GMDSS REVISED

A new era in maritime safety

GMDSS Chapter 1 : Introduction

REVISED Maritime communications were changed dramatically in the final years of the 20th
Century when the advent of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System
A new era in (GMDSS) brought the shipping industry into the satellite era.

maritime safety
Chapter 2 : How GMDSS is evolving
GMDSS – the IMO’s safety system for ships in distress is to be overhauled and
brought up to date with a planned coming into force date of 1 January 2024.

Chapter 3 : New performance standards

It is more than 30 years since the GMDSS was developed and since then there have
been significant changes to the communications systems used by ships.

Chapter 4 : Calculating the cost

Safety communications have been at the heart of international rules on ship safety
for around a century now but are now in the process of undergoing modernisation
after the completion of a review.

Chapter 5 : Summary
Hopefully, the foregoing will have given ship operators a basic understanding of the
changes to GMDSS, and their implications brought about by the now completed review
of the system by the IMO.
 01
Introduction
Maritime communications were changed dramatically in
the final years of the 20th Century when the advent of the
Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS)
brought the shipping industry into the satellite era. GMDSS
also brought about the demise of the dedicated radio
officer, spreading the communications role among two or
three navigation officers and the master.

There had been satellite communication systems on a few

pioneering ships for around 20 years before GMDSS was initiated
but these had been installed for commercial reasons and were
mainly on cruise ships along with some of the newer vessels
of major operators. In the main these systems allowed some
prototype entertainment systems on cruise vessels and gave
merchant ships the ability to send and receive telexes – then the
main mode of international communications – without using an
intermediary coastal radio station.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 3

 Under GMDSS only those ships operating close to the coast
were exempt from installing at least an Inmarsat C for safety
communications purposes. For a while that was their sole
purpose and their use for any other purpose was frowned upon
if not totally forbidden. However, it was not long before the
commercial benefits of Inmarsat C were realised and although
not capable of instant two-way traffic, did at least speed up the
process of communication between ship and shore.

But in the fast moving world of modern communications,

GMDSS very rapidly became, if not obsolete at least well past
its best before date. Some of the elements mandated within
it were being dropped by some states and new means of
communications were more or less excluded having not been
written into the original rule book.

Competition for marine traffic between satellite service

providers is fierce but because of its monopoly role as GMDSS
enabler, Inmarsat always had the upper hand when it came to
offering commercial services.

But after its privatisation, lobbying for other service providers

to be added to GMDSS grew and eventually Iridium made
the breakthrough and has become accredited. The IMO
began a review of GMDSS some years back and this has now
been completed. It has made some changes to the system
and although much of it remains as before there are new
opportunities for its continual improvement.

These changes have necessitated major changes to the text

of SOLAS which will need to be understood and eventually
accommodated in company safety management systems and
procedures. This brief guide covers the main thrust of those
changes and the areas of SOLAS affected.

It cannot give all details as the final changes to SOALS texts

have yet to be adopted and published but it paves the way to
an understanding of the coming changes and hints at the future
direction of safety communications in the maritime sphere.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 4

 02
How GMDSS is
evolving
GMDSS – the IMO’s safety system for ships in distress is
to be overhauled and brought up to date with a planned
coming into force date of 1 January 2024.

The overhaul is not news as such because it has been debated

and discussed for several years since the IMO decided in 2008
that the system needed modernising. However, the final approval
for changes agreed to date were adopted at MSC 105 which
took place at the end of April this year. The process will involve
changes to some SOLAS chapters including a complete re-write
of Chapter IV – Radio Communications. There are a number of
operational changes, new performance standards for equipment
and changes to the carriage requirements.

It is fair to say that the advent of GMDSS, which was first

adopted in 1988, paved the way for a revolution in marine
communications.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 5

 Although the title is merely an abbreviation of Global Maritime
Distress & Safety System the changes wrought by GMDSS
transcend safety matters and have impacted almost every aspect
of maritime communications.

Before GMDSS, maritime communications were only possible by

standard radio equipment and were reliable over relatively short
distances. The three types of radio frequency Medium (MF),
High (HF) and Very High (VHF) each had their limitations. VHF
was useful only to around 60km and was basically line of sight,
MF had a longer range up to 400km but HF – which could be
refracted by the ionosphere layers in the atmosphere had a range
that could under ideal conditions extend to 3,000km.

A ship’s radio station would have been equipped for all of these
frequencies and would have been manned by a radio officer
whose sole task would have been communications.

When satellites began operating through the 1970’s, it became

clear that this provided a more reliable connection than HF and
led to the founding of Inmarsat by the IMO in 1979. The prime
purpose of Inmarsat was safety communications, but the first
ships equipped with an Inmarsat A station used it mainly for
commercial traffic.

When GMDSS arrived all ships, except those operating solely

within a short distance from land, were obliged to replace
existing equipment with a mandatory range of equipment able
to cover a wide range of communication options. One of the
requirements for ships without an Inmarsat A station was to
install an Inmarsat C station.

By dragging most ships into the satellite era, GMDSS did enable
most of the subsequent developments in commercial rather than
safety communications. It also gave Inmarsat, which has since
become a private company, a virtual monopoly at least in the
sectors of the shipping industry where compliance alone is the
deciding factor in equipment selection.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 6

 That situation has already changed after the IMO finally accepted
Iridium’s application to be a GMDSS provider in 2018.

There then followed a process of Iridium needing to gain

recognition from individual flag states and to produce GMDSS
compliant equipment for installation on board ships and at shore-
based facilities. It culminated in 2021 when the first ships were
fitted with Iridium GDMSS equipment.

The recently adopted IMO modernisation plan will likely result

in more services being recognised for GMDSS in addition
to Inmarsat’s current service, Iridium and Inmarsat’s Fleet
Broadband service. China’s BeiDou has an application progress
with technical evaluation of the service underway since 2020.
These alone mean that references to Inmarsat in SOLAS and
GMDSS texts needs to be amended to cover other service
providers.

The four Sea Areas delineated in GMDSS will need to change

to reflect coverage of different services and the possibility that
regional services might be approved in the future.

Some of the service providers of Maritime Safety Information

(MSI) included in GMDSS have now become obsolete so there
will be changes required here. The changes will mean that
references to specific services will be replaced by more generic
terms.

Previously, SOLAS contained references to communication

equipment in other Chapters beyond Chapter IV but these will
now be deleted and Chapter IV will become the focal point.

Search and Rescue is being improved under the new GMDSS

with recognition of new providers and the implementation of
the Cospas-Sarsat MEOSAR system. Along with this there will be
new performance standards for float-free EPIRBs which should
mean faster recognition of emergency signals.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 7

 To incorporate the new GMDSS system changes requires
amendments to a large number of IMO resolutions and
performance standards.

There will be corresponding new training requirements as well.

This latter point will apply particularly to non-SOLAS ships in the
GMDSS system. There are changes too, for the Codes for Special
Purpose Ships and MODUs.

With particular regard to the new performance standards

for equipment, shipowners and operators may be advised to
investigate these as they are published in the event that they are
contemplating new equipment purchases in the run up to the
January 2024 implementation date.

There are at least 11 new performance standards which were

approved at MSC 105, and these will be published in due course.
Equipment manufacturers should be ensuring that existing and
new models of their products meet the required standards.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 8

 03
New performance
standards – ensuring
compliance
It is more than 30 years since the GMDSS was developed
and since then there have been significant changes to the
communications systems used by ships. Therefore it is not
surprising that an update and revision of the system was
much needed.
The new revised GMDSS is not on the same scale as the
fundamental change that occurred previously in the 1990s,
but it has necessitated a rewriting of a whole chapter of
SOLAS and amendments to a number of others. In some
ways this is a sensible thing since it brings together regulations
on communications that have been diffused through SOLAS
chapters.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 9

 From an operational viewpoint, it is the 11 revised performance
standards for services and equipment that will need to be looked
at most carefully. Some of these may require older equipment to
be replaced on existing ships and will apply to new builds from
1st January 2024.

These revised performance standards will be promulgated in

new IMO resolutions shortly. They have not yet been published
(as of 17 June 2022) but the resolution numbers and texts are
known having been agreed at MSC 104 and adopted at MSC
105. The full list is detailed below with the new resolution titles,
the resolution they are superseding and a brief note on the main
changes.

RESOLUTION MSC.507(105) – SYSTEM PERFORMANCE

STANDARD FOR THE PROMULGATION AND
COORDINATION OF MARITIME SAFETY
INFORMATION USING HIGH-FREQUENCY NARROW-
BAND DIRECT-PRINTING

This replaces resolution A.699(17) and should be read in

conjunction with new Resolution MSC.508(105).

The main thrust of this is directed at flag and port states planning
to broadcast safety information on HF and seeking approval from
the IMO for the broadcast schedules.

RESOLUTION MSC.508(105) – PERFORMANCE

STANDARDS FOR THE RECEPTION OF MARITIME
SAFETY INFORMATION AND SEARCH AND RESCUE
RELATED INFORMATION BY MF (NAVTEX) AND HF

This amends or replaces resolution A.525(13),

MSC.148(77), MSC 148(77) as amended, Resolution
A.700(17).

It sets new standards for NAVTEX equipment that should

comply also with the requirements set out in resolutions

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 10

 A.694(17) and MSC.191(79).

There is not necessarily a mandatory requirement to replace

existing equipment although individual flag states can do this.
The resolution recommends flag states to ensure that NAVTEX
receiver equipment:

• if installed on or after 1 January 2024, conforms to

performance standards not inferior to those specified in the
annex to the new resolution.
• if installed on or after 1 July 2019, but before [1 January
2024], conforms to performance standards not inferior to
those specified in the annex to resolution MSC.148(77), as
amended.
• if installed on or after 1 July 2005, but before 1 July 2019,
conforms to performance standards not inferior to those
specified in the annex to resolution MSC.148(77).
• if installed before 1 July 2005, conforms to performance
standards not inferior to those specified in the annex to
resolution A.525(13).
• It also recommends that equipment for the reception of
NBDP broadcasts of navigational and meteorological warnings
and urgent information to ships by HF if installed on or after 1
January 2024 conforms to performance standards not inferior
to those specified in the annex to the present resolution. if
installed before [1 January 2024], conforms to performance
standards not inferior to those specified in the annex to
resolution A.700(17).

RESOLUTION MSC.509(105) – PROVISION OF RADIO

SERVICES FOR THE GLOBAL MARITIME DISTRESS
AND SAFETY SYSTEM (GMDSS)

Replaces A.801(19).

As with MSC.507(105) above, this new resolution is aimed at

administrations rather than shipping companies and deals with
provision of services in different sea areas.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 11

 More specifically it deals with the establishment of Coast Stations
providing DSC (Digital Selective Calling) services and covers basic
principles, criteria and availability.

RESOLUTION MSC.510(105) – PERFORMANCE

STANDARDS FOR SEARCH AND RESCUE RADAR
TRANSPONDERS

Supersedes resolutions A.530(13) and A.802(19), as

amended.

It sets new standards for Search and Rescue Transponders

(SARTs).

RESOLUTION MSC.511(105) – PERFORMANCE

STANDARDS FOR SHIPBORNE VHF RADIO
INSTALLATIONS CAPABLE OF VOICE
COMMUNICATION AND DIGITAL SELECTIVE CALLING

Replaces Resolution A.803(19).

Again, this updates the performance standard for equipment, in

this case VHF installations used for voice and DSC specified in
the GMDSS requirements as opposed to VHF for general use on
board vessels.

It will apply to new vessels from 1 January 2024, but existing

vessels can continue to use current equipment if permitted by the
flag state.

RESOLUTION MSC.512(105) – PERFORMANCE

STANDARDS FOR SHIPBORNE MF AND MF/
HF RADIO INSTALLATIONS CAPABLE OF VOICE
COMMUNICATION, DIGITAL SELECTIVE CALLING AND
RECEPTION OF MARITIME SAFETY INFORMATION AND
SEARCH AND RESCUE RELATED INFORMATION

Replaces Resolutions A.804(19), as amended, and

A.806(19), as amended

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 12

 As with the previous new resolution, this updates the
performance standard for equipment for installations used for
voice and DSC specified in the GMDSS requirements.

It will apply to new vessels from 1 January 2024, but existing

vessels can continue to use current equipment if permitted by the
flag state.

RESOLUTION MSC.513(105) – PERFORMANCE

STANDARDS FOR INMARSAT-C SHIP EARTH STATIONS
CAPABLE OF TRANSMITTING AND RECEIVING DIRECT-
PRINTING COMMUNICATIONS

Replaces Resolution A.807(19), as amended.

This new resolution updates the performance standard for

equipment for installations specified in the GMDSS requirements.

It will apply to new vessels from 1 January 2024, but existing

vessels can continue to use current equipment if permitted by the
flag state.

Any new equipment will need to be type-approved by Inmarsat

and since Inmarsat no longer has a monopoly on GMDSS
provision, not all ships will be obliged to carry an Inmarsat C
receiver for GMDSS purposes.

RESOLUTION MSC.514(105) – GUIDELINES FOR THE

AVOIDANCE OF FALSE DISTRESS ALERTS

Supersedes resolution A.814(19).

This new resolution does not cover any specific piece of GMDSS
equipment but is guidance for eliminating false distress signals
which do occur on a regular basis. Flag states are encouraged to
disseminate the information and also to consider establishing and
enforcing national measures to prosecute repeat offenders.

While there is no new requirement for equipment, the new

guidelines should be incorporated in appropriate procedures in a
company ISM System.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 13

 RESOLUTION MSC.515(105) – PERFORMANCE
STANDARDS FOR SURVIVAL CRAFT PORTABLE TWO-
WAY VHF RADIOTELEPHONE APPARATUS

Supersedes resolutions A.762(18), A.809(19) and

MSC.149(77).

The performance standards for survival craft VHF sets have been
updated regularly over time. This new resolution is a continuation
of that trend and is intended to ensure functionality of equipment
meant to be used only in emergency situations. The equipment
should always be inspected at regular intervals and maintained in a
serviceable condition.

There is no need to replace equipment on existing ships but any

new equipment installed after 1 January 2024 must comply with
the latest standard. Equipment installed between 1 July 2005 and
1 January 2024 should conform to performance standards not
inferior to those specified in the annex to resolution MSC.149(77).
Equipment installed from 23 November 1996 up to 1 July 200
should, conform to performance standards not inferior to those
specified in annex 1 to resolution A.809(19) any equipment
installed earlier is subject to the standards specified in annex 1 to
resolution A.762(18).

RESOLUTION MSC.516(105) – AMENDMENTS

TO THE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS FOR
RADIOCOMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT (RESOLUTION
MSC.80(70))

These are very minor changes applying to equipment

installed aft 1 January 2024 and used for two-way on-scene
radiocommunications for search and rescue purposes using
aeronautical frequencies 121.5 MHz and 123.1 MHz.

One change refers to using a colour for the equipment

distinguishing it from other portable equipment, while the other
incorporates a word change saying ‘Unless otherwise stated, the
equipment should comply with the applicable requirements of

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 14

 volume III, part II, chapter 2 of annex 10 to the ICAO Convention.

RESOLUTION MSC.517(105) – PERFORMANCE

STANDARDS FOR A SHIPBORNE INTEGRATED
COMMUNICATION SYSTEM (ICS) WHEN USED IN THE
GLOBAL MARITIME DISTRESS AND SAFETY SYSTEM
(GMDSS)

Supersedes resolution A.811(19) and applies to a shipborne

integrated communication system installed after 1 January
2024 either to a new vessel or as a replacement on an
existing vessel.

The performance standards cover the requirements for hardware,

software and documentation and include aspects such as
software and firmware maintenance, malfunction and restoration
interfacing, and documentation among others. Where the
resolutions apply to new equipment, it will be for manufacturers
to ensure that the equipment meets the requirements and has
appropriate type approval. For ship operators, the changes will
mean that any replacement equipment meets the new resolutions
and can properly interface with other elements of GMDSS that
may not be replaced.

Where new elements are added to the GMDSS system, there

will be related changes in training needs and in the STCW
requirements.

At the moment, the new resolutions, although approved, are

more than a year away from taking effect. This should give
ship operators sufficient time to analyse what is needed and to
investigate the market for new equipment. If current equipment
appears to be near end of life, it can safely be replaced with
equipment meeting current requirements and should not have to
be replaced after 1 January 2024.

Manufacturers of equipment will likely be dropping any lines

that do not meet the new standards and that could lead to
shortages of equipment in the run up to the 1 January 2024.
That is especially likely given the restricted supply of electronic
components at this moment in time.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 15

 04
Calculating the cost of
multiple providers and
integrating non-SOLAS
vessels into GMDSS
Safety communications have been at the heart of
international rules on ship safety for around a century now
but are now in the process of undergoing modernisation
after the completion of a review of the 1999 GMDSS
regime that was embarked upon in 2012. The review was
completed in 2021 and adopted at MSC 105 in April 2022.

As a consequence of the review, some obsolete requirements

were removed, and eleven resolutions were adopted that
amended the performance standard of much of the equipment
used on board ships.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 16

 The potential impact of that was discussed in the previous
chapter. One of the reasons for the review was a desire that
GMDSS be opened up to satellite service providers beyond
Inmarsat which had been granted a monopoly when GMDSS was
first established.

That monopoly was broken a few years ago when Iridium was
accepted as a service provider and Inmarsat itself was allowed to
integrate its Fleet Broadband service into GMDSS.

Other providers are already some way along the route towards
becoming accepted and no doubt more will follow. One likely
consequence of this is that maritime distress and safety services
will alter so that as well as the international service, other
systems will perhaps be able to provide a regional service with
different carriage requirements.

This aspect of GMDSS modernisation is not without its problems

as it is beginning to dawn that multiple service providers bring
problems that were not thought of previously. The biggest
issue is one of cost. At MSC 105, The MSC considered a report
from the Correspondence Group on Dissemination of Maritime
Safety Information (MSI) and Search and Rescue (SAR)-related
information.

For GMDSS to be effective, it is vital that information is

disseminated to ships and other users over every communication
network accepted as part of GMDSS.

Presently the cost of broadcasting this information is paid for

by IMO member states to the service providers. When there
was just one – or as now two – organisations involved the
cost would have been minimal, but it is accepted that there
are cost implications for information providers concerning the
dissemination of information over multiple GMDSS mobile
satellite services.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 17

 At MSC 105 it was agreed that dissemination of MSI and SAR
related information was an integral service of the GMDSS and
critical to preserving the safety of life at sea and, therefore, once
a mobile satellite service was recognized by the Organization,
it must then be used by all information providers covering its
service area.

The MSC urged MSI and SAR information providers to take

the necessary actions to expedite the use of all mobile satellite
services recognized by the Organization providing services within
their service areas for the dissemination of information to ships
navigating in those areas.

At the same time, the Sub-Committee on Navigation,

Communications and Search and Rescue (NCSR) was instructed
to continue considering technical solutions for the dissemination
and reception of MSI and SAR related information over multiple
services, including interoperability issues and broadcast
monitoring, with a view to addressing the operational and
financial burden of disseminating the information to ships. This is
something that will be addressed over future meetings of MSC.

Although the SOLAS Convention and the GMDSS were

developed with commercial shipping in mind and apply only
to ships over 300gt on international voyages, it should not
be forgotten that many other ships and craft put to sea and
sometimes are involved in safety incidents whether as victims or
as aid providers.

Unless a flag state sets requirements for vessels such as private

yachts, leisure craft, domestic ferries, cargo vessels, work boats
and fishing boats there is no legal obligation for vessels to carry
safety communications equipment or for those aboard to have
any specific training in emergency and SAR procedures.

Nevertheless, many of these ships do carry communications

equipment that is of a type similar to GMDSS equipment. VHF
radio is a typical example.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 18

 The growth in personal connectivity in recent years does however
mean that a lot of such vessels may have communications
equipment that is incompatible with GMDSS. In particular
many people now carry smart phones as their sole means of
communication across voice, text and internet platforms.

After MSC 105 this year, the IMO published MSC.1/Circ.803/

Rev.1 - 16 May 2022 which contains guidelines for the
participation of non-SOLAS ships in the GMDSS and guidance on
the development of training materials for GMDSS operators on
non-SOLAS ships. Being just 10 pages long, this document cannot
substitute for a more comprehensive investigation into how non-
SOLAS craft and their crews can benefit from participating in the
GMDSS in some way.

It does, however, serve as a good introduction to the subject and

should be brought to the attention of any owner or crew member
on a non-SOLAS ship.

To that end, it would be helpful if the owners and operators of

non-SOLAS fleets were to ensure that their vessels were properly
equipped and crew appropriately trained.

As personnel on leisure and fishing vessels probably feature most

in maritime casualty statistics, they too would likely benefit from
ending reliance on inappropriate cell phones or the like and
ensure that they have at least the basic equipment to initiate an
alert and to communicate with SAR operatives.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 19

 05
Summary
Hopefully, the foregoing will have given ship operators a
basic understanding of the changes to GMDSS, and their
implications brought about by the now completed review of
the system by the IMO.

In time a new GMDSS manual will be published by the IMO and

a new SOLAS book issued incorporating all of the changes made.
With all of the regulations governing safety communications now
contained within a single chapter of SOLAS, inadvertent falling
foul of the rules will hopefully be avoided.

As detailed in the text there are some discussions still going

on about the cost to states providing information to multiple
GMDSS service providers in the future.

This may or may not become a major problem especially as

currently there are only two approved providers with one or
two more progressing along the path.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 20

 How many more will decide to follow is unknown, many may
consider that the safety market is not for them and prefer to
offer only commercial services that can be rolled out without
needing to comply with any restricting requirements that
GMDSS may have.

Safety at sea is an important topic and GMDSS has a key role to

play in emergency situations. Ideally it will never need to be used
in earnest by any ship.

Sadly, accidents and incidents at sea will always be part of

shipping and it is best to be as prepared as possible to save lives
and property. GMDSS serves that function and by disseminating
safety information on a continuous basis probably helps prevent
some incidents from arising at all.

We hope that this short guide has been useful to you and if so
perhaps you could acknowledge that by sending a short message
confirming its usefulness.

GMDSS REVISED - A new era in maritime safety 21

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