User:Cma02/sandbox

Features • Improved information sharing and coordination with the Department of Homeland Security and federal, state and local first responders • Geographic display to assist in identifying hoax callers, conserving valuable response resources • Supports Digital Selective Calling (DSC), which allows mariners in distress with DSC-equipped radios to transmit, at the push of a button, their exact GPS position and vital vessel information to the Coast Guard and other DSC-equipped vessels • Enhances clarity and provides recording and playback capabilities for all communications • Simultaneous monitoring and relaying of information over multiple radio frequencies • Provides portable tower communications during emergencies and natural disasters • Automates transmission of urgent marine information broadcasts [1]

It was created to better locate mariners in distress and save lives and property at sea and on navigable rivers.

Rescue 21 will meet the safety requirements needed for the expanding Marine Transportation System (MTS), as well as International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) standards. Rescue 21 also provides modernized command and control capabilities critical to the performance of Coast Guard missions.

“The Coast Guard is committed to increasing our capabilities at sector command centers. Rescue 21 is a key part of the Coast Guard’s recapitalization of its maritime communications infrastructure.” –Rear Adm. John H. Korn

For Boaters: Make sure you have a VHf radio equipped with digital selective calling (DSC). Your DSC radio will send an automated digital distress alert containing your Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI) number, position, if interfaced with GPS, and the nature of distress to other DSC-equipped vessels and rescue facilities with a push of a button. This allows the coast guard to respond rapidly and accuratly.