Friday 20 July 2007

Rapid Response Search

Now this is the sort of thing to have a grown navigator chew his pencil. It is the diagram used to create a search area when looking for things missing in the water (divers, crewmen etc). It's called a rapid response search and enables one to take a last known position, compensate for environmental factors and elapsed time, and come up with a reasonably accurate area within which the casualty is likely to be. And the thing is it works very well. In reality of course it is normally the Coastguards sat in their ops room who do the sums then pass the co-ordinates of the search area to us. However, we need to know how to do it and be well practised at doing it.

So I am away now for my summer holidays in Stockholm. Wing-Co is taking over the hot seat for a week and will be here daily to entertain you. I trust he won't let us down!
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4 comments:

Mart said...

I think I will just smile and nod at that diagram!!


Welcome to the Hotseat WingCo


Enjoy your holiday John!

WJS said...

i have just come across your blog, it is excellent. i shall bookmark and check back!

i am in full support of the RNLI.

and that diagram, doesnt it just mean "search an area"!?

lifeboatjohn said...

Welcome WJS, glad you like the blog! Please pass it on.

Yes, the diagram does just mean search an area. However, unless you determine the correct area in the first place all will be in vain.

Of course it's not as complex as it first seems.

John

Anonymous said...

Enjoy the holidays, John! Let me know if you'll make it to Galicia this year.