SOLAS rescue tenders

A SOLAS rescue tender is a coded survival craft, built and certified to meet the lifesaving requirements of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea. On commercial yachts above 500 GT (typically 50m and up) it is not optional equipment. The boat needs to launch in seconds, recover crew or passengers from the water in any sea state up to the design envelope, and self-right after capsize.

Three strands sit behind the term:

1. Construction standard. The boat is built to a survival-craft specification: sealed buoyancy compartments, fire-retardant hull and trim, self-righting mechanism on the larger hulls, certified lifting points sized to the davit class.
2. Equipment fit. Mandatory inventory: SART, EPIRB, emergency rations, first-aid kit, signal flares, pyrotechnic distress kit, paddles. Most of it lives in sealed deck stowage.
3. Coding and inspection. Annual flag-state inspection, with a five-year major refit cycle covering structural integrity, sealing, lifting-point recertification, and equipment renewal.

The coding is not free; budget EUR 10k to 20k per year in routine compliance costs on top of normal maintenance. Our compliance basics spoke walks through the annual cycle in detail.

The rule of thumb: any yacht above 500 GT operating commercially (charter or passenger) carries SOLAS lifesaving requirements that include a rescue tender. Privately registered yachts below 500 GT may carry SOLAS-coded craft voluntarily, often because the owner intends future charter use or because the flag state requires it (Cayman REG, Marshall Islands, and Malta have variable thresholds).

If the yacht might transition between private and commercial operation during ownership, specifying SOLAS coding from day one is meaningfully cheaper than retrofitting. The tender classification rules page covers the regulatory specifics.

SOLAS rescue tenders cluster in three bands:

• 5m to 6.5m. The volume segment for yachts in the 50m to 70m range. Compact, garage-friendly, two-crew operation.
• 6.5m to 8m. Mid-size; pairs with yachts in the 70m to 90m range. Often dual-purpose: SOLAS rescue plus working tender.
• 8m+. Larger SOLAS-coded craft on yachts above 90m, where the rescue brief is paired with significant guest or crew capacity.

Self-righting is mandatory above 6m on most flags.

In the SOLAS segment, the recurring shortlist:

• Pascoe International. Strong on the dual-purpose SOLAS plus working-tender brief. Multiple flag-state certifications.
• Cobra. UK builder with deep SOLAS pedigree. Common on UK-flagged programmes.
• Whitmarsh. Long-standing SOLAS specialist; well represented across smaller commercial yachts.
• Williams Jet Tenders. SOLAS variants of the DieselJet 565 and 625 platforms. Compact and garage-friendly.
• SOLAS Marine. Specialist; less commonly seen on the upper-end yacht tender brief but a credible option.

Our builders spoke goes deeper into where each yard fits and how they handle the dual-purpose brief.

SOLAS briefs need careful coordination between the build, the flag-state surveyor, and the davit class on the mothership. We work the SOLAS spec alongside the yacht-side technical team, with naval-architect input on lifting points and survey scheduling. The starting point is the contact page.

• Tender classification rules
• SOLAS tender compliance guide
• Williams, Pascoe, Cobra, Whitmarsh
• Glossary: SOLAS, MCA