Two-Way Communication While Out Sailing – and why it’s
important…
In this age of instant communication via “smart phone” some
sailors have begun to question the need to have a two-way radio transceiver aboard
their boat. And, if there is a two-way
radio, they might not turn it on at all.
Here are some thoughts:
First of all, cell phone coverage has some big “holes”. In the inland northwest regions of
Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and Montana there are many places where cell phone coverage
is “spotty” at best. Many of my friends
complain bitterly that they spend lots of cash each month, but cannot use their
“smart phones” for anything while aboard their boats. The same thing is true at many of the ski
resorts around the region – but that’s another story…… The point here is that if you are in trouble
on your boat and are relying on your “smart phone” you might be surprised that
you cannot make a call or a text.
Another problem with relying on the “smart phone” is that even
if the phone works fine, you are probably calling someone who is nowhere near
your location. How is that person
supposed to come to your rescue? How is
that person supposed to relay your information to someone else accurately? Will that person have to patch you into some
sort of conference call? Don’t get me
wrong - - I think that cell phones and other “smart” devices are terrific. However, they are not the most efficient
means of communication when your boat is in trouble.
Another thing to ponder if you don’t turn on your two-way
radio is that you might be only a short distance away from someone in real
trouble. They might be calling a “Mayday”
on their two-way radio. If your two-way
radio isn’t turned on, you’ll never hear the emergency call - - nor will you
know that you could/should render assistance.
Personally, I would be mortified if I found out that I was the closest
boat; that I could have helped; but that I never knew until someone back at the
marina asked if I knew what had happened……
So, what kind of two-way radio is best. Of course, best is relative. And, best might have to do with what kind of
radios most other sailors are using where you sail. If most sailors are using CB radios, the CB
is probably the best choice for you. If
most sailors are using VHF marine band radios, then VHF is the way to go. If you are at sea, blue water voyaging to distant
places you will probably have a single sideband radio or a “HAM” radio. What are the differences? Well, there are a lot of differences. But, the most important difference is
probably the transmit/receive range of the radio. A CB radio transmits at about 5 watts and
generally has a range of about four to five miles. VHF marine band radios transmit at about 25
watts when on “high”; and those transmissions can be heard at distances of
twenty to twenty-five miles. Single
sideband and HAM radios can often be heard thousands of miles away. There are variables in transmit range such as
how high up the antenna is mounted – the higher up the farther the range.
The important thing though is that your two-way radio should
be similar to the radios most of the sailors in your area are using. CB radios cannot hear a VHF transmission - -
and visa-versa…… If your radio is
similar to the radios that other sailors are using, then you improve your communication
ability greatly.
Find out what channel most sailors are using to call other
boats. For CB that channel is often
channel 9. For VHF radios that channel
is usually channel 16. Know what the procedure
is for using the radio. CB radio
procedures are much more relaxed than VHF procedures. And HAM procedures are more involved than
VHF. Most of the sailors where Kathy and
I sail are using VHF marine band radios and use channel 16 for initial calls
and for emergency calls. In the
twenty-seven years Kathy and I have been sailing Snickerdoodle at Lake Pend Oreille, ID., I have been involved in
three life-threatening rescue attempts.
The VHF radio was instrumental in all three. If we had not had the radio on and monitoring
channel 16, we would not have been able to help.
By-the-way - - - hand-held VHF radios are great… but, these
two-way radios transmit with about 5 watts of power. So, the effective range is reduced to about
four or five miles.
So, have the right radio for your region and know the
procedures for using that radio.
VHF procedures - -
Use channel 16 to make emergency calls. Emergency calls and special notification
calls have set procedures. There are
three levels importance for these calls - - “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday” is the
most severe and implies a life-threatening situation.
“Pan, Pan, Pan” (pronounced “pawn, pawn, pawn”) is for serious
but not yet life-threatening situations.
I heard the 90-foot yawl Odyssey
call a “Pan, Pan, Pan” one day when I was sailing in the San Juan Islands. The Odyssey
had a man-overboard. The reason that
they broadcast a “Pan, Pan, Pan” instead of a “Mayday” was that they were sure
that they could rescue the victim who’d fallen overboard. And, they were successful. Their radio transmission was to notify other
boats and the Coast Guard that they had a serious situation that they were
dealing with.
“Security, Security, Security” is for information situations. I remember once I heard the American aircraft
carrier USS Kennedy making a “Security,
Security, Security” transmission on VHF as she was about to enter the Strait of
Juan de Fuca. Her captain wanted to
notify all boaters and sailors that this very large ship was entering the
strait. The Kennedy had restricted ability to maneuver and the captain wanted
to make sure other boats stayed away.
If I needed to make one of these calls from Snickerdoodle, here’s what you would
hear…… “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday – this is
sailing vessel Snickerdoode – WSE-8015
– a 25-foot sailing sloop – at (give the location or latitude/longitude) – give
the nature of the emergency aboard (fire, sinking, medical emergency, etc.) –
Over”
BTW: the WSE-8015 is my VHF call sign. You don’t need to have this – I do have a
call sign, so I broadcast that call sign.
Hopefully someone who can help will respond right away to your
transmission. If not, rebroadcast the
message.
Use channel 16 to initially call the person/boat you want to
communicate with. Then, when contact has
been established, switch channels to one of the “working” channels for
personal/private communications (channel 9, 68, etc)
This contact transmission is pretty straightforward. If I were trying to call my brother Bob
aboard his sailboat Windsong you
would hear - - “Windsong, Windsong,
Windsong – this is Snickerdoodle –
WSE-8015 – Over”
If Bob heard me, he would acknowledge by transmitting – “Snickerdoodle – this is Windsong – let’s go to 68” We would then change channels to 68 and be
able to talk with each other. If other
boats are already talking on 68 – we’d wait till they were through. When I’m through talking with Bob on Windsong I’ll say, “Snickerdoodle back to 16”
So, have the two-way radio that is best for your region – the type
that most sailors are using; know the procedures; and monitor the initial/emergency
channel whenever you are at your boat.
And, please don’t make a call similar to one we heard a couple
weeks ago where the caller’s engine had quit.
He was drifting toward a rocky shore about 300 yards away. He identified himself as a 25-foot blue/white
Bayliner near Granite Point. Another
boat immediately called back to let the first caller know that the rescuing
boat was just leaving Garfield Bay about five miles away. It would take the rescuing boat ten to
fifteen minutes to get to the stricken vessel’s location.
Fifteen minutes later the first caller aboard the blue/white
Bayliner called (with considerable distress in his voice). He could not see the rescuer yet and was
getting closer to the rocks. The rescuer
immediately called back saying that he was near Granite Point – but could not
see any other boats – especially he could not see a 25-foot Bayliner. This was when the Bayliner said that he
thought he was located a couple miles north of Garfield Bay on the west side of
the lake. He thought the point was
Granite Point. I looked at my chart for
Lake Pend Oreille and determined that the Bayliner was somewhere between
Mineral Point and Camp Bay (a little more than a mile from Garfield Bay where
the rescuer had come from). The rescuing
boat now had to drive back across the lake another ten to fifteen minutes. We didn’t hear any more transmissions - - so,
hopefully all went well after that.