China will set up an airborne offshore search and rescue (SAR)
system to reinforce its three-dimensional rescue service, an
official said.
The Ministry of
Communications purchased two S-76C+ rescue helicopters from
the US-based Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation on Tuesday, the
first step towards establishing SAR for the nation.
"As a large
shipping country, China lags far behind in offshore search
and rescue," said Song Jiahui, director of the rescue
and salvage bureau under the Ministry of Communications.
Before now, China
had no sea rescue helicopters, although it has 80 general-use
helicopter in operation.
It is essential
for China to equip its 32,000 kilometer-long coastline with
rescue helicopters, he added.
He said the bureau
dealt with around 300 distress calls in Chinese waters from
January to October this year.
"We are not
only selling helicopters but helping China's SAR technical
research," said Richard Latham, president of China-UTIO
(United Technologies International Operations), which owns
Sikorsky.
He said they would
deliver on time and provide a comprehensive after-sale service.
SAR helicopters
are superior to lifeboats in both speed and their ability
to search a wreck site whatever the weather.
Configured with
sophisticated equipment such as the forward-looking infra-red
system and the four-axis auto hovering system, the S-76C+
helicopter can detect and determine how many people are in
the water.
The two helicopters
will be delivered next year and deployed at Shanghai's Salvage
and Rescue Bureau.
The ministry will
acquire four more helicopters for SAR as part of the 10th
Five-Year Plan (2001-05).
These helicopters
will be assigned to bureaux in Guangzhou of Guangdong Province
and Yantai of Shandong Province, Song said.
(China Daily 12/14/2000)
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