Three steps, and none of them needs a boat, a payment card or an app.

Sign in

1. Go to aisfleet.com and type your e-mail address.
2. A six-digit code arrives by e-mail, at the front of the subject line so you can read it off the notification without opening your mail. Type it in.
3. The first time, you are asked for your full name. That is how other members see you when no boat is linked to your account; once one is, they see the boat's name first. Your e-mail address is never shown to them.

There is no separate AIS Fleet password to remember. Your sign-in code and signed-in session still need protecting: anyone who can read your e-mail can request a code and sign in as you. Use a strong password and two-factor authentication for your mailbox, and keep sign-in codes private. You usually stay signed in for about three months on a device.

If the code does not arrive

• Give it a minute, then look in spam or junk. It comes from [email protected].
• Use the newest e-mail. A code lasts ten minutes and asking for a new one replaces the old one, so a code from three e-mails ago will not work.
• After five unsuccessful attempts, request a fresh code. The previous one can no longer be used.
• If you have asked several times, wait 15 minutes. Requests close together are limited to protect your inbox. Try once more after the wait.
• If you closed an account here, write to [email protected] within thirty days and we can restore the account. Its address cannot sign in or sign up again for thirty days after closing. Closing your account explains what happens during that time.

If the code still does not come, write to [email protected] from the address you are trying to use.

Find the vessel

Use Search boats, beside the account icon on a computer and behind the magnifying glass at the top of the screen on a phone. Type at least three characters.

A name is enough. Find a vessel covers the search options, including what to try when the name you know differs from the name she broadcasts.

Follow the vessel

Open her panel, and press Follow.

A follow does four things at once, and uses one slot on your plan:

• She joins Favorites, so you can find her again and go to her last reported position.
• With a list containing her switched on and within your plan, she stays visible regardless of the Traffic and Types filters.
• Her marker stays at her last known position instead of dropping off the chart when she goes quiet.
• Departure and arrival notices are enabled for her. They depend on coverage and your notification settings.

Follow puts her on Favorites, your first list. Lists is how you sort the rest.

Who is told when you follow a vessel

A follow is one-way and needs nobody's permission, but a linked owner can be told about it.

A linked AIS Fleet member or Saillogger owner can receive a new-follower notice, showing your boat's name if you have linked one, otherwise the name you gave when you signed in. They never see your e-mail address. Adding her to your own list can send a notice naming the list too. Their notification settings determine where it reaches them.

Most of the traffic on the chart has no linked account, so most follows notify no one. Where a reachable member or owner is linked to her, following also opens a conversation both ways: see Messages.

Following does not send anything to her radio or onboard navigation equipment. What you can see of a Saillogger boat also depends on her owner's sharing settings.

If the vessel is not there

• "We are not tracking MMSI ... yet." No receiver has reported that number to us, so there is nothing to follow yet. Follow it anyway asks AIS Fleet to watch for that number. On the website, the number also waits on your Favorites, and she is followed once a receiver reports her, which starts the notices. In the iPhone app, come back and follow her once she appears. A number with a wrong digit looks exactly like a vessel nobody has heard, so it is worth checking the nine digits before you wait.
• "No boats match that." Either the name she broadcasts differs from the one you typed, or no receiver has ever reported her to us. Try a shorter, more distinctive piece of the name.
• A vessel without an AIS transponder may have no reports to find. Some Saillogger boats also share positions directly, but many small craft do not report to this network.

When something is not working is the longer list.

What happens next

The first notice arrives when AIS Fleet detects her next departure or arrival. This can take time, and gaps in coverage can mean an event is missed. Departures and arrivals explains where notices reach you and how to adjust them.