West Marine VHF85, Owner'S Manual

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West Marine VHF85 Radio Owner’s Manual
E-36
Maritime Radio Services Operation
Warning! This transmitter will operate on channels/frequencies that have
restricted use in the United States. The channel assignments include
frequencies assigned for exclusive use of the U.S. Coast Guard, use in
Canada, and use in international waters. Operation on these frequencies
without proper authorization is strictly forbidden. See pages E-23 through
E-29 for tables of the available channels and their uses. If you are still not
certain which channels to use, see the FCC maritime radio page at the
FCC website
( http://wireless.fcc.gov/marine/ ) or contact the FCC Call Center at
1-888-CALL-FCC. For individuals requiring a license, such as commercial
users, you should obtain a license application from your nearest FCC field
office (for US users) or Industry Canada (for Canadian users).
Basic Radio Guidelines
You should familiarize yourself with the rules on marine radios and be
aware of which rules apply to your boat. Complete guidelines for all ship
and marine radio types can be found at the US Coast Guard website
under the topic Radio Info for Boaters (the direct link is
http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/marcomms/boater.htm ). Here are a few
guidelines that affect nearly all boaters.
• If you have a VHF radio on your boat, you must maintain a watch on
channel 16 (156.800 MHz) whenever the radio is not being used to
communicate. Starting in 2004, if a radio is carried, it must be on and
set to channel 16 whenever your boat is underway.
• If you hear a distress call, wait a few minutes to let a shore station or
Coast Guard vessel respond. If no other station has responded after 5
minutes, you must respond to the distress call.
• Do not make false mayday or distress calls as a prank or to test your
radio. (This is essentially like making a false 9-1-1 call; you may be
subject to fines.)
FCC/Industry Canada Information
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Certifica tion: FCC Part 80 or RSS-182