location data for search
and rescue operations around the world.
The regulation applies to all Class A, B, and S 121.5/243 MHz EPIRBs. It
does not affect 121.5/243 MHz man overboard devices which are designed to
work directly with a base alerting unit only and not with the satellite
system.
This change, in large part, was brought about by the unreliability of the
121.5/243 MHz beacons in an emergency situation. Data reveals that with a
121.5 MHz beacon, only one alert out of every 50 is a genuine distress
situation. This has a significant effect on expending the limited resources
of search and rescue personnel and platforms. With 406 MHz beacons, false
alerts have been reduced significantly, and, when properly registered, can
usually be resolved with a telephone call to the beacon owner. Consequently,
real alerts can receive the attention they deserve.
When a 406 MHz beacon signal is received, search and rescue personnel can
retrieve information from a registration database. This includes the beacon
owner's contact information, emergency contact information, and
vessel/aircraft identifying characteristics. Having this information allows
the Coast Guard and Coast Guard Auxiliary, or other rescue personnel, to
respond appropriately.
In the U.S., users are required by law to directly register their beacon in
the U.S. 406 MHz Beacon Registration Database at:
http://www.beaconregistration.noaa.gov/
or by calling 1-888-212-SAVE. Other users can register their beacon in their
country's national beacon registration database or, if no national database
is available, in the International Beacon Registration Database at
https://www.406registration.com/.
The United States Coast Guard is the lead agency for coordinating national
maritime search and rescue policy and is responsible for providing search
and rescue services on, under and over assigned international waters and
waters subject to United States jurisdiction. |
|
|
|
|
|