Op-Ed: Is it time to replace pyrotechnic flares with eFlares?

Credit: ACR Electronics

When commercial vessels are already required to carry an array of advanced modern alerting and locating systems, Chris Hoffman, director of technology strategy at ACR Electronics, outlines the evidence behind growing industry pressure calling for recognition of eVDSDs as the safer, cleaner and longer-lasting alternative to pyrotechnic flares.

For decades, pyrotechnic flares have been the accepted standard for commercial vessels.

In a distress situation, a crew member has risked injury or damage to the liferaft when fumbling for a flare pack, removing the cap, pulling the string to ignite the flare while moving hands quickly out of the way, and holding the flare overboard, ensuring it is downwind.

However, today there are alternatives that offer an easier, less dangerous, toxic and outdated solution in an age bristling with reliable electronic safety equipment which will locate the survivors to within less than 110-meter radius.

Is it not time for regulators to embrace the alternatives and make electronic flares permissible?

The Problem with Pyrotechnics

First, the safety issue is critical. Pyrotechnic flares burn at over one thousand degrees Celsius, often emitting molten slag and sparks together with smoke and a flame.

Toxicity must also be considered. Most red handheld and rocket flares rely on strontium nitrate and similar chemicals that are both toxic and environmentally persistent.

Disposal is a serious problem. Once expired – usually after three years – they cannot be tossed in the bin or recycled. Instead, they become hazardous waste.

In terms of reliability, pyrotechnic flares can get damp, be damaged in storage, or simply not ignite when needed, or, worse still, in rare cases explode when ignited. Even when they function correctly, their window of effectiveness is fleeting.

Finally, there is transportation and storage. Flares contain explosives and are therefore classified as Class 1 dangerous goods which means shipping and transportation is difficult and expensive.

The Modern Toolkit of Safety

Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs) use satellite constellations like Cospas-Sarsat, GPS and Galileo to transmit a vessel’s position to rescue coordination centers anywhere on the globe. Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponders broadcast a message and vessel position to every nearby ship equipped with AIS. GMDSS DSC radios provide voice communication to coastguards and other vessels together with their location, while Survival Craft VHF radios, acting as GMDSS portable radios, although with no locating capability, are designed to be taken from the ship into the liferaft and then used to either call for help on VHF Channel 16 or talk to rescuers. SARTs (Search and Rescue Transponders) create either a radar or AIS target, allowing searchers to home in precisely on a vessel or liferaft.

The Electronic Flare is the Logical Successor

Electronic Visual Distress Signaling Devices (eVDSDs), or electronic flares, are compact, waterproof and rugged, and emit bright strobing LED patterns visible for miles. They can operate continuously for hours, sometimes over an entire night, and many incorporate infrared strobes.

Unlike pyrotechnics, they can be tested safely, reused, and either be recharged or fitted with new batteries. They do not expire with a three-year shelf life. They do not produce toxic waste. They do not risk setting a liferaft ablaze or potentially injuring the user or other crew.

Setting operating lifetime aside (tens of seconds for a pyrotechnic flare compared to several hours for an eVDSD), the only other real difference is that a pyrotechnic flare is always going to be brighter than an electronic flare.

With all the other modern alerting and locating systems on ships today, this no longer matters. Electronic flares provide a light that can be seen from several miles away, which is more than sufficient when combined with other systems.

Regulatory Pathways and Momentum

Encouragingly, the movement to replace outdated flares is already underway. RTCM (Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services) has developed a performance standard for eVDSDs. The U.S. Coast Guard’s acceptance of these devices for recreational boats sets an international precedent. Manufacturers in Europe and Asia are pushing for parity, developing multi-color strobes and AIS-integrated eFlares.

For the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), the task is simple: approve electronic flares as an equivalent carriage option and then consider phasing out pyrotechnics over a defined period.

By authorizing eFlares on commercial vessels, regulators send a clear message and create the volume of adoption needed to drive prices down for all.