Britain's sea rescuers trial run drones as aid to saving lives

LONDON, May 2 (Xinhua) -- Drones have been tested by Britain's maritime rescue services for the first time in real-life search scenarios, it was announced Wednesday.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) have staged a special event to test the use of drones.

The week-long event took place along a stretch of the Irish Sea coastline at St Athan, Wales, with a selection of drones being used in four different search and rescue scenarios to explore how they could be used to help save lives.

The scenarios being tested this week are a shoreline search for a casualty, an offshore search for multiple casualties in the sea, a mud rescue, and a communications black spot where a drone is required to relay information between rescue teams and a casualty on a cliff.

A spokesman with MCA said: "These scenarios will evaluate the potential impact of using drones, also referred to as Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), on operations."

"Particular attention will be paid to how drones can work together with existing search and rescue teams...to enhance lifesaving capability and reduce risk to rescue teams."

Hannah Nobbs, from the RNLI's innovation team, said the event aimed to "provide realistic scenarios and an authentic operating environment to explore the use of drones in multi-agency operations."

"This week-long test event is the culmination of around two years of work, where we've explored the use of drones in collaboration with key search and rescue partners and industry experts."

The RNLI has a history of embracing new technology, from the introduction of cork life jackets in the 1800s to the design and build of waterjet-propelled lifeboats.

Phil Hanson from the MCA, said: "We are always ready to embrace working with new technology, especially if that technology could enhance search and rescue efficiency, save more lives and reduce risk to our personnel. It's too early to comment on how we will move forward from the trials. It is entirely possible that they could be an additional tool to use in search and rescue." Enditem