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Scope of article

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Uses of VHF radio are much wider than just marine. I'm pretty sue that all aircraft use VHF for approach/landing/take-off and indeed for air traffic control. Lots of the rescue services have probably moved on to UHF. A lot of VHF mobile radio exists for despatching, taxis etc. User:Rjstott

  • Agreed with rjstott -- this is essentially an article about marine VHF, which is one particular band of VHF using narrowband FM. It's a very important band, but there's rather a lot more to it. I'm going to add some stuff to it, but the marine VHF material needs to be broken out into its own article. Haikupoet 03:30, 9 Mar 2005 (UTC)
I renamed the page Marine VHF radio and merged the non-marine stuff, particularly the info on non-licensed operation, into VHF. I also set up VHF radio as a disambiguation page, with links to marine VHF radio, Airband, Amateur radio, etc. --agr 15:20, 9 Mar 2005 (UTC)

It seems to me that the page is currently limited to sea/ocean use. There are different rules for inland shipping (e.g. Basle agreement for Europe). So "maritime" here does not include inland shipping. 07:55, 15 June 2009 (UTC)~ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.172.18.3 (talk)

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In the operating procedures section, I have added a link to the article on pro-words. posted this for completism and reference Editus 18:05, 21 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

UK Marine VHF Channels and Frequencies

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An IP user added the table under the section, UK Marine VHF Channels and Frequencies. It is not in proper format and uses HTML. It needs to be converted into usual Wiki Table format.

Also, we need to provide information for areas outside of the UK. Billscottbob (talk) 22:21, 10 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

checkY Done. Table converted and columns made for other countries Billscottbob (talk) 19:11, 20 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

strongly discouraged by some countries...

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I never cease to be amazed at how the regulators in on country will forbid you to do a certain thing while the regulators in another country will require you to do precisely the same thing when both regulations were supposedly written to achieve the same end.

Here in the U.S. of A., The helmsman of every commercial vessel and, of every vessel greater than 20m LOA is required to stand watch on channel 13 (except in the lower Mississippi River where it's channel 67) whenever the vessel is under command so that he may chat with the helmsmen of other vessels about whose turn it is to enter the lock chamber, and who's to turn to the left and who's to turn to the right and so forth. The regulators consider channel 13 to be of such importance that the helmsman's radio must be dedicated to the purpose. It must not scan, and in particular, it must not be the same radio that is used to monitor channels 16, and 70.

71.253.13.216 (talk) 13:53, 9 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Remember, this page is just for discussing improivements to the article, not for discussing what's wrong with the world.   Will Beback  talk  19:16, 9 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

TWC

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In the table, I know what UKSAR is, but what does TWC stand for. It needs explaining on the page, I think.

CharlwoodHouse (talk) 09:58, 11 October 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Team Working Channel, see http://forum.mrmap.org.uk/uploaded_files/uksar_implementation_control_v6.1.pdf

--83.216.95.154 (talk) 12:50, 6 May 2015 (UTC)[reply]

unicode

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It seems some relatively obscure characters from unicode that aren't supported on my system are being used in the table, looking one of them up it seems to be a cirled letter A. Is it really a good idea to have an important part of a table heading done using such a character?! Plugwash (talk) 11:42, 10 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Channel 16 frequencies

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The table shows channel 16 as a duplex (ship/coast) channel and a change by an ip was reverted. In the handbook I have (from the Finnish communications ministry) it is half duplex only, at 156,800 kHz, with 161.400 kHz not mentioned. Same thing with all channels in the ranges 8-12, 13-17 and 67-77 (the use of most of these does of course vary internationally).

Are the coast channels in question used (somewhere) or are they just allocated in technical specifications? There should be some clear note about this, especially at channel 16 (which should be standardized globally).

--LPfi (talk) 10:20, 15 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

This is the systematic pattern of channel allocation that countries are free to deviate from in their official maritime communication plans. Half-duplex channel use is indicated by a circled letter "A" or "B". --  Denelson83  18:16, 15 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Frequency use table

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In the table the use of the frequencies are given for five countries. It is of course useful for people from those countries and people sailing in those waters. Are they chosen with some thought or just the countries of contributors with the information at hand?

Is there some standardisation, e.g. in Europe or East Asia? Are the treaties regulating channel use or some summaries available on-line? For us not in the countries in the table those global or regional regulations would be far more important.

--LPfi (talk) 10:39, 15 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Added Finland. We cannot have all countries here, but I suppose the channel use is representative for a larger area (at least the Baltic Sea, I suppose).
Are the AIS channels and frequencies correct? My frequency guide gives 161,975 and 162,025 for AIS, which would be the B-channels of 87 and 88, but does allocate the A-channels for normal use.
--LPfi (talk) 11:59, 14 March 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Channel M and M2

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In the UK Channel M (157.850MHz tx/rx) and M2 (161.425MHz tx/rx) are special UK only channels used for communications with designated shore stations with unlicensed operators including marinas and yacht clubs see http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/ra/publication/ra_info/ra264/ra264.htm As this is English language Wikipedia I think it is good to have the channels for English speaking countries correct. I would fix it myself but the table is hard to edit Billlion (talk) 19:00, 22 September 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Loads of errors

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I am not sure what the source was for the table of frequencies but much of it is wrong. For example (see Ofcom site above for example) channels 8-17 are simplex so tx and rx should be the same. Billlion (talk) 19:19, 22 September 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The Table

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I have moved the table here for convenience. For the moment it is better to have it not in the article as it is misleading. The main point is to fix the frequencies for the simplex chanels which are spurious. The HMCG table is referred to, and this agrees with Ofcom. I need to check the ITU to see if some channels are duplex in other countries as these are UK references. Here is the table as it was.


Channel
number 		Frequencies (MHz)  United Kingdom [1]  United States  Canada  Australia  New Zealand  Finland[2]
 A 
Usually ship stations 		 B 
Usually coast stations
0 156.000 160.600 Private, coast guard  A 
1 156.050 160.650 Ship-to-ship/shore, commercial and safety
West Coast  A 

 Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
BC Coast 		Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
2 156.100 160.700 Public
BC Coast 		Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
3 156.150 160.750  A  Illegal for public use1 Public
BC Coast/Inland 		Boat to Boat - Kawau Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
4 156.200 160.800 Ship-to-ship/shore, commercial and safety
East Coast and Inland  A 

Canadian Coast Guard - public working channel
BC Coast4  A 

Boat to Boat - Tutukaka/Raglan Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
5 156.250 160.850 Ship Movements Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
6 156.300 160.900 Ship-to-ship + Ship-to-Air  A  Ship-to-ship + Ship-to-Air  A  Distress - Ship-to-Air Working - Intership  A  Ship-to-ship
also SAR: Ship-to-Ship + Ship-to-Air
7 156.350 160.950 General working channel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
8 156.400 161.000 Ship-to-ship  A  Ship-to-ship
East and west coasts,
Lake Winnipeg  A  		Working - Intership Working - Intership  A  Ship-to-ship
9 156.450 161.050 Frequently used by pilots  A  Calling  A , commercial and non-commercial. Ship-to-air for maritime support
Atlantic and BC coasts  A  		Pilots, Port Operations Port Operations  A  VTS
(Ship-to-ship + Port Operations
10 156.500 161.100 Frequently used by HM Coastguard  A  Ship-to-air - SAR and antipollution  A 
General working -
Atlantic and BC coasts,
Great Lakes 		Port Operations  A  Ship-to-ship
Port Operations
also SAR and oil cleanup
only VTS on Gulf of Finland
11 156.550 161.150 Port Operations VTS - BC Coast
Pilotage  A  		Port Operations  A  Port Operations
12 156.600 161.200 Port Operations VTS - San Francisco offshore
Pilotage  A  		VTS - BC Coast
Port and pilot ops  A  		Port Operations, VTS Port Operations  A  Port Operations
13 156.650 161.250 Bridge-to-Bridge Working  A  Bridge-to-Bridge safety  A : Vessels > 20m must maintain watch, Tx limited to 1 watt.

Movable bridge / lock operations.

VTS - BC Coast
Bridge-to-bridge safety  A  		Port Operations, VTS Intership Nav Safety  A  Pilots
Ship-to-ship
Port Operations
14 156.700 161.300 Port Operations VTS - San Francisco Bay and Delta
Pilotage  A  		VTS - BC Coast
Port and pilot ops  A  		Port Operations  A  Working channel for SAR authorities, Turku Radio
(Port Operations)
15 156.750 161.350 On board working (limited to 1 watt)  A   A  max 1 W
Intraship
Ship-to-ship
Port Operations
16 156.800 156.800
International distress, safety and calling  A 

All vessels equipped with VHF must maintain watch.
17 156.850 161.450 On board Working  A  Aquatic Sports Events  A  max 1 W
Intraship
Ship-to-ship
Port Operations
18 156.900 161.500 Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
19 156.950 161.550 Landside facilities: harbormaster, marinas. Canadian Coast Guard - Working Channel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
20 157.000 161.600 Repeater Operations Continuous Weather
Maritime Safety Service 		Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
21 157.050 161.650  A  U.S. Coast Guard Only Continuous marine broadcasts  B  (WX 8) Continuous Weather
Maritime Safety Service 		Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
22 157.100 161.700  A  U.S. Coast Guard—public working channel2 Continuous Weather
Maritime Safety Service 		Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
23 157.150 161.750 HM Coastguard Maritime Safety Information  A  U.S. Coast Guard Only Continuous Weather
Maritime Safety Service 		Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
24 157.200 161.800 UKSAR G/A Winching  A 
UKSAR TWC  B  		Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
25 157.250 161.850 Maritime Radio Working Channel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
26 157.300 161.900 HM Coastguard Maritime Safety Information Public correspondence (marine telephone operator) Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
27 157.350 161.950 Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
28 157.400 162.000 Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
60 156.025 160.625 GOFREP on Gulf of Finland
Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
61 156.075 160.675  A  Illegal for public use1 GOFREP (Estonia) on Gulf of Finland
Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
62 156.125 160.725 UKSAR Calling & Helicopter Channel  A 
UKSAR TWC  B  		Boat to Boat - Waiheke/Whangaroa Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
63 156.175 160.775 UKSAR TWC (simplex) Boat to Boat - Manukau Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
64 156.225 160.825 UKSAR TWC (simplex)  A  Illegal for public use1 Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
65 156.275 160.875 Marine Assistance Working Channel Boat to Boat - Coromandel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
66 156.325 160.925 Marinas - BC Coast  A  Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
67 156.375 160.975 UK Small Ship Safety Channel Working Channel, Marine Weather Maritime Radio Working Channel  A  VTS
(Ship-to-ship + Port Operations)
68 156.425 161.275 Non-commercial  A  Maritime Radio Working Channel  A  Port Operations
69 156.475 161.075 Port Operations Non-commercial  A  Australian Navy Maritime Radio Working channel
Surf Lifesaving 		 A  Ship-to-ship
Port Operations
70 156.525 161.125 Digital Selective Calling  A 
71 156.575 161.175 Non-commercial  A  Maritime Radio Working Channel  A  VTS
(Ship-to-ship + Port Operations) Port Operations
72 156.625 161.225 Ship-to-ship  A  Non-commercial ship-to-ship  A  Ship-to-ship  A  Ship-to-ship
Ship-to-air
73 156.675 161.275 HM Coastguard Safety Broadcasts Ship-to-ship Marinas - Working  A  Ship-to-ship

Ship-to-air
(Port Operations)
74 156.725 161.325 British Waterways/Canal and River Trust Channel (Canal and River System) Ship-to-ship Working - Coast/Ship  A  Port Operations
75 156.775 161.375 Navigaton related communications (limited to 1 watt)  A Restricted
Ship-to-ship
Port Operations
76 156.825 161.425  A  Restricted
Port Operations
77 156.875 161.475 Ship-to-ship  A  Ship-to-ship  A  Ship-to-ship
78 156.925 161.525 Non-commercial  A  Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
79 156.975 161.575 Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
80 157.025 161.625 UK Marina Channel Repeater Operations Coastguard Radio - Working Channel GOFREP on Gulf of Finland
Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
81 157.075 161.675  A  U.S. Government Use Only Repeater Operations Coastguard Radio - Working Channel GOFREP (Estonia) on Gulf of Finland
Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
82 157.125 161.725  A  U.S. Government Use Only Canadian Coast Guard - Working Channel Coastguard Radio - Working Channel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
83 157.175 161.775  A  U.S. Coast Guard Use Only Continuous Marine Broadcasts  B  (WX 9) Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
84 157.225 161.825 HM Coastguard Maritime Safety Information Coastguard Radio - Working Channel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
85 157.275 161.875 UKSAR TWC (simplex) Radio Telephone - Duplex Coastguard Radio - Working Channel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
86 157.325 161.925 HM Coastguard Maritime Safety Information Coastguard Radio - Working Channel Public Correspondence (Ship-to-Shore Duplex)
Port Operations
87 157.375 161.975 Automatic Identification System  B 
88 157.425 162.025 Automatic Identification System  B 

Notes:

1: Some radios enable channels 3A, 61A, and 64A when configured for "USA mode" even though those channels are allocated exclusively for Public Safety use by the FCC. The frequencies 156.075, 156.150, and 156.225 MHz are used for interoperability communication by police and fire departments in many areas.

2: Channel 22A is reserved for communication between the U.S. Coast Guard vessels and private vessels. The Coast Guard does not monitor 22A: Contact must first be established on 16.

3: UKSAR land based search & rescue teams have access to the simplexed versions of 24, 62, 63, 64, 85 for operational & training needs. These include Mountain Rescue teams in England, Wales & Scotland.

4: CCG public operations moved from 22A to 04A to avoid interference from USCG stations in northern Washington state.

Billlion (talk) 19:30, 22 September 2013 (UTC)[reply]

References

  1. ^ VHF Radio (including GMDSS) (2nd ed.). RYA. 2008. ISBN 978-1-906435-20-2. {{cite book}}: |editor1-first= missing |editor1-last= (help); Unknown parameter |ditor1-last= ignored (help)
  2. ^ Kommunikationsverket 2010: Handbok i VHF-radiokommunikation för radiooperatör med kusttrafikcertifikat

Authoritative source

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So I have found the ITU publication here [1]

It is Circular Letter CM/19 To Administrations of Member States of the ITU 27 March 2009, and it details "Regulations dealing with the Table of transmitting frequencies in the VHF maritime mobile band" It has a table with the correct frequencies, it refers to (See Appendix 18 (Rev.WRC-07)) so I am not sure it is the primary source. Note in this table the simplex channels have same tx and rx frequencies. Billlion (talk) 19:41, 22 September 2013 (UTC)[reply]

license requirements?

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I would like to see this article document various requirements to have the right to operate on the marine frequencies. Some countries probably require a license to operate on those frequencies. The US, i *think* do *not* require a license *if* you are on a sailboat - reading those documents may help: http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtBoater http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtWatch --TheAnarcat (talk) 00:23, 28 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Ofcom regulations [2] says "The use of International Maritime Mobile VHF channels by the international Radio Regulations as laid down by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva. The ITU is the branch of the United Nations responsible for the co-ordination of radio use worldwide. The Radio Regulations have treaty status for member nations of which the UK is one. The information in this sheet can be found in a fuller form in the 'Manual for use by the Maritime Mobile and Maritime Mobile-Satellite Services' available from the ITU." and

"It is an international requirement that every vessel, port or marina that uses radio be licensed. Anyone who operates radio equipment with access to international maritime frequencies must hold the relevant certificate of competence or be under the direct supervision of someone who does. Further information about certificates of competence is available from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, at the address overleaf." Billlion (talk) 21:11, 28 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Under FCC rules, in the USA, a "ship station" license is granted by rule for any OPTIONAL radio on-board operating in the "maritime services" frequencies (152-162MHz), provided it does not enter foreign ports or communicate with "international stations". All use of that band by others (e.g., portables ashore, coastal stations, or on ships requiring VHF radios) must have individual or fleet licenses. 47 CFR §§ 80.13, 80.501. The FCC has been cracking down on unlicensed shore-based users, such as duck hunters, using the cheap and powerful marine-band walkie-talkies. The point is well worth making, if it saves someone the $10,000 fine and keeps the channels open for their intended users. Lupinelawyer (talk) 02:58, 15 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Channel 31 in NL

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I have just come back from the Netherlands and found that marinas inland use Ch 31 but of course my UK set does not have that. In the UK it is a private channel used by the RNLI. I intend to put that in the table but I would like to check if it is used more generally in continental Europe first. Any suggested sources?Billlion (talk) 15:24, 1 September 2016 (UTC)[reply]

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