Not just for boats with cabins.
ONE ACCOUNT · EVERY CRAFT YOU USELive tracking first. Four more screens behind it.
REAL SCREENS FROM THE APP · PICK ON THE LEFT
Do you know which rescue centre is responsible for you right now?
First day on a chartered yacht in Greece. Someone goes overboard. You know 112 — but not whose area you are in, or that centre's number. And you start looking it up at the worst possible moment.
A general operator answers, not maritime rescue. First you have to explain that you are on the water.
Your position has to be put into words and then found on a map — on a foreign coast, through a language barrier as well.
Being put through to the right rescue centre means waiting again and telling the story from the start.
You have drifted all that time, and nobody aboard knows what to do in the meantime.
Every link in that chain adds minutes. In an emergency, time is the one thing you can't get more of.
The nearest responsible centre, its number and VHF channel are on screen before you think to ask.
No general number, no transfer. 112 stays as the backup, not the first link.
Position, craft and situation are in the text — for the call and the SMS, on your crew's phones too.
When a life is at risk, there is one right call
Search and rescue — 112, VHF 16, the responsible rescue centre. The app never gets between you and SAR: it makes that call faster, with your position, craft details and a word-for-word MAYDAY already on screen.
A dead engine is not a MAYDAY
A fouled prop or an empty tank goes to your country's marine assistance service — free if you're a member, hundreds of euros per tow if you're not. The app knows which service covers the waters you're in and keeps the emergency line free for emergencies.
Nobody recalls coordinates in a panic
That's why the screen is already filled in when you open it. Step through it — the phone follows.
The SOS screen is free. Forever.
Calling for help never sits behind a paywall. Paid plans sell speed and automation — one account covers every craft you use.SUBSCRIPTIONS ARE PURCHASED INSIDE THE APP — VIA APP STORE OR GOOGLE PLAY
EXISTS AT ALL
Rescue-centre numbers live on the ordinary phone network — you can't simply reach them over the internet. When you have no SIM, roaming fails or only satellite internet is aboard (Starlink, for example), the Pro plan routes the call through a telephone-network gateway so it lands on the rescue centre's real number. It cannot reach the 112 short code, and it still needs a data connection. Without Pro you always have your position, the MAYDAY script and the SMS.
What VesselSOS does not replace
A beacon is a beacon. VesselSOS is the backup that is always with you — and on most small craft, the only thing there at all.Four minutes at the dock, once
In an emergency there is no time to set anything up. The app asks for these things at the start and keeps them on the phone — with or without a network.
Name, type, length, colour and the MMSI if you have one. This is the first thing you'll be asked for.
Three numbers for the SMS and the tracking link. A club or harbourmaster number works fine.
Your usual sailing area is stored on the phone so the chart opens without data.
Without it the app can't show coordinates. We ask once, not every time.
The call goes where you actually are
The app picks the responsible rescue centre from your position — not from where the phone was registered. The data comes from the IMO global SAR plan (GISIS).
FROM THE SAME GISIS DATASET
The questions people actually ask
VesselSOS is an aid, not a rescue service. It does not replace a VHF radio, an EPIRB or a call to your local emergency number. It depends on your phone's battery, GPS and mobile coverage — none of which we can guarantee at sea. Emergency numbers differ by country: 112 in Europe, 911 in the US, 000 in Australia. The app selects the local one from your position.
Questions about the app, your account or a charter fleet — a human answers within one working day.