EPIRB REGISTRATION

Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) registration is available through our flag.

Requirements are:

• EPIRB Application
• EPIRB test report

Owners should make sure that the EPIRB is properly reprogrammed with the country code for Sierra Leone by a competent technician on the ship that is registered with us. Note – Any competent technician is allowed to do this, we do not insist on a technician being “authorized” by us.

Owners should advise SLISR in the event of any changes in the EPIRB registration details e.g. change of contact name/numbers.

On deletion or bareboat charter out of a ship from SLISR we will remove the entry for the ship from the IBRD.

The following information may be helpful to know:

406 MHZ EPIRB UNIQUE IDENTIFIER NUMBER

Definition: A unique alphanumeric identifier of a 406 MHZ satellite EPIRB.
Used for: Identification of 406 MHZ EPIRBs
Data element data type: character string
Data element maximum length: 15 characters and is composed of the numerical values 0 (zero) to 9 (nine) and the letters A to F

Data element domain: hex number
Alias name: Unique Identifier Number, or 406 MHZ EPIRB HEX number.

How a 406 MHz EPIRB works:

Each 406 MHz EPIRB is programmed with its own 15-character Unique Identification Number (UIN) that identifies its owner and instantly provides emergency contact information to rescuers. When the 406 MHz EPIRB, without GPS location data transmission capability, is activated, its digital 406 MHz signal is transmitted to a constellation of 10 COSPAS-SARSAT satellites in polar orbits, each of which makes an orbital pass every 90 minutes. Using the Doppler shift technique, the satellites can determine a fix on the origin of the signal. Because of the satellite’s sophisticated tracking capability, a Doppler position accuracy of 2.3 nautical miles is possible.

The distress signal with its UIN and position is stored by the satellite. As the low-earth orbiting LEOSAR satellites must pass over a ground monitoring station, or Local User Terminal (LUT), to download data, it can take as long as 1 hour for the information to reach ground personnel. The LUT forwards the data to a Mission Control Center where personnel call the emergency contact numbers registered by the 406 MHz EPIRB owner / user to make verification and confirm background information, prior to launching a rescue operation through a local Rescue Coordination Center.

A 406 MHz EPIRB with GPS capabilities is even more accurate because it utilizes GPS-derived position information to transmit precise Lat/Lon coordinates. These 406 MHz signals with GPS data are received by a geostationary high earth orbiting GEOSAR satellite. This system reduces the time it takes to notify search-and-rescue personnel to as little as 2 – 15 minutes, and greatly increases the accuracy of the position information they receive to within .05 nautical miles or 100 meters.

BEACON DECODE / VERIFY PROGRAM:
http://www.cospas-sarsat.org/Beacons/decode.htm