Finding Needles

Searching for a downed aircraft or missing ship or boat in an area that spans more than 10 per cent of the Earth’s surface may seem akin to searching for a needle in the proverbial haystack, but that is the responsibility entrusted to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), which is responsible for aviation and maritime search and rescue (SAR) within Australia’s vast flight information region.

AMSA is a federal government agency which from its Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) in Canberra responded to 7,664 aviation and maritime incidents in the 2014-15 financial year, coordinating 447 searches and effecting the rescue of 262 people.

Its responsibilities for its aviation SAR activities are guided by the principles of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation.