OREANDA-NEWS. The U.S. Coast Guard recently completed the expansion of its Notice of Arrival (NOA) regulatory requirements, originally created in 2008.  The goal was to help address threats to maritime transportation safety and security by improving navigation safety, enhancing the ability to identify and track vessels, and heightening overall Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA).  Among other changes, the Final Rule (80 Fed. Reg. 5281), passed on 30 January 2015, expands the applicability of both NOA and Automatic Identification System (AIS) requirements to include more commercial vessels.  In addition to meeting the Coast Guard’s safety and security objectives, these changes will also make it easier to realize the many additional benefits of AIS data for providing instant, continuous access to critical information about vessel activities at sea, in ports, and at busy marine terminals.