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Recreational Boat Float Plan Writer: Vessel Description with Registration and HIN, Persons Aboard, Safety Gear with VHF DSC MMSI and PLB, Route and Return Time, Overdue Alarm Steps, and a Shore Contact Brief
Write a float plan for a day trip on your own boat that a shore contact can actually act on: a vessel description searchers can spot, everyone aboard with medical notes they agreed to share, safety gear including VHF DSC with MMSI and a registered PLB, departure, route, and return times, an overdue alarm time with exact steps, and a one page brief for the person ashore.
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Prompt
Act as a US Coast Guard Auxiliary vessel examiner and boating safety instructor who teaches float planning, reviews safety gear at the ramp, and has talked with families who waited at home without knowing what the boat looked like or when to call for help. Inputs: - Boat details: name, state registration or documentation number, hull identification number (HIN), make, length, hull and top colors, engine, fuel capacity: [VesselDetails] - Everyone aboard: name, age, phone, swimming ability, and any medical notes they agreed to share: [PersonsAboard] - Safety and communication gear aboard, including radio type, MMSI if any, beacons, and their registration status: [SafetyGear] - Departure point and time, planned route and stops, destination, and planned return time: [TripPlan] - Tow vehicle and trailer left at the ramp: [VehicleAtRamp] - Your shore contact and how they can be reached: [ShoreContact] - Output format: [Format] Generate: 1. A gear gap check before the plan: flag anything missing or unregistered, such as a DSC radio with no MMSI entered (the distress button will not send your identity) or a PLB not registered with NOAA, and list fixes to do before departure. 2. The vessel section written so a search crew can spot the boat: colors from top down, length, type, distinguishing features, registration number and HIN. 3. Persons aboard as a table, with medical notes only where the person agreed. 4. Safety gear as a checklist with counts: life jackets by size, throwable device, VHF with DSC and MMSI, PLB or EPIRB with registration, visual distress signals with expiry dates, sound device, anchor and line, first aid kit. 5. The trip plan: launch time, route with named waypoints or landmarks, stops, destination, planned return time, and a weather check note. 6. An overdue alarm time set after the planned return with a buffer the skipper chooses, plus the exact steps for the shore contact in order: call the boat, try other phones aboard, check the ramp if nearby, then call the Coast Guard sector command center for the area or 911, and read them this plan. 7. A one page shore contact brief: what to do if the skipper calls in late, how to cancel the plan, and a reminder that the Coast Guard does not hold float plans, so the shore contact is the only one who has it. 8. A message the skipper sends when back on the trailer, so the plan is closed. Constraints: - Do not invent registration numbers, MMSI, or phone numbers. Use the values given or leave a bracketed blank. - This is planning help, not a substitute for local knowledge, weather judgment, or a boating safety course. No em dashes.
Instructions
Replace every [bracket] with your details before running. Works on ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini.
Generated Output
This image was generated using the prompt above.
Examples
Example Input
VesselDetails: "Second Wind", Maryland registration MD 4471 BK, HIN on file in my glovebox folder, 2014 Carolina Skiff 21 center console, white hull with blue stripe, white T top with navy canvas, single 150 hp outboard, 30 gallon tank PersonsAboard: Dana Ruiz (skipper), 47, strong swimmer; Luis Ruiz, 15, strong swimmer; Pat Okafor, 62, weak swimmer, carries an epinephrine auto injector for a bee allergy and said I can share that SafetyGear: 4 adult and 1 youth life jackets, 1 throwable cushion, fixed VHF with DSC but I never entered an MMSI, handheld VHF, PLB bought last month not registered, flares in a kit dated 2024, air horn, anchor with 100 ft rode, first aid kit TripPlan: launch 6:30 am Saturday from the Deale public ramp, run south along the western shore to fish near the Gooses, lunch stop none, back at the ramp by 2:00 pm VehicleAtRamp: gray 2019 Ford F 150 with a black single axle trailer ShoreContact: my sister Alma at home, cell on the plan Format: gap check, plan sections, shore brief, close out text
Example Output
1. Gear gap check (fix before Saturday) - DSC radio with no MMSI: the distress button will not send your boat's identity. Get an MMSI (recreational boats on US waters can get one through BoatUS or another approved issuer) and program it into the radio. - PLB not registered: register it with NOAA SARSAT before launch, adding this trip's vessel and Alma as an emergency contact. - Flares dated 2024: check the expiry printed on each flare. Replace any that are expired so the kit meets the visual distress signal rule for your waters. - Life jackets: 5 aboard for 3 people. Confirm the youth jacket fits Luis; if not, he wears an adult jacket that fits. 2. Vessel Second Wind. 21 ft center console, Carolina Skiff, 2014. White hull with a blue stripe, white T top with navy canvas, single outboard. Maryland registration MD 4471 BK. HIN: [copy from the glovebox folder]. 3. Persons aboard | Name | Age | Phone | Swimmer | Notes shared | | Dana Ruiz (skipper) | 47 | [Dana cell] | strong | none | | Luis Ruiz | 15 | [Luis cell] | strong | none | | Pat Okafor | 62 | [Pat cell] | weak | bee allergy, carries epinephrine auto injector | 4. Safety gear checklist - Life jackets: 4 adult, 1 youth - Throwable cushion: 1 - Fixed VHF with DSC, MMSI: [enter after programming]; handheld VHF as backup - PLB: registered [yes after Friday], UIN: [from registration] - Visual distress signals: [expiry dates after check] - Air horn, anchor with 100 ft rode, first aid kit 5. Trip plan - Launch 6:30 am Saturday, Deale public ramp. - Route: south along the western shore of the Chesapeake to the fishing area near the Gooses, same route back. - Stops: none planned. - Planned return to the ramp: 2:00 pm. - Weather: skipper checks the marine forecast Friday night and at the ramp; if conditions are beyond the boat or crew, the trip is off and Alma gets a text. 6. Overdue alarm Alarm time: 3:00 pm (skipper chose a 1 hour buffer). At 3:00 pm with no word, Alma does this in order: 1. Call Dana's cell, then Luis and Pat. 2. Wait 10 minutes and call all three again. 3. Call the Coast Guard sector command center for the upper Chesapeake: [number looked up before Saturday], or 911 if she cannot reach them. 4. Read them sections 2, 3, and 5, and the truck description below. Truck at ramp: gray 2019 Ford F 150, black single axle trailer, plate [plate]. 7. Shore contact brief for Alma - If Dana calls to say they are running late, write the new return time here and move the alarm to one hour after it. - The Coast Guard does not keep float plans. You are the only person with this one, so keep it by your phone until Dana texts you. - Pat has a bee allergy; mention it if you call for help. 8. Close out text "Back on the trailer at Deale, all 3 safe. Float plan closed." Dana sends this before leaving the ramp.