Search and Rescue
„Green rubber boat. 40 people on board, no life-saving equipment!“
During one of my recent monitoring flights onboard the aircraft “Seabird” operated by the search and rescue organization Sea-Watch.org in cooperation with the Humanitarian Pilots Initiative, we spotted a migrant boat in distress in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. We immediately informed all relevant authorities and sent out a mayday relay.
Fortunately, the rescue ship “GEO Barents” of the dedicated team of Doctors without Borders was in the area. Thanks to their swift response and expertise, every person on the precarious rubber boat, including women and children, was successfully rescued. They were brought to safety at the port of Livorno, Italy.
This is one of the good stories, I have to share. Unfortunately such positive outcomes are not always the case in these challenging situations. But the Seabird will continue to fly over the Central Mediterranean Sea, actively searching for boats in distress and for those in need.
Take-off from Lampedusa
Spotting for migrant boats in distress
Visual!
An overcrowded rubber boat with more than 40 people on board including women and children
Informing authorities and nearby rescue assets
GEO Barrents of Doctors without borders come to the rescue.
Distributing life jackets
Obersving the rescue operation
Rescue operation ongoing
All people could be resucued
Visualization of the orbits around the distress case with our aircraft.
Overview of todays monitoring flight.
Returning to Lampedusa
Landed
If you enjoyed this article, please consider to support me, so that I will be able to continue my work of documenting and sharing human rights issues around the globe. Thank you!
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
