Bill,

Good additional information. You do have to register the IridiumGo for the SOS button to go to the group in Texas that monitors SEND devices, who then makes contact with the appropriate Rescue Coordination Center (RCC) or other official SAR agency no matter where you are in the world. That group has prosecuted well over 7,000 rescues in nearly 170 countries from a variety of Satellite Emergency Notification Devices (SEND) as defined by the Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services (RTCM). The group participates with RCC's around the world and annually hosts a variety of RCC's and other agencies to their facilities in Texas, north of Houston. What is great is that the SOS monitoring service is FREE, the cost of SOS monitoring and SAR coordination is covered by Iridium who pays the group in Texas for the monitoring.

Besides SOS, the company has a sister company that provides SAR memberships and MEDEVAC memberships, and many cruisers utilized the additional membership benefits, such as Rebecca on SV Brickhouse (not an AMEL lol). For instance, the SAR comes in various levels that reimburse the member for out of pocket SAR cots, up to $100k USD. The MEDEVAC is international and covers quite a bit for not a lot of money.

As Bill indicated, the device does have a dedicated SOS button so you can activate it directly from the device itself and your coordinates and other information such as Emergency Contacts, Vessel Type, Vessel Manufacturer, Hull Color, Length, EPIRB registration number, etc. are transmitted immediately to the International Emergency Rescue Coordination Center (IERCC), who immediately contact the responsible search and rescue (SAR) authority, and attempt two-way communication with you if you have your tablet or phone connected to the IridiumGO! to collect additional information about the nature of your emergency.

Lastly, not only is it great for both non-emergency communications and emergency communications, it pairs with my PredictWind Pro, gives me access to emails, other weather services, etc. In my mind it is a must have for a cruising boat, even if you only use the non-emergency features of the device.

Mark

S/V It's Good

SM105 S/V It's Good

Currently Gloucester, VA