An internationally recognised urgency signal, spoken three times at the beginning of a radio message, indicating that there is an urgent situation on board a vessel but no immediate danger to life or the vessel. Pan-Pan has a lower priority than Mayday but higher priority than routine communications.
Category: Maritime Communication
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Flag SignalsA system of communication using coloured flags flown from a vessel's mast or signal halyard, each representing a letter of the alphabet, a numeral, or a specific meaning.LRITLong Range Identification and Tracking, an international system for tracking vessels globally, adopted by the IMO as an amendment to SOLAS.Morse CodeA communication system using sequences of short and long signals (dots and dashes) to represent letters and numbers.NAVTEXNavigational Telex, an international automated medium-frequency direct-printing service for delivery of navigational and meteorological warnings and forecasts, as well as urgent maritime safety information to ships.SARSearch and Rescue, the coordinated effort to locate and recover persons in distress at sea, involving maritime rescue coordination centres (MRCCs), coast guard units, naval vessels, and commercial ships.Ship ReportingMandatory or voluntary systems requiring vessels to report their position, course, speed, and other information to shore-based authorities when entering or transiting designated areas.
Back to DictionaryEntry updated May 2026