LAND SEARCH AND RESCUE ADDENDUM to the National Search and Rescue Supplement to ...

278 Pages·2011·5.69 MB·English

LAND SEARCH AND RESCUE
ADDENDUM
to the
National Search and Rescue Supplement
to the
International Aeronautical and Maritime
Search and Rescue Manual
Version 1.0

November 2011

Department of Homeland Security
Department of Interior
Department of Commerce
Department of Defense
Department of Transportation
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Federal Communications Commission
(www.uscg.mil/nsarc)
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Foreword 

Land SAR.
The National Search and Rescue Committee (NSARC) defines “land SAR” as the provisioning
of civil SAR services for persons in distress or missing within the land areas of the U.S.,
including persons in distress in aircraft.
NSARC recognized there was a gap in national level guidance for land SAR planners and
responders. As a result, NSARC agreed to develop a Land Search and Rescue Addendum to the
National SAR Supplement (NSS) to the International Aeronautical and Maritime Search and
Rescue Manual (IAMSAR Manual). This work was assigned to an NSARC Task Force led by
the U.S. Air Force (USAF), National Park Service, National SAR School, and coordinated
through the NSARC Secretariat.
The main objective of the Task Force was to draw on relevant best practices and established
training and procedures to provide official guidance to Federal land SAR authorities. The
Addendum was also envisioned to be used voluntarily for information, training, and operations
within the non-Federal SAR community.
Although much of the information in this Addendum is unique to land SAR, the Addendum does
not stand alone; it adds to relevant portions of the NSS and is a companion to other Addenda to
the NSS.
After two years of extensive research and development of the principles, search theory, and
practical guidance concerning land SAR operations, the NSARC Correspondence Work Group
presents the Land SAR Addendum to all Federal SAR responders as foundational guidance for
lifesaving operations.
Search theory, best practices shared, and lessons learned from previous SAR missions will
continue to improve the SAR responder’s ability to save lives. NSARC is committed to
improving this Addendum when new information is obtained.
It is the NSARC Correspondence Work Group’s desire that Federal SAR responders who
conduct land SAR missions, as well as other State, Tribal, Territorial, and local SAR authorities,
will find this Land SAR Addendum an invaluable resource in support of future lifesaving
missions.

Correspondence Work Group
National Search and Rescue Committee

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Table of Contents 

Letter of Promulgation iii
Foreward v
Table of Contents vii
List of Figures ix
List of Tables xi
Glossary xiii
List of Acronyms xxv
Introduction xxix
Part 1: U.S. SAR System 1-1
Section 1-1: Land SAR 1-3
Section 1-2: Key References 1-13
Section 1-3: Federal SAR Authorities 1-15
Section 1-4: Rescue Coordination Centers (RCCs) 1-25
Section 1-5: Non-Federal SAR Responsibilities 1-33
Section 1-6: International SAR System 1-35
Section 1-7: NIMS 1-43
Section 1-8: International SAR System - NIMS/ICS System Integration 1-45
Section 1-9: Special SAR Operations 1-49
Part 2: Resources and Capabilities 2-1
Section 2-1: Land SAR Resources 2-3
Section 2-2: SAR Personnel Considerations 2-19
Section 2-3: SAR Volunteers 2-21
Part 3: Communications and Public Relations 3-1
Section 3-1: Communications 3-3
Section 3-2: Family, Media, and Public Relations 3-9
Part 4: Operations 4-1
Section 4-1: Awareness and Initial Actions 4-3
Section 4-2: Land SAR Missions (Non-Aircraft) 4-7
Section 4-3: Missing Aircraft SAR Missions 4-9
Section 4-4: SAR Resource Strategies and Tactics 4-15
vii
Section 4-5: Rescue 4-37
Section 4-6: Non-Rescue Operations 4-41
Section 4-7: Geo-referencing 4-43
Section 4-8: SAR Case Documentation 4-53
Section 4-9: Briefing and Debriefing SAR Teams 4-55
Part 5: Search Planning 5-1
Section 5-1: Search Planning Basics 5-3
Section 5-2: Search Planning Methods and Tools 5-9
Section 5-3: Developing the Search Area 5-19
Section 5-4: Distress Beacon Search Concepts 5-27
Section 5-5: Extended Search Planning Concepts (General) 5-37
Section 5-6: Extending Missing Aircraft Search Concepts 5-41
Section 5-7: Extended Ground Search Concepts 5-43
Section 5-8: Probability of Detection (POD) Experiments 5-49
Section 5-9: Subsequent Searches 5-51
Appendices TOC-1
Appendix A: Comparison – International SAR System vs. NIMS/ICS A-1
Appendix B: Cospas-Sarsat Doppler Location Technique B-1
Appendix C: SAR Pre-Plan Elements C-1
Appendix D: Search Urgency Determination Form D-1
Appendix E: Lost Person Questionnaire E-1
Appendix F: Initial Missing Person Checklist F-1
Appendix G: Lost Person Behavior Category: Dementia (Alzheimer’s) G-1
Appendix H: Requests for Federal SAR Assistance H-1
Index Index-1
viii
List of Figures 

Figure 1-1-1: U.S. SAR Regions 1-6
Figure 1-1-2: Incident Command System with SAR Operations 1-8
Figure 1-6-1: SAR Stages 1-37
Figure 1-8-1: Basic ICS Structure 1-47
Figure 1-9-1: The “Olive” 1-50
Figure 2-1-1: Overview – International Cospas-Sarsat Program 2-16
Figure 4-4-1: Confinement/Attraction Tactics 4-18
Figure 4-4-2: Route (Area) Search 4-22
Figure 4-4-3: Route Searches (continued) 4-23
Figure 4-4-4: Area Search (Following a Compass Bearing) 4-24
Figure 4-4-5: Area Search: Grid Sweep Search Pattern 4-25
Figure 4-4-6: Expanding Circle Search 4-26
Figure 4-4-7: Aviation Trackline Search Pattern 4-30
Figure 4-4-8: Aviation Parallel Search Pattern 4-31
Figure 4-4-9: Aviation Creeping Line Grid Search 4-31
Figure 4-4-10: Aviation Sector Search Pattern 4-32
Figure 4-4-11: Aviation Expanding Square Pattern Search 4-32
Figure 4-4-12: Aviation Contour Search Pattern 4-33
Figure 4-7-1: U.S. National Grid (USNG) 4-45
Figure 4-7-2: How to Use the USNG 4-46
Figure 4-7-3: Global Area Reference System (GARS) 4-49
Figure 4-7-4: GARS Overlay 4-50
Figure 5-1-1: Overview – Search Objectives, Strategies, and Tactics 5-4
Figure 5-2-1: Sweep Width 5-12
Figure 5-2-2: Chart - POD vs. Coverage (C) 5-15
Figure 5-3-1: Relationship between Theoretical, Statistical, and Subjective-Deductive 5-24
Search Areas (Missing Person Search)
Figure 5-4-1: Example – Determination of Audible Distress Beacon Report 5-31
Figure 5-4-2: Example #1 – Aircraft ELT Signal DF 5-33
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Figure 5-4-3: Example #2 – Aircraft ELT Signal DF 5-34
Figure 5-5-1: Planning “P” Operations Planning Cycle 5-38
Figure 5-7-1: Initial PSR Values 5-44
Figure 5-7-2: Adjusted PSR Values (After Optimal Search of Top Four Segments) 5-45
Figure 5-7-3: Adjusted PSR Values (After Optimal Search of Top Seven Segments) 5-45
Figure 5-9-1: Example – POD 5-52
cum
Figure 5-9-2: Formula for POC 5-52
new
Figure 5-9-3: Calculation of POD 5-52
cum
Figure 5-9-4: Example – POC 5-53
cum
Figure B-1: Distress Beacon Frequency Received by Satellite vs. Time for Two B-2
Satellite Passes
Figure B-2: Doppler Plot B-3
Figure G-1: Dementia (Alzheimer’s Initial Reflex Tasking Actions G-7
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