---
kind: "section"
citation: "47 C.F.R. § 80.1121"
title: "47"
number: "80.1121"
heading: "Receipt and acknowledgement of distress alerts by ship stations and ship earth stations."
url: "https://uscodex.org/cfr/47/80.1121"
---

# §80.1121. Receipt and acknowledgement of distress alerts by ship stations and ship earth stations.

- (a) Ship or ship earth stations that receive a distress alert must, as soon as possible, inform the master or person responsible for the ship of the contents of the distress alert.
- (b) For VHF and MF, ships in receipt of a distress alert shall not transmit a distress alert relay, but should listen on the distress traffic channel for 5 minutes and, if appropriate, acknowledge the alert by radiotelephony to the ship in distress and inform the coast station and/or Rescue Coordination Center. Distress alert relays to “all ships” on these bands may only be sent by a ship who has knowledge that another ship in distress is not itself able to transmit the distress alert, and the Master of the ship considers that further help is necessary.
- (c) For HF, ships in receipt of a distress alert shall listen on the distress traffic channel for 5 minutes. If no distress communications are heard and if the call is not acknowledged by a coast station, the ship shall transmit a distress relay on HF to the coast radio station and inform the Rescue Coordination Center. Distress alert relays to “all Ships” on HF may only be sent by a ship who has knowledge that another ship in distress is not itself able to transmit the distress alert, and the Master of the ship considers that further help is necessary.
- (d) In cases where distress alert continues to be received from the same source, the ship may, after consultation with the Rescue Coordination Center, transmit a DSC acknowledgment to terminate the call.
- (e) A ship station in receipt of a shore-to-ship distress alert relay (see [§ 80.1113(e)](/cfr/47/80.1113.md?p=e)) should establish communication as directed and render such assistance as required and appropriate.

## Notes

### Amendments

[57 FR 9065, Mar. 16, 1992, as amended at 68 FR 46980, Aug. 7, 2003]

### Authority

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151-155, 301-609; 3 U.S.T. 3450, 3 U.S.T. 4726, 12 U.S.T. 2377.

### Source

Source: 51 FR 31213, Sept. 2, 1986, unless otherwise noted.

### Amendments

[57 FR 9065, Mar. 16, 1992, as amended at 68 FR 46980, Aug. 7, 2003]