The selection of resources for a mission shall reside solely with the appointed incident commander. The aviation division receives information about a potential mission or airborne disaster relief response from a variety of sources. The incident commander will review the known information and assess the type of response which is appropriate for the mission. The incident commander will, after reviewing the information at hand decide whether the mission calls for a limited or full response. Limited response type missions include, but are not limited to:

(1) Electronic beacons (EPIRBS, ELTS, etc.).

(2) Reported sightings of a possible downed aircraft or aircraft in distress.

(3) Searches where evidence indicates the missing aircraft is confined to a limited search area.

(4) A multistate search where the search area under the responsibility of the state of Washington is a limited geographical area.

(5) The mission is one of transporting limited personnel or supplies.

(6) The flight is a damage assessment flight of a limited area. This does not preclude the local authorities from using local resources to conduct damage assessment.

(7) Weather or flight conditions make it unsafe or unwise to place more than a limited number of aircraft in the search area.

(8) Any condition where in the opinion of the incident commander it would be unwise to commit additional aircraft.

In the case of limited response missions the incident commander shall select those individuals or organizations needed to support the mission. With the large number of qualified search and rescue volunteers and organizations in the state, not everyone will get called to support a limited specific mission.

After review of the information or at anytime during the execution of a mission, the incident commander may deem it necessary to go beyond a limited mission and in fact make it a major mission. At that time the incident commander, utilizing the call out and alert system established by the aviation division, will request the support and participation of additional registered volunteers and organizations.