Ask The Expert: Safety Apps

Published: Monday, May 20, 2019
By: Kristina Cherubino, Senior Underwriter, Pantaenius America Ltd.

Question:

With so many boat owners using personal electronic devices on the water, are there apps you recommend?

Answer:

Yes! Your smartphone or tablet doesn’t just make boating better – it can make it safer, too. From weather prediction and navigational assistance to tracking storms and First Aid, there’s an app for that! This is not to say that you should ever be wholly dependent on a smartphone or tablet for onboard navigation, communications, or managing of your boat’s systems, but your portable device can serve as a powerful assistant – and there’s a slew of new or updated apps that focus on making yachting safer.

Navionics Boating

Voted “Best Boating App” by Laptop World magazine, this is the world’s best-selling marine and lakes navigation app. Long a favorite among cruisers, sailors, and fishermen, Navionics Boating boasts the same detailed charts as found on the best GPS plotters. Nautical and sonar charts are updated thousands of times every day. Other features include dock-to-dock auto-routing and real-time weather data and forecasts. Found something not reflected on the charts? You can add this information to the database - and so can other boaters - making navigation safer for everyone.
>> $4.99 for basic version; upgrade prices vary, depending on the features and charts you choose.

United States Coast Guard

With this app, not only do you get instant access to state-by-state boating information, you can also request a safety check of your vessel and get a checklist of federally required (and recommended) equipment you should have on board depending on the size of your yacht. With the touch of a button, you can also file a float plan, get “rules of the road,” pinpoint nearby NOAA buoys, and report a hazard, pollution, or suspicious activity.
>> Free

First Aid by American Red Cross

When passengers fall ill or mishaps occur on board, are you prepared? This official American Red Cross app puts expert advice for everyday emergencies in the palm of your hand. The app, which features videos, interactive quizzes, and simple step-by-step advice, covers the gamut from allergies, bleeding, broken bones, and burns to stings, stroke, strains, and sprains.
>> Free

Flashlight 4 in 1

Download this, and you get four apps in one: a high-powered flashlight, a magnifying glass (with the ability to take and email photos), a strobe light with frequency knob, and a Morse code feature. To activate the latter, you merely type text, and the program will send out your message in Morse code sound and light.
>> $2.99

Drag Queen Anchor Alarm

The title says it all. This app allows you to program the position of your anchor and then set the radius that you’re happy to swing within. If the boat goes outside the circumference of the circle, the alarm will trigger.
>> $5.99

My Lightning Tracker Pro

This app monitors lightning strikes around the world in close to real-time. You can receive push notifications whenever strikes are detected in your area and view more detailed information about where the thunderstorm is occurring on a map.
>> $1.99

Safe Skipper

Think of this app as a textbook on boating safety that lives inside your cell phone. This quick reference guide is designed to help skippers be prepared and properly equipped when going afloat – whether for a few hours, a few days, a few weeks or longer. Easy-to-access information is divided into four main sections and packed with useful advice on: Preparation (engine checks, man overboard drill, safety briefings), Equipment (anchoring, EPIRBs, ditch bags, PFDs), Communications (AIS, code flags, search and rescue signals, VHF channels), and Emergencies (abandon ship techniques, fire-fighting tips, getting a tow, engine failure, flares).
>> Free

Marine Traffic – Ship Tracking

Connected to the largest network of AIS receivers, this app displays real-time positions of ships and yachts worldwide and covers most major ports and shipping routes. Use it to view vessels on the live map, and see what’s near you. Or use it to track your position, speed, and course, as well as the positions of the vessels around you. This app also enables you to view your projected course and the distance from nearby vessels.
>> $4.99

Windfinder Pro

Easily track wind, waves, and weather for 40,000 locations worldwide - anytime, anywhere. This app provides real-time observations, as well as accurate forecasts (for the next ten days), so you can always find the best conditions - or avoid hazardous ones.
>> $4.99

Pro Knot

A bit rusty at tying bowlines? Not so skilled at fisherman’s knots? This app is a great teaching (and review) reference for yachties. Voted #1 sports app in 41 countries, Pro Knots provides a primer for tying 122 knots – all explained in clear, easy-to-follow in swipe-through, step-by-step instructions and animations.
>> $1.99

Waterkeeper Swim Guide

Finding beaches with clean, swimmable water for you and your family just got easier. Featured in USA Today, Huffington Post, and the Los Angeles Times, this app covers freshwater and marine beaches in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and New Zealand. Every beach is marked with a green or red icon, so you know when the water at a nearby beach is clean for swimming – and when the water quality is poor. A date/time stamp tells you when a beach status was last updated, and “historical status” reveals the percentage of time that beach has passed water quality tests. You can also use the app to report polluted waters.
>> Free

NOAA Buoy & Tide Data

This app lets you tap into the NOAA buoy system with a flick of the finger. You can search buoys by name or region, or set a custom search radius to find out what buoys are nearby. You can peruse a map of all buoy locations and save your favorites for easy access. The app also includes tidal data for the entire United States.
>> $1.99

Tides USA

If you sail, cruise, or fish in saltwater, having the latest marine tide information at your fingertips is invaluable. This app provides marine tide information for all tide stations (sorted by state) in the U.S. Information is displayed in an easy-to-read format that gives you tidal events, as well as data on sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset.
>> Free