THE ASSEMBLY ,

RECALLING Article 15(j) of the Convention on the International Maritime Organization concerning the functions of the Assembly in relation to regulations and guidelines concerning maritime safety,

RECOGNIZING the need to improve maritime safety and to promote safety of life at sea,

NOTING that the Maritime Safety Committee has identified functional requirements and draft carriage requirements for the future global maritime distress and safety system which include the extensive use of satellite facilities,

NOTING ALSO that a number of countries are performing trials with the COSPAS-SARSAT system based on the use of low-orbital near-polar satellites,

NOTING FURTHER that the COSPAS-SARSAT Parties have invited Member Governments to participate in the COSPAS-SARSAT system,

BEARING IN MIND that the COSPAS-SARSAT system has demonstrated effective alerting and a high accuracy of determining the position of units in distress and has been successfully used in a number of real emergency situations,

BEING AWARE that the COSPAS-SARSAT system provides for use of existing emergency position-indicating radio beacons operating on 121.5 MHz with technical characteristics in accordance with ITU Radio Regulations and also for use of newly developed emergency position-indicating radio beacons operating in the frequency band 406 MHz to 406.1 MHz,

ALSO BEING AWARE that the World Administrative Radio Conference for the Mobile Services, 1983, adopted resolution No.205 relating to the protection of the frequency band 406 MHz to 406.1 MHz allocated to the mobile-satellite service,

HAVING CONSIDERED the recommendation made by the Maritime Safety Committee at its fiftieth session,

1. RECOMMENDS Member Governments:

(a) to encourage the use of the COSPAS-SARSAT system for alerting and position determination of units in distress using emergency position-indicating radio beacons;
(b) to participate in evaluating the COSPAS-SARSAT system using emergency position-indicating radio beacons operating in the frequency band 406 MHz to 406.1 MHz;
(c) to take appropriate measures to cease unauthorised transmissions in the frequency band 406 MHz to 406.1 MHz and also to participate in the monitoring programme of the International Frequency Registration Board of the International Telecommunication Union for identifying and eliminating interference caused by unauthorised equipment operating or causing interference in this band;