VHF Certification

[waverider]

Hi All,

The Miss's and I are taking our "Restricted Operators Card" with DSC endorsment tomorrow. It is not a long course only 7 hours and it is not expensive $ 75.00 for the two of us.

As the local yacht club is putting the course on for its members, I was surprised to find out how many sailors and cruisers are not interested in taking the course. In Canada and the USA it is a Federal crime to opperate a VHF radio with out a licence.

So I would like to ask all you fellow sailors out there, Do you have your VHF licence? Are you planning on taking the course? Do you not care about the Licence ( is it not worth it, for the investment it takes)?

Christina and I feel it is worth it and the skills to properly communicate with foriegn customs offices will make it easier to clear on our future cruise south.

So I am looking forward to your feedback. What are your thoughts?


Cheers

Todd

[Factor]

Originally Posted by waverider

Do you have your VHF licence?
Todd

Certainly do

[Hampus]

Yep, me too.

[waverider]

I should also state that I have worked in the Charter industry for over 20 years and although I do have my Captains papers, not once was I asked for a VHF licence by my employer. When I took my papers in 1984 you didn't even need a licence to recieve your captains papers. Now you do, but then you did not have to have them.

Makes a person wonder?

[Vasco]

I have an operators license but the majority of people on the vhf do not and I have never heard of anyone being fined for not having one. Also no jurisdiction has ever asked for my operators license or my station license. It may be that a vhf operators license is not really necessary and just a ploy by the bureaucrats although I can't remember whether the operators license cost anything. I do know they charge for the station license which is only necessary outside of the US and Canada.

[bitman]

i have one and updating that to a DSC tomorrow!

[DavidGC]

Unless the law has changed, A U.S. pleasure boat is not required to have a VHF license when sailing in U.S. waters.

DGC

[cal40john]

Originally Posted by waverider

Hi All,

The Miss's and I are taking our "Restricted Operators Card" with DSC endorsment tomorrow. It is not a long course only 7 hours and it is not expensive $ 75.00 for the two of us.

As the local yacht club is putting the course on for its members, I was surprised to find out how many sailors and cruisers are not interested in taking the course. In Canada and the USA it is a Federal crime to opperate a VHF radio with out a licence.

So I would like to ask all you fellow sailors out there, Do you have your VHF licence? Are you planning on taking the course? Do you not care about the Licence ( is it not worth it, for the investment it takes)?

Christina and I feel it is worth it and the skills to properly communicate with foriegn customs offices will make it easier to clear on our future cruise south.

So I am looking forward to your feedback. What are your thoughts?


Cheers

Todd

In the U.S., no station license or operator permit is required to operate a VHF while in the U.S. I thought Canada was the same (while in Canada).
The RP in the U.S. just involves paying a fee, no knowledge requirement.

Nautical Know How - Marine Radio Information for Boaters

I have a General RadioTelephone Operators License and a station license.

John

[Jim Quibell]

Persons operating a VHF radio must hold a Restricted Operators Licence. If travelling into another nations waters, you must also have a Station Licence.
Just because you don't hear of people being fined for illegal operation of VHF without the operator licence doesn't mean they are not being fined. People are being charged and fined, and the federal law is going to be getting a lot more enforcement as time rolls along.
All boaters who use a VHF radio should take the course. Knowing the proper way to use the VHF radio, and having a command of the international VHF language (alpha, bravo etc) would certainly improve communications.

[cal40john]

According to this I was partly wrong about Canada. You don't have to have a station license, but you are always required to have the restricted permit.

Pat's Boating in Canada: VHF Marine Radio

John

[cal40john]

Originally Posted by Jim Quibell

Persons operating a VHF radio must hold a Restricted Operators Licence. If travelling into another nations waters, you must also have a Station Licence.
Just because you don't hear of people being fined for illegal operation of VHF without the operator licence doesn't mean they are not being fined. People are being charged and fined, and the federal law is going to be getting a lot more enforcement as time rolls along.
All boaters who use a VHF radio should take the course. Knowing the proper way to use the VHF radio, and having a command of the international VHF language (alpha, bravo etc) would certainly improve communications.

I assume you are Canadian and are speaking of Canadian laws?

John

[Bash]

Originally Posted by waverider

In Canada and the USA it is a Federal crime to opperate a VHF radio with out a licence.

Sheesh! It might be a good idea to get the facts before accusations of committing a "Federal crime" are tossed about. According to FCC Form 1070Y (July 2004), persons DO NOT NEED a restricted radiotelephone permit when "On board a voluntarily equipped ship using only VHF frequencies on domestic voyages OR using a radar, EPIRB, survival craft, or onboard station."

That yacht club has a pretty good scam going if they've convinced you to pay 75 bucks to avoid committing a "Federal crime" that doesn't exist. I hope lunch was included in the cost.

[svHyLyte]

See the following from the FCC Reg's

No RP ("Restricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit") is needed to operate the following:

• (a) a voluntarily equipped ship or aircraft station (including a CAP station) which operates only on VHF frequencies and does not make foreign voyages or flights;
  
  (b) an aeronautical ground or coast station which operates only on VHF frequencies;
  
  (c) on-board stations;
  
  (d) a marine utility station unless it is taken aboard a vessel which makes a foreign voyage;
  
  (e) a survival craft station when using telephony or an Emergency Position Indicating Radiobeacon (EPIRB) station;
  
  
  
  (f) a ship radar station if:
  • (i) the operating frequency is determined by a fixed tuned device;
    (ii) the radar is capable of being operated by only external controls;
    
  (g) shore radar, shore radiolocation, maritime support or shore radio-navigation stations.
  

[bastonjock]

It is a legal requirement in the UK,if you have a VHF on board someone has to have a licence for it,once you do the course,you then have to send away the signed cert ,you also have to register the radio to the boat.

[bitman]

that's pretty bad if you don't need a license in the US

must be a mess then when you listen to the VHF over there, brrrr