🔍 Key Concepts

• Distress and rescue communications between ships and aircraft • Meaning of aircraft visual signals seen from a vessel • How coded signals (like BJ-1) are used in search and rescue situations

💭 Think About

• Think about what type of situation would require a specific coded signal like BJ-1 to be hoisted—what kind of emergency or status update is it likely to report? • Consider the difference between an aircraft being in trouble, already down, circling, or safely afloat—what would a ship most need to communicate to others? • Ask yourself which option would most likely need to be broadcast visually from a ship to coordinate with rescue aircraft and nearby vessels.

✅ Before You Answer

• Confirm what coded hoists (letter–number groups) are used for in maritime search and rescue manuals (e.g., IAMSAR/USCG SAR references). • Check which of the four options describes a precise, confirmable condition that a ship could reliably observe and report. • Verify whether the signal is indicating the aircraft’s current status (e.g., afloat/circling) or the location of an incident (e.g., ditched position or accident site).