Water surface searches are procedures carried out on or over the surface of a body of water with the purpose of finding lost vessels, persons, or floating objects, which may use one or more of a variety of search patterns depending on the target of the search, as the direction and rate of drift vary depending on the characteristics of the target and the water and weather conditions at the time. The effectiveness of a search pattern is also influenced by the characteristics of the search platform. One or more search platforms may be used.

Factors influencing choice of search pattern and search asset:

A search is greatly facilitated when the last known position of the target is accurately known in time and space. If the time was recent, the weather and water conditions may not have changed much and drift can be estimated with some confidence. Search datum is the estimated position of the target at the time the search starts, which is last known position corrected for drift. Drift estimates are affected by changes in wind and water conditions, driven by the weather, and may vary with location as the target drifts through more and less sheltered areas. The search will usually be started at or near datum. A datum marker buoy is a tool used to mark the movement of the datum during the search and to provide updated estimates for drift speed and direction. A datum marker buoy should be chosen to drift at the same speed as the target to the extent reasonably practicable, and to remain visible and identifiable during the search.

Leeway is the downwind component of motion of a floating object due to wind forces, while current will add a component in the direction (set) of the current flow at the speed (drift) of the current at that point. This combination is loosely termed the drift of the floating object. While these quantities can be estimated and measured, several search patterns use a drifting datum marker which is selected to drift at a similar rate to the target of the search, which automatically compensates for these effects after the initial offset has been taken into account.

Search patterns are methods for systematically travelling over the surface of the area of water in which the target is likely to be found, while observers and/or instruments are deployed with the intention of detecting the targets of the search. An effective search pattern is one in which the entire surface can be examined with a good chance of detecting the target if it is present, but without excessive overlap, though some overlap is usually considered advisable to allow for inaccurate estimates of target visibility and sea and atmospheric conditions. Several standardised search patterns are in common use, some of which are more suitable for surface vessels, and others are more suitable for aircraft. Similar search patterns are used for underwater searches. Most water surface search patterns are followed relative to a moving datum, so steering is by compass heading and distance is determined by speed through the water and elapsed time. Speed and direction over the ground will vary according to drift.

A shoreline search is usually used when it is considered likely that survivors or debris may have washed ashore, or survivors may have managed to get ashore by their own efforts, and is often used in conjunction with open water search patterns by other vessels nearby, specially along a lee shore. A shallow draft, maneuverable vessel is best suited to this work, which may require tight maneuvers among navigational hazards or debris.

A sector search, also known as a Victor Sierra (VS) by the US and Canadian coast guards is a search pattern suitable for a small object in a well defined location that covers a circular area centred on a reported position using a route made up of straight line segments that efficiently covers a circular area, and is adapted to account for drift. First the search vessel makes a measurement of the drift speed and direction, using a datum drift marker to indicate the drift in real time. The pattern is steered relative to the datum marker, and the track over the ground may look considerably different due to superposition of drift. By steering by compass and directly towards the drifting datum every third leg, the search vessel drifts the same amount as the datum, which is the assumed amount of drift for the target. If the initial sector search – often started in approximately drift direction – is unsuccessful, a second sector search can be offset by 30° to either side to give better coverage of the same mass of surface water.

Also known as Papa Sierra (PS), this pattern is useful for covering a large area where no accurate datum is available. It can be used by a single vessel or several vessels, and for any size of target, though the distance of advance between search legs will vary depending on the estimated visibility of the target.