IsatPhone Pro '000' Emergency calls soon available in Australia.

A new facility will enable users located in Australia or its territorial waters (up to 200 nautical miles off-shore) to dial either 000 or 112 and be routed through to the local Australian emergency call centre.

Customers need take no action other than to ensure their phone is operating on the latest firmware – version 5.3.0, which was released earlier this year and supports the function.

Essential service
The move to add emergency calling to the IsatPhone Pro service from 1 July is in response to a mandate from the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

“We are proud to offer this essential service as part of the total Inmarsat IsatPhone Pro package to our customers in Australia,” said Ronald Spithout, President of Inmarsat Enterprise.

Reinforcing safety
“IsatPhone Pro has gained a dedicated following in Australia since it was launched three years ago. It has been readily adopted by a diverse range of users – from weekend adventurers looking for a guaranteed connection in times of trouble to outback residents who have no other means of communication. The addition of an emergency calling service reinforces the message of safety and reliability to the users of this popular phone.”

Other services
Emergency calling will only be available on IsatPhone Pro in Australia and will not feature on other Inmarsat services, such as BGAN and FleetBroadband.