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**** PSN equipment was not used in this incident, but we thought it was a good example of the usefulness of satellite communications. Two Sailors Rescued At Sea Using Magellan E-Mail Terminal 08/24/99 SAN DIMAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1999 AUG 24 (NB) -- By Steve Gold, Newsbytes. Satellite-based communications have saved the lives of two Norwegian brothers who were trapped on a sinking vessel some 300 miles from the Australian coast. The two men - Arne and Christian Froensdal - were rescued on August 18 from their sinking sailboat after using the Magellan GSC 100 handheld communicator to alert their rescuers. The Magellan unit is not a satellite telephone like Inmarsat and Iridium's current offerings, but is actually a mobile e-mail terminal that beams messages via the Orbcomm series of satellites. The unit also taps into the location information from the global positioning system (GPS) series of satellites to tell users where they are. Angela Linsey-Jackson, a spokesperson for Magellan, told Newsbytes that, thanks to their updated GPS information, the two brothers were, quite literally, able to e-mail their would-be rescuers with their precise location. "It was a lucky escape for them," she said, adding that she has also just heard that a skier who broke his leg recently was also able to use a Magellan Communicator to communicate with his rescuers. Magellan says that its portable GSC 100 e-mail messaging transmitter/receiver allows users to communicate from anywhere on Earth by accessing the Orbcomm series of satellites. The saga began in the early morning hours of August 18, more than 300 nautical miles off the East Coast of Australia, when the Froensdals, aboard their catamaran, the Iris, suffered structural failure and collapse of the mast. They were also experiencing 15-knot winds and nine-foot seas at the time. Along with their mast, they lost their VHF antenna. The only communications tool left on board was the Magellan GSC 100 unit. Arne Froensdal used the Magellan GSC 100 to send a distress message through the Orbcomm satellite network. Within a matter of minutes, Orbcomm customer operations received his message: "MAYDAY. Mast lost. Need immediate assistance. Please notify Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre Canberra, Australia." Lindsey-Jackson said that, by including their GPS coordinates with their mayday message, Orbcomm customer operations staff were able to notify the Australian Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC) of the position coordinates for the Froensdal's disabled catamaran. The RCC was then able to immediately launch a search-and-rescue mission. Meanwhile, Orbcomm customer service staff then sent a message to Arne Froensdal to inform him that the RCC had been notified. Orbcomm says that it received confirmation several hours later that a French military aircraft, using the GSC 100's precise location information, had located the crew and vessel and dropped a life raft. In a press statement, Scott Webster, Orbcomm's chairman, said that his organization was happy that the two men were safe. "This would not have been possible without the swift reaction of Orbcomm's customer operations department, as well as the immediate cooperation of the Australian RCC," he said. Magellan's Web site is at http://www.magellangps.com . Orbcomm's Web site is at http://www.orbcomm.com . Reported by Newsbytes.com, http://www.newsbytes.com . |
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