1 The Sub-Committee on Radiocommunications and
Search and Rescue (COMSAR), at its ninth session (7 to 11 February
2005), noted that MSC 79 in December 2004 had agreed, in principle,
based upon a realistic analysis of the comprehensive information received
from Inmarsat Ltd. on the future viability of the Inmarsat L-band
EPIRB system, with the conclusion of IMSO that there was no reasonable
justification for requiring Inmarsat Ltd. to make the considerable
investment needed to ensure continued provision of the Inmarsat-E
service beyond 1 December 2006, and had also agreed that the service
should be closed on that date, subject to the commitments given by
the company. COMSAR 9 further noted that accordingly, MSC 79 had also
requested IMSO to oversee the orderly closure of the Inmarsat-E service,
ensuring that no existing registered L-band EPIRB users were left
without equivalent EPIRB cover at any time.
2 The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC), at its
eightieth session (11 to 20 May 2005), following the recommendation
of COMSAR 9 and recognizing the importance of additional information,
agreed to circulate the additional information on closure of Inmarsat-E
services, given at annex.
3 Member Governments are invited to bring the
annexed information to the attention of all parties concerned.