SAR Convention 1979 (Hamburg)

The International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue was adopted at Hamburg on 27 April 1979 and entered force on 22 June 1985. It commits parties to set up a coordinated global SAR system, dividing the world’s oceans into search and rescue regions (SRRs) served by rescue coordination centers, so that aid reaches persons in distress regardless of nationality or location. The 1998 amendments restructured the technical annex around five functional areas. The Convention works alongside SOLAS Regulation V/33 (the master’s duty to assist) and is implemented operationally through the three-volume IAMSAR Manual.