Definition
A worldwide voluntary reporting system operated by the U.S. Coast Guard in which merchant ships of any nation regularly report their positions, courses, and speeds while at sea. The information is held in a database so that, when a distress occurs, search and rescue authorities can quickly identify and divert nearby vessels to assist.
Plain English
A global tracking system for ships that volunteer their positions, so that if someone is in trouble at sea or downed at sea, rescuers can quickly find the closest ship and ask it to help.
Context Anchor
Seen in search and rescue information, especially for flights or emergencies over ocean areas.
Derivation
The name began as an acronym for 'Atlantic Merchant Vessel Report' when the system started in 1958, and later became 'Automated Mutual-Assistance Vessel Rescue System' as it expanded worldwide. The word is now used as a name in its own right, written 'Amver' rather than in all capitals.
Why Pilots Care
Pilots flying over water may benefit from knowing that AMVER data can help locate a downed aircraft or survivors by identifying nearby vessels.
Intuition Check
Amver is not an aircraft navigation system or a radio service. It is a ship reporting system used to support search and rescue over water.
Example Sentence 1
On long over-water legs, the pilot took comfort in knowing that Amver ships were likely within a few hundred miles at any given time.
Example Sentence 2
After the ditching the Coast Guard used the latest AMVER positions to direct the nearest ship to the scene.