A device for launching and recovering a sonar is disclosed. The device has a linear receiving antenna and a volume transmitting antenna incorporated in a volume body called fish, the sonar being towed by a surface vessel by a towing line a towing cable from which the fish is suspended, and the linear antenna being secured behind the cable relative to the vessel. The device has a towing winch that includes a frame secured to the surface vessel, making it possible to wind and unwind the towing line around a reel. The reel includes two parts that are rotationally mobile about an axis of rotation, the two parts being coupled, the first part having a cylindrical form on which the towing line is intended to be wound, the second part forming a first abutment intended to accommodate the fish.