Il documento è sostanzialmente strutturato in una parte preliminare, che si riferisce all’organizzazione generale e funzionale del Servizio SAR e in una seconda parte costituita dai piani locali dei 16 MRSC, contenente la globalità delle risorse disponibili e i collegamenti operativi locali.
Inoltre dal 1999, con l’autorizzazione del Ministero dei Trasporti, il Corpo mantiene un’unità navale della classe 800, addetta al soccorso, nelle acque del Lago di Garda. L’iniziativa viene rinnovata di anno in anno, in attesa che venga adottato un provvedimento normativo che formalizzi il servizio di soccorso da parte del Corpo sui laghi maggiori, completando, nell’interesse dello stesso Ministero, l’esercizio della funzione allo stesso attribuita in materia di sicurezza della navigazione interna.
La componente aerea della Capitaneria di Porto, inserita nell’organizzazione della rinominata “Guardia Costiera del Corpo delle Capitanerie di Porto”, trae le sue origini dall’attuazione della legge 979/82 “Disposizione per la difesa del mare”. I primi velivoli che vennero assegnati alla neo-costituita componente aerea del Corpo dello Stato, furono quattro Piaggio P 166DL3 nella versione SEM (Sorveglianza Ecologica Marittima), la loro consegna avvenne nel 1988.
Mentre il primo Reparto operativo dotato di elicotteri si concretizza proprio nella 1^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri di Luni-Sarzana, la costituzione del Reparto avviene formalmente nel dicembre del 1991. Non avendo ancora a disposizione una propria struttura, il primo periodo di attività addestrativa della neo-costituita Sezione viene svolto presso la locale Stazione Elicotteri (MariSTAeli Luni) della Marina Militare, che mette a disposizione anche le strutture necessarie e alcuni AB 212ASW per l’addestramento specifico dei piloti infine, non solo elicotteri e infrastrutture ma anche i piloti; poiché i primi equipaggi costituenti del nuovo Reparto erano quasi tutti ufficiali ex appartenenti ai ranghi della Marina Militare. Questa particolarità di aver creato un nuovo ente “prelevando” uomini e risorse tecniche, ha stabilito un forte legame con la “sorella maggiore” che si protrae anche ai giorni nostri. Il primo elicottero consegnato alla Guardia Costiera, appositamente configurato per il SAR, è stato l’AB 412CP “Koala 9-01”, la consegna è avvenuta il 13 aprile del 1993, ponendo così le basi per effettuare addestramento in modo autonomo e non più con i mezzi messi a disposizione dalla Marina. La completa autonomia venne raggiunta nel maggio del 1995 con la consegna delle qualifiche operative agli equipaggi dei “Koala”, mentre del dicembre avviene lo spostamento della 1^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri nel nuovo complesso costruito appositamente per la Guardia Costiera, un’area demaniale ad est della base di MariSTAeli Luni. Nel 2003 vengono completate le consegne degli AB 412CP, per un totale di 10 elicotteri, mentre in data 8 luglio 2010 avviene un altro passaggio fondamentale con l’arrivo a Sarzana del primo AW 139 “Nemo 11-01”, seguito dopo breve periodo da Nemo 03 (terzo esemplare consegnato il 29 ottobre 2010 alla Guardia Costiera di Luni e codificato 11-03).

Per le attività di routine e addestrative, la zona di impiego senza scalo intermedio degli equipaggi e degli elicotteri della 1^ Sezione Volo di Luni, spazia dal confine francese di Ventimiglia, nella zona ad ovest del territorio nazionale, mentre verso sud arrivano fino a Civitavecchia nel Lazio, questa limitazione operativa è legata esclusivamente dall’autonomia degli elicotteri, che è di circa 2 ore e 30 primi di volo, mentre in caso di operazioni reali di soccorso, gli equipaggi e gli elicotteri, possono essere chiamati ad operare in qualsiasi zona del territorio nazionale, in base alle esigenze del Centro Nazionale IMRCC.
Ora vediamo come sono composti gli equipaggi di volo durante le varie tipologie di missione:
- sono previsti a bordo degli elicotteri due piloti, un operatore di volo, un operatore recupero naufrago o aerosoccorritore con Brevetto di Subacqueo, mentre se l’elicottero deve operare fuori sede con degli scali in altri aeroporti è necessaria a bordo la presenza a di uno Specialista Capo Velivolo, queste attività vengono svolte indistintamente anche durante le ore notturne in quanto tutti gli equipaggi sono abilitati al volo strumentale ed all’utilizzo dei visori notturni NVG (Night Vision Goggles).
Abbiamo visto che ci sono vari gradi di comando che possono predisporre dell’intervento degli elicotteri della Guardia Costiera, quindi mi sembra doveroso anche spiegare quali sono i criteri che determinano un intervento di soccorso, questi si suddividono in tre macro situazioni operative:

1^ Situazione:
UCG delegato coordina e dirige con:
1. Propri mezzi;
2. Mezzi privati (art. 70 cod.nav);
3. Mezzi navali ed aerei di altre Autorità dello Stato.

2^ Situazione:
MRSC coordina direttamente se:
1. Condimeteo e la distanza dalla costa sono eccessive per le risorse dell’UCG;
2. Impiego ad ampio raggio dei mezzi aerei CP;
3. Impiego mezzi aeronavali MM e mezzi aerei AM

3^ Situazione:
IMRCC coordina direttamente se:
1. Disastro notevoli dimensioni;
2. Intervento che coinvolge più MRSC limitrofi;
3. Intervento esterno alla zona di competenza;
4. Azione a favore della bandiera nazionale in acque esterne qualora manchi il coordinamento dell’MRSC competente.

 English translation by Frank McMeiken

This article is dedicated to the 1^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri at Luni-Sarzana, and is the beginning of a journey which will see me engaged in producing a series of articles dedicated to the air component of the Guardia Costiera of the Capitaneria di Porto. In accordance with my now established policy, these articles have the principal scope of informing their readers of the institutional roles assigned to the Corpo and, above all, how they are performed.
Before expanding on the Sezione in question, it is worth examining is detail the development of the air component of the Guardia Costiera throughout Italian territory, and how the chain of command is organised to manage rescue interventions, together with an overview of the regional secondary organisation.
The air component of the Guardia Costiera operates from three air bases: Luni-Sarzana, home of the 1° Nucleo Aereo and the 1^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri, Pescara, with the 3° Nucleo Aereo, and, finally, Catania-Fontanarossa base of the 2° Nucleo Aereo and 2^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri.
In the following text we will explore the fundamental criteria behind the delivery of the service’s institutional tasks, the SAR (Search and Rescue) organisation as its principal and specialist role, and finally the general organisation and structure, not only that dedicated to the use of aircraft, but also naval assets.
D.P.R. 28.9.94 n°662, the Italian implementation law for the Hamburg Convention of 1979, introduced substantial innovations into the field of organisation and coordination of search and rescue operations in the Italian maritime sector. Under this legislation, rescue at sea departed from the concept of reacting to an emergency with whatever assets happened to be available and entered into a highly professional phase, with suitably equipped assets and specially trained crews.
The regulations set out a new and more functional organisations aspect for the sector, establishing the respective functions of the structures involved and, in particular, assigning the Comando Generale delle Capitanerie di Porto the role of assuring the organisation and the efficient coordination of the SAR service throughout the entire maritime rescue region, which extends well outside the boundaries of Italy’s territorial waters (12 nautical miles from the coastline), thereby continuing out into the open sea for joint operations with the neighbouring nations which border on Italy’s maritime area of responsibility.
The Comando Generale, in fact, assumes the functions of the IMRCC (Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre), and the Centro Nazionale di Coordinamento del Soccorso Marittimo (Roma), which has responsibility for all activities surrounding the search for and rescue of human life at sea, supporting the engagement of the aeronaval component of the Corpo delle Capitanerie di Porto, and coordinating the assistance of other military and civilian organisations which can make rescue assets available for SAR operations. The IMRCC, which is functionally inserted into the structure of the Centrale Operativa del Comando Generale, is on constant contact with the Rescue Coordination Centres of the other nations which border on the Mediterranean basin, ensuring the continual collaboration on an international level which is required by the Hamburg Convention.
The aforementioned “decreto 662/94” assigns the present 16 Direzioni Marittime the functions of Centri Secondari di Soccorso Marittimo MRSC (Maritime Rescue Sub Centres), which guarantee the coordination of maritime search and rescue operations, each of which in a specifically assigned area, and in accordance with the directives specified or delegated by the Centro Nazionale IMRCC. The bases of the 16 MRSC are at Genova, Livorno, Roma, Cagliari, Olbia, Napoli, Palermo, Catania, Reggio Calabria, Bari, Pescara, Ancona, Ravenna, Venezia, and Trieste.
The Comandi di Porto (Capitanerie di Porto, Uffici Circondariali Marittimi e Delegazioni di Spiaggia – Maritime Traffic Regional Offices and Beach Management Offices) are, however, identified as Unità Costiere di Guardia (UCG – Coastguard Units). The latter organise the intervention of air and sea assets located in their own areas of responsibility, and retains operational control over the, unless the IMRCC has made a different arrangement.
The Centri Secondari di Soccorso (Rescue Sub-Centres) and the UCG have the ability to call, in the case of necessity, through the request to the IMRCC, for the assistance of naval and air assets from any of the national institutions or private agencies.
To complete the national activation of the requirements of the Hamburg Convention and the associated operational regulations, the IMRCC published a dedicated “Piano SAR Marittimo Nazionale” (National Maritime SAR Plan). approved on 25 November 1996 by the Ministero dei Trasporti e della Navigazione (now the Ministero Infrastrutture e Trasporti).
The document is substantially structured into a preliminary section, which refers to the general and functional organisation of the SAR Service, and a second part which is constituted by the local plans of the 16 MRSC, containing an overview of the available resources and the local operational links.
Furthermore, since 1999, with the authorisation of the Ministero dei Trasporti, the Corpo has maintained a naval vessel of the 800 class, configured for rescue, on the waters of Lake Garda. This initiative is renewed on an annual basis, in the expectation that legislation will be passed that formalises the rescue service performed by the Corpo on the Italian lakes, permitting, in the interests of the same Ministry, the extension of the same attributes in terms of safety to internal waters.
The air component of the Capitaneria di Porto, inserted into the organisation of the renamed “Guardia Costiera of the Corpo delle Capitanerie di Porto”, traces its origins back to the enactment of Law (Legge) 979/82 “Disposizione per la difesa del mare (Arrangements for Maritime Protection)”. The first aircraft which were assigned to the newly constituted air component of this Corpo dello Stato, were four Piaggio P 166DL3 in SEM (Sorveglianza Ecologica Marittima) version, deliveries being commenced in 1988, while the first operational unit equipped with helicopters was the
1^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri at Luni-Sarzana, with the unit officially constituted in December 1991. Not yet having its own dedicated facility available the initially period of training activity for the newly formed unit was supported by the local Stazione Elicotteri (Maristaeli Luni) of the Marina Militare, which made available the requisite hangars and a few AB 212ASW for specific pilot training. This support was not, however, solely confined to buildings and helicopters, but also included pilots, as the first crews which constituted the new Sezione were almost all former officers drawn from the ranks of the Marina Militare. The practice of creating a new entity by “borrowing” men and technical resources established strong links with the “older sister” which continue to be maintained today. The first helicopter delivered to the Guardia Costiera, specifically configured for SAR, was AB 412CP “Koala 9-01”, received on 13 April 1993, enabling the bases to conduct their training autonomously and without the use of the equipment made available by the Marina. Complete autonomy was achieved in May 1995 following the issue of operational qualifications to the crews of the “Koala”, while in December the 1^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri relocated to a new and specifically constructed Guardia Costiera complex, a state-owned area ot the east of the MARISTAELI Luni base. In 2003 deliveries of the AB 412CP were completed, bringing the total to ten helicopters, while on 8 July 2010 another fundamental step occurred with the arrival at Sarzana of the first AW 139 “Nemo 11-01”, followed after a short period by Nemo 03 (the third example delivered on 29 October 2010 to the Guardia Costiera at Luni and coded 11-03).
On the completion of the training syllabus, the 1^ Sezione Elicotteri, and, as a consequence, part of the structure and personnel of the Comando Base Aeromobili di Sarzana, was designated by the Comando Generale as the “Centro Addestramento e Standardizzazione Equipaggi di Volo” (CASEV – Flight Crew Training and Standardisation Centre) for the helicopter component of the Corpo, destined to perform certification for pilots posted to the “412”, and, obviously ,to perform type conversion onto the “139”. As part of the unit’s training function, the personnel of the 1^ Sezione Elicotteri also provided the technical support for the constitution of the 2^ Sezione Elicotteri at Catania in 2006.
Having spent some time discussion the formation of the “Base Aerea”, it should be recorded that the infrastructure at Sarzana includes the main runway, despite the fact that the based components operate only helicopters. In effect, the initial plans for the constitution of the air base specified the presence of fixed wing aircraft (P 166), which in effect had operated from Sarzana for a considerable period (from 1992 to 2006); subsequently, due to a restructuring of the flying units, the Comando Generale decided to re-deploy them to the bases at Catania-Fontanarossa and Pescara Fontanelle.
Structurally the air base at Luni-Sarzana is composed of three different sections which report to the Comando di Base, these being: the 1^ Sezione Elicotteri, the CASEV, and the 1° Nucleo Aereo which, although without its own aircraft, performs part of the maintenance activities on the assets operated by the other Nuclei Aerei; engaged in the present establishment are some 120 servicemen, of which 50% are assigned to the Sezione Volo Elicotteri, with the remainder obviously serving with the other two Comandi.
The base at Sarzana is assigned a territorial area of responsibility which falls under the organisational and territorial control of the Direzione Marittima di Genova, which, together with the Direzione Marittima di Livorno, have the permanent authority over the use of the aircraft for SAR operations within their own jurisdictions. Now, however, we will examine who controls the operational activities of the 1^ Sezione: coastguard patrol operations, maritime policing, and rescue operations mounted by the Sezione Elicotteri at Sarzana are coordinated at various levels, varying obviously on the basis of the type of intervention required. In the main, the prime generator of task is the MRSCs at Genova and Livorno, this despite the fact that they are on the second tier of the national organisation, but hold the competence for the traditional working areas of the helicopters of the 1^ Sezione. After the MRSC, clearly the highest authority to organise missions is the IMRCC, which responds to and organises interventions on a national scale in the zones of competence of the remaining MRSC.
As I described in full in the introduction, the roles of the Corpo and the Sezione Elicotteri are principally focussed on the protection of the marine environment and rescue at sea, and can synthetically be summarised into the following mission types:
- training;
- forest fire fighting;
- anti-pollution;
- beach patrol;
- maritime patrol;
- immigration monitoring/prevention;
- merchant shipping/fishing fleet inspection;
- leisure craft monitoring;
- exercises;
- water quality monitoring;
- assistance during sporting events;
- protection;
- inshore fishing/trawling;
- presence/show of force;
- marine reserve monitoring;
- SAR (Search and Rescue);
- illegal netting;
- transport of patients/casualties/organs;
- logistical transport;
- VIP transport;
- monitoring red tuna;
- transfer.
For routine or training activities, the zone of operations (without an intermediate stop) for the crews and helicopters of the 1^ Sezione Volo at Luni extends from the French border at Ventimiglia, on the western extent of Italian territory, while to the south the border is at Civitavecchia in Lazio. This operational limitation is exclusively dictated by the endurance of the helicopters, which is around 2 hours 30 minutes, while in the case of real rescue operations, the crews and helicopters can be called upon to operate in any area of national territory, based on the requirements issued by the Centro Nazionale IMRCC.
In terms of the composition of the flight crews during the various types of mission, first on the list are two pilots, followed by a crew person, a casualty recovery operator or an air rescuer with a diving qualification, while if the helicopter is required to mount missions away from the home base, it is essential to carry an aircraft Crew Chief. These operations can be conducted either during the day or during night-time, as all the crews are qualified in instrument flying and in the used of NVG (Night Vision Goggles).
We have explored the various levels of command which can request the intervention of a helicopter from the Guardia Costiera, and we now turn to examine the criteria which determine the requirements for a rescue operation; these can be divided into three macro operational situations:

1st Situation:
The delegated UCG coordinates and manages:
1. Its own assets;
2. Private assets (operating under art. 70 of the code of navigation);
3. Naval and air assets of other state services.

2nd Situation:
MRSC coordinates directly if:
1. The weather conditions and distance from the coast are too excessive for the resources of the UCG;
2. Long range use of CP air assets is required;
3. Air and sea assets of the MM and air assets of the AM are required

3rd Situation:
The IMRCC coordinates directly if:
1. It is a disaster of significant dimensions;
2. The operation involves several adjoining MRSCs;
3. The operation is outside the area of responsibility;
4. The mission is on behalf of an Italian flagged vessel in foreign waters where coordination with the responsible MRSC is lacking.
To bring this article to a just conclusion, it is worth spending a few moments discussing a specific type of training (rescue at sea) which is regularly undertaken by the men and women of the 1^Sezione Volo Elicotteri. The principal motives for this choice were fundamentally two, the first represented by the fact that I was able to personally this activity, conducted with dedication and enthusiasm, though my presence on board AB 412CP “Koala 04” which in company with a brand new AW 139, “Nemo 03”, were engaged in operational training of survivor rescue operators, but above all because it is a specialist activity which constantly involves the crews of the Guardia Costiera. It must also be reported that statistically, the operations performed by the 1^ Sezione Volo Elicotteri at Luni cover some 60% of the flying hours, while the remaining 40% is dedicated to operational activities. These figures should certainly not diminish the operational aspect, as when rescue operations are successfully concluded, guaranteeing the safety of human life, it is due to the constant training activity previously undertaken.
Flight crews for this type of mission are always composed of two pilots, an crewperson, a survivor recovery or air rescue operator, while in the case of training missions the number of crewmembers can be increased on the basis of the nature of the training, such as on the mission which I accompanied, which featured an instructor and two students.
There are principally two types of rescue at sea, that of people who for a variety of reasons have finished up in the sea, often following the sinking of the ship which was carrying them, or recovery of a casualty directly off a ship. In both cases the greater number of recoveries are performed by use of the winch, while is some sporadic cases there are direct landings on the ship, which obviously must be predisposed to accept the helicopter.
What is the determining factor for a positive outcome of a rescue operation which uses the hoist? The answer is simple, perfect synergy between the hoist operator and the pilot. In fact, after flying the helicopter into the rescue area, the pilot loses his visual contact with the target to rescue, which, not un-naturally, is located beneath the aircraft. At this point control of the operation passes to the winch operator who, thanks to continuous intercom instructions passed to the pilot, enables the aircraft to be manoeuvred into position. The rescue operator then intervenes, jumping into the sea to assist the casualty, and once the person has been collected, the pair are winched aboard the helicopter. It is worth mentioning that usually operations conducted with the winch are performed from an altitude of 30-35 feet for the recovery, while to launch divers the helicopter descends to around 10-15 feet above sea level. It must be re-emphasised that this final phase is entirely managed by the winch operator who, thanks to his training during which the operations is frequently repeated, acquires the capacity to best manage the recovery, and certainly not always in the nearly perfect weather conditions that were experienced when I was on board the Koala, but, unfortunately, often in conditions bordering on the limits of the impossible.

We also discussed the recovery of a person directly from a vessel under way. This situation mainly occurs when one of the crew or passengers falls ill, and is rarely down to a problem with the ship. The recovery can be effected by landing directly onto the ship where a dedicated helideck is available, a fairly common feature of cruise liners, or by the use of the hoist. For this eventuality live training sessions are frequently conducted, with the ship detecting large vessels sailing off the Ligurian coast and, after establishing contact on the international distress channel, requesting permission from the captain to simulate the descent of an operator and the subsequent lift-off of a casualty. In the main, the ship continues on its desired track without any problem or disturbance; this could appear strange, but these operations also work in favour of the ship’s crew, as then can be written into the ship’s log as training practice.
The opportunity to spend some time on board the aircraft permitted me to obtain some information concerning the entry into service of the new AW 139; although fairly obvious, the opinion is very positive, particularly in respect of the increased endurance of the Nemo, the FCS (Flight Control System), a digital flight control system which is particularly helpful to the pilot, especially when hovering, and guarantees a high level of stability. Clearly appreciated are the new state of the art technologies present in the cockpit of the “139”. The only downsides, if they are really looking for them, is the lack of skids, as on the “412” which offer better stability during deck landings than the tricycle wheeled undercarriage of the AW 139, and the Selex Galileo Gabbiano T 20N surface search radar, which offers a slightly inferior performance to that fitted in the AB 412CP (APS 71-7V2). In conclusion, I must report that during their training missions the crews of the Guardia Costiera are capable of changing their assigned “task” at a moment’s notice, enabling them to respond immediately to a request for assistance from anyone in difficulty.