Current mission

Seabird 1 & 2

The civil eye at the world’s deadliest border

As a civil eye, Sea-Watch’s Airborne department, together with the Swiss Humanitarian Pilots Initiative, monitors, documents, and publishes these daily human rights violations as well as the associated roles of European states, the EU Border and Coast Guard Agency Frontex, the so-called Libyan coast guard, and other Libyan militias. If we encounter boats in distress during our flights, we try everything to push for a rescue and subsequent disembarkation in a safe European port by the competent authorities and civil vessels in the vicinity.

News from Airborne

Ain’t no border high enough

Our aircraft

Seabird 1

Since spring 2020, we have been operating the Seabird 1 aerial reconnaissance aircraft, a Beechcraft Baron 58 twin-engine high-performance aircraft. The sea area that we can search during a mission with the Seabird is almost twice as large as that of its predecessor Moonbird: around 27,000 km2 – roughly the size of Brandenburg. In addition, we can be in the mission area for around 7.5 hours. As the Seabirds are twin-engine aircraft, we can also guarantee significantly more safety for our crew on board.

Seabird 2

In spring 2022, our Moonbird aerial reconnaissance aircraft went into well-deserved retirement. We have therefore decided to send another aircraft – the Seabird 2 – into service. It is also a Beechcraft Baron 58 and can accommodate up to five crew members. The maths is simple: the more people who can fit on board and keep an eye out for distress at sea during flight time, the greater the likelihood of spotting boats in distress.

Over 16,0000 people sighted in 2023: The civil eye over the Mediterranean

Over 16,0000 people sighted in 2023: The civil eye over the Mediterranean

In 2023, our aircraft crew spotted 311 boats in distress and were in the air 161 times. We witnessed massive human rights violations committed by Frontex, the EU states, and the EU-funded so-called Libyan coastguard.

Want to find out more about our mission in the Mediterranean last year? Here you can find our Airborne annual report

Help us to save lives - donate for our Airborne Operations!

Partners and supporters

We would like to thank all our supporters who made our joint efforts with HPI possible. Special thanks go to the Evangelical Church of Germany (EKD). Without their generous support the Sea-Watch aircraft operation would probably never have been realized.

We would also like to thank the Vartan Group for their support.

Our future missions will continue to be funded exclusively by donations – with your supporting membership we can continue our Airborne mission so that no more people drown unnoticed in the Mediterranean Sea, but instead have the chance to be rescued in time.

Become a supporting member!