Sec.  80.1111   Distress alerting.

   (a) The transmission of a distress alert indicates that a mobile unit or
   person is in distress and requires immediate assistance. The distress alert
   is a digital selective call using a distress call format in bands used for
   terrestrial radiocommunication or a distress message format, which is
   relayed through space stations.

   (b) The distress alert must be sent through a satellite either with absolute
   priority in general communication channels or on exclusive distress and
   safety frequencies or, alternatively, on the distress and safety frequencies
   in the MF, HF, and VHF bands using digital selective calling.

   (c) The distress alert must be sent only on the authority of the person
   responsible for the ship, aircraft or other vehicle carrying the mobile
   station or the mobile earth station.

   (d) All stations which receive a distress alert transmitted by digital
   selective calling must immediately cease any transmission capable of
   interfering with distress traffic and must continue watch on the digital
   selective call distress calling channel until the call has been acknowledged
   to determine if a coast station acknowledges the call using digital
   selective calling. Additionally, the station receiving the distress alert
   must set watch on the associated distress traffic frequency for five minutes
   to determine if distress traffic takes place. The ship can acknowledge the
   call using voice or narrowband direct printing as appropriate on this
   channel to the ship or to the rescue authority.

   [ 51 FR 31213 , Sept. 2, 1986, as amended at  68 FR 46980 , Aug. 7, 2003]