AMVERS AUTOMATED MUTUAL-ASSISTANCE VESSEL RESCUE SYSTEM


The AMVERS system for survival has been operating since shortly after the Titanic disaster and became worldwide in 1971. Ships at sea provide sail plans to AMVERS, tracking ships in all the world’s oceans. Using this system, aircraft in distress can find and vector toward and ditch near an AMVERS ship, thereby increasing odds of survival.


The U.S. Coast Guard responds to over 300 over water aircraft incidents per year, many times using the AMVERS system to assist with the rescues.


AMVERS is not directly accessible from a pilot or boat captain in distress. It must flow through RCC’s (Radio Communications Centers) within the U.S., 121.5/ 243 mghtz or 406 ELT’s or EPIRB’s, or Aircraft request to Air Traffic Control Centers (ARTCC).


The increase of long-haul, international flying by business and corporate aviation dictates that each crewmember should know how this system works in case of over water emergencies, so that they can make an educated and controlled ditching at sea.


Who participates in AMVER?


Today, over 22,000 ships from hundreds of nations participate in Amver. An average of 4,000 ships are on the Amver plot each day and those numbers continue to increase The Amver Center computer receives over 14,000 Amver messages a day.. Over 2,800 lives have been saved by Amver-participating ships since 2000.


How successful is AMVER?


• AMVER ships rescued 13 crewmembers of a sinking Chinese merchant vessel 370 miles off the coast of Guam.


• An AMVER ship rescued 5 crewmembers from a sunken vessel in the mouth of the Persian Gulf. • An AMVER ship rescued 19 crewmen from a sunken vessel off the coast of Yemen.


19 Survival, Search and Rescue Survival, Search and Rescue 14


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