Specifications

76 77
SatelliteEPIRBsalsoincludeahomingbeaconandstrobetohelp
rescueforcesquicklylocatethedistresssceneSatellitebeaconshave
significantcoverage,withalertingtimeliness,positionaccuracy,and
signalingadvantagesoverotherdevicesBeforepurchasingorusing
other-thana406MHzEPIRB,besureyouunderstanditscapabilities
andlimitations
MounttheEPIRBtofloatfree,accordingtothemanufacturer’sinstruc-
tions,ifpossibleOtherwise,makesureitisreadilyaccessibleRegister
theEPIRBwithNOAA,accordingtotheinstructionsprovidedwiththe
beaconorattheNOAAwebsite:wwwsarsatnoaagovRegistrationis
mandatory,improvesresponsetime,andreducesfalsealarms

Mostrecreationalvesselslessthan656feet(20meters)inlengthare
notrequiredtocarryamarineradioAnyvesselthatcarriesamarine
radiomustfollowtherulesoftheFederalCommunicationsCommission
(FCC)

TheFCCdoesnotrequiremostoperatorsofrecreationalvesselsto
carryaradioortohaveanindividuallicensetooperateVHF-FMmarine
radios,EPIRBs,oranytypeofradarOperatorsmusthoweverfollow
theproceduresandcourtesiesthatarerequiredoflicensedopera-
torsspecifiedintheFCCrulesYoumayusethenameorregistration
numberofyourvesseltoidentifyyourshipstation
RecreationalVesselsthatmayberequiredtobelicensed:
• Power-drivendrivenvesselsmorethan65feet(20meters)in
length
• Anyvessel,includingarecreationalvessel,onaninternational
voyage

Vesselsnotrequiredtocarryamarineradio–forexample,recreational
vesselslessthan656feet(20meters)inlength,butwhichvoluntarily
carryaradio–mustmaintainawatchonChannel16(156800MHz)or
VHFChannel9(156450MHz),theboater-callingchannel,whenever
theradioisoperatingandnotbeingusedtocommunicate

Thechartbelowcontainsapartiallistingofchannelsrecreational
boatersshouldbefamiliarwithForacompletelistingofVHF
channelsandfrequenciesvisittheUSCoastGuardNavigation
Centerwebsiteatwwwnavcenuscggov
 
06 Usedforship-to-shipsafetymessages
andsearchmessagesandforshipsandaircraftofthe
CoastGuard
09 theFCChasestablishedthischannelas
asupplementarycallingchannelforrecreationalboaters
inordertorelievecongestiononVHFChannel16
13,67 
Shipsgreaterthan20metersinlength
maintainalisteningwatchonthischannelinUSwaters
This
channelisavailable,toallshipsMessagesmust
beaboutshipnavigation–ie,passingormeetingother
shipsYoumustkeepyourmessagesshortYourpower
outputmustnotbemorethanonewattThisisalsothe
mainworkingchannelatmostlocksanddrawbridges
Channel67isforthelowerMississippiRiveronly
16 Usethis
channeltogettheattentionofanotherstation(calling)or
inemergenciesShipsrequiredtocarryaradiomaintain
alisteningwatchonthischannelTheUSCoastGuard
andmostcoaststationsalsomaintainalisteningwatchon
thischannel
21A,23A, y
83A
22A 
Announcementsofurgentmarine
informationbroadcastsandstormwarningsonChannel16
24,25, Usethese
26,27 channelstocallthemarineoperatoratapublicstationBy
28,84 contactingapubliccoaststation,youcanmakeand
85,86 receivecallsfromtelephonesonshoreExceptfordis-
tresscalls,publicstationsusuallychargeforthisservice
70 Usethischannelfordistress
andsafetycallingandforgeneralpurposecalling,using
onlydigitalselectivecalling(DSC)techniques