RESPONSE TO FLARE
SIGHTINGS
Nov 2011
CANADIAN
CANADIANCOAST
COASTGUARD
GUARDAUXILIARY
AUXILIARY- -PACIFIC
PACIFIC
Flare Sightings
CANADIAN COAST GUARD AUXILIARY - PACIFIC
Flare Sightings
• In the event of a flare getting reported to
JRCC, there a a number of questions which
will need to be asked to narrow down the
area to be searched.
• In the event a rescue vessel sights a flare, it
is useful for them to know what information
they will be asked for and why.
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Flare Types
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Flare Types - Parachute
• Uses parachute to provide
maximum illumination/
detection time
• Visible over a large area
• Rapid rise, slow descent
• Average height: 1000-1200
feet
• 14-20 mile nominal range
• 30-40 second burn duration
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Flare Types - Twin Star B
• Rockets or shells, throwing red
stars fired one at a time at short
intervals, shot from a pistol or
pen gun
• Rapid rise, rapid decent
• Average height: 250-400 feet
• 15-17 mile nominal range
• 5.5 second min. burn duration
• Red or orange
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Flare Types - Hand C
• Steady burn
• No apparent rise or fall
• 50-120 second burn
duration
• 8-16 mile nominal range
• No altitude
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Flare Height
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Flare Height
• The angle of observation can be determined
from:
1. Angle above the horizon
2. Angle below the horizon
3. Origin to apex
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Flare Height
• Angle of observation. Often the reporting
source will not be able to accurately estimate
the angle of elevation without some
assistance.
• The angle of elevation is the angle measured
from the horizon to the top of the trajectory.
• If the origin of the flare is observed, the
reporting source may measure the angle from
the origin to the top of the trajectory.
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Flare Height
• This method of determining the angle may be
helpful when the horizon cannot be seen or
used as a reference.
• Unless the reporting source’s height of eye is
greater than the height of the flare at the top
of its trajectory, the flare will normally appear
to rise above the horizon.
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Flare Height 1
• Angle above the horizon
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Flare Height 1
• If the flare is observed above the horizon at
the apex of its trajectory, then its distance
from the reporting source will depend on the
reporting source’s height of eye, the observed
angle above the horizon and the height of the
flare above the surface.
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Flare Height 2
• If the reporting source is high enough, and
the flare is low enough at the top of its
trajectory, then it will not appear to rise
above the horizon.
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Flare Height 2
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Flare Height 2
• If this happens,then the flare must be
between the reporting source and the
horizon.
• Angles below the horizon will only occur
when the reporting source is really high up,
such as in an aircraft.
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Flare Height 2
• If this happens,then the flare must be
between the reporting source and the
horizon.
• Angles below the horizon will only occur
when the reporting source is really high up,
such as in an aircraft
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Flare Height 3
• Angle from origin to apex
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Flare Height 3
• The reporting source may not have a visible
horizon to use as a reference for measuring
angles, but may be able to estimate the angle
between the origin and maximum height of
the flare.
• Because the origin can be seen, the flare
must be closer than the distance of the
horizon, if the horizon could be seen.
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Flare Height 3
• You may not be able to see the distress
object, but you were able to see where it
• came from.
• This angle is the angle from the Origin to the
Apex (peak).
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Flare Height Estimation
• The closed fist
method is best for
estimating the
height of a flare.
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Flare Height Estimation
• Unless the reporting source’s height of eye is
greater than the height of the flare at the top
of its trajectory, the flare will normally appear
to rise above the horizon.
• In this situation, when the bottom of the fist is
aligned on the horizon relatively accurate
estimates of small vertical angles can be
made.
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Flare Height Estimation
• Brief the reporting source on this reference
system. “If you hold your fist at arm’s length,
with your thumb on top and the bottom of
your fist on the horizon, was the top of the
trajectory above or below the top of your fist?”
• If the flare was sighted below the top of the
fist, have the reporting source attempt to
more accurately estimate the angle with the
horizon.
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Flare Height Estimation
• With hand-held flares, and even twin star
flares if the reporting source is high enough,
the flare may not rise above the visible
horizon if it originates between the reporting
source and the horizon.
• The reporting source should be then be
asked to align the top of the index finger with
the horizon and estimate the apparent
distance below the horizon using the fist
method described above.
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Flare Height Estimation
• Not more than ____°
Not less than __°
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Flare Height Estimation
• Estimates of 3 fingers or half a hand can be
extremely useful.
• Obtain the final estimate in terms such as not
less than 1/2 half and not more than one and
a half hands.
• Convert number of fingers of fractions of
hands to degrees based upon the figure
above.
• Each finger equals 2 degrees.
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Flare Height Estimation
• An estimate of “definitely less than a fist, but
definitely more than a quarter of a fist,”
translated to degrees as definitely less than 8
degrees but more than 4 degrees, can
tremendously limit the datum area as
compared with, “I can only say less than a
fist.”
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Flare Height Estimation
• The objective is to “bracket” or estimate the
bounds of the area containing the sighted
flare without covering substantially too much
or too little area.
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Flare Bearing
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Flare Bearing
• Establish exactly the position where the
observer saw the flare from.
• On land this will be a street address, a road.
• On water a GPS position or an approximate
lat / long position.
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Flare Bearing
CANADIAN COAST GUARD AUXILIARY - PACIFIC
Flare Bearing
• Depending on the accuracy of the position of
the observer, will depend on the circle of error
drawn around the position.
• If they were driving along a road at the time,
the radius of the circle will be larger.
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Flare Bearing
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Flare Bearing
• There are several means by which a bearing
may be estimated:
(a) clock method, where the line of bearing is
determined by referring to the direction as
points on a clock, with twelve o’clock being
perpendicular to the reporting source in
relation to the shoreline or building where the
reporting source is located.
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Flare Bearing
CANADIAN COAST GUARD AUXILIARY - PACIFIC
Flare Bearing
(b) gyro/magnetic compass,
(c) reference object,
(d) seaman’s eye, or
(e) a guess.
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Flare Bearing
• If the reporting source has difficulty in
confidently estimating direction, amplifying
information, such as the following, should be
obtained:
(a) direction relative to the street direction,
(b) direction relative to a line passing through
reporting source’s position and another
prominent landmark or reference point,
CANADIAN COAST GUARD AUXILIARY - PACIFIC
Flare Bearing
(c) identity of prominent landmarks on either
side of the line of bearing from the reporting
source to the flare,
(d) direction relative to the trend of the shoreline
in that area, or
(e) direction relative to the line between the
reporting source and the moon or a star or
constellation the reporting source can
confidently identify.
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Flare Bearing
How do we do that?
• Obtain a true &/or relative facing.
• Bearing relative to any visible aid to
navigation.
• If nothing else, use the shoreline as a
reference point.
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Flare Bearing
• In this example the observer is at home at a
known address, his house is parallel to the
coast, and the line of bearing was at his 1
o’clock looking out the window, and just to the
left of a flashing (3) white light.
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Flare Bearing
Fl(3)
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Flare Bearing
Helpful Information to Obtain
• Aircraft/vessels seen in vicinity. If the
reporting source can see the vessel being
illuminated by the flare then the flare is inside
the horizon.
• If an aircraft was seen, it may be possible to
correlate this report with reports, if any, from
the aircraft.
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Flare Bearing
• It may also be possible to correlate the report
with aircraft positions (from radar or radar
playback) at the time of the sighting.
• Obstructions. Information about obstructions
can be of value in several ways.
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Flare Bearing
(a) Gauging distance. For example, a flare seen
to rise/descend in front of an island clearly
indicates the maximum distance to the flare is
the distance to the island. If seen behind an
obstruction it clearly indicates the minimum
distance is the obstruction distance.
• (b) Determining direction. Flares seen over or
between identifiable obstructions give the
reporting source a reference for determining
direction.
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Flare Bearing
(c) Estimating angle of elevation. For example,
a flare seen over the top of a nearby stand of
60 ft trees by a reporting source standing on
the ground (assuming level terrain) means
the flare could not have been fired from a
distance very far beyond the tree line.
• On scene weather and visibility. This can be
useful in limiting the area to be searched.
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Flare Bearing
• Ascertain how visibility was determined, such
as from objects that are just visible at a
known range. Keep in mind that horizontal
visibility factors, such as ground fog, may not
limit the visibility for a meteor or parachute
flare as much as for a hand-held flare.
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Search Object
• When a flare is observed at night, the initial
search object should be the distress signaling
device unless other information indicates a
specific object, such as the reporting source
observing the point of origin (vessel, PIW,
etc.).
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Search Area Determination
CANADIAN COAST GUARD AUXILIARY - PACIFIC
Search Area Determination
Max.
Range
Min.
Range
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Search Area Determination
• This is what the flare plot looks like, and is
known as a flare cone.
• The circle with the x in it is the reporting
source’s position, with an error circle around it
that reflects the confidence in their known
position.
• The more uncertain they are, the bigger the
error circle.
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Search Area Determination
• The center line is the line of bearing, and the
lines to the left and right, the angle with the
error circle, represent our confidence with the
angle’s certainty.
• The more uncertain we are with the bearing,
the wider the angle.
• We’re going to cap it off with the maximum
range, then put in the minimum range
(bracketed from the “fist method”).
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Search Area Determination
• The area in between the max and min ranges
form our search area.
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Search Area Determination
Search
Area
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Search Area Determination
• Type A flare may be seen at least 10 nautical
miles (14 - 20 nautical miles nominal)
• Type B flares may be seen at 8 nautical miles
(15 - 17 nautical miles nominal)
• Type C flares may seen at 8 nautical miles (8
- 16 nautical miles nominal) but is entirely
dependent upon the height of the observer.
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Search Area Determination
• If the visibility is only 4 nautical miles from the
observer, then the search would not be out to
10 nautical miles.
• However remember that a flare can rise
above a fog bank with near zero visibility, and
may be seen by someone above the fog bank
for miles.
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Review
CANADIAN COAST GUARD AUXILIARY - PACIFIC
Review
•
•
•
•
•
What do we use to obtain sighting data?
Rapid rise, slow descent?
Rapid rise, rapid descent?
Steady?
What method do we use to determine a line
of bearing for a flare?
• Method used to obtain angle of observation?
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