Matthew J. Mitchell
Founder and CEO, IASARC, www.iasarc.org
Email info@iasarc.org
https://doi.org/10.61618/PAID3355
If you were to assign a letter grade to humanity for its efforts in aiding people in distress, what would it be? Few would dispute that all people and nations have a fundamental moral obligation to assist those in need. Additionally, countries have an internationally recognized duty to provide search and rescue (SAR) services and to ensure coordinated planning for those services. Unfortunately, according to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), SAR “continues to represent the major challenge for States when performing their safety oversight function. The overall EI [Effective Implementation] … is below 50 percent” 1 (emphasis added). From a global standpoint, we are failing.