The Marine VHF radio is one of the most-important pieces of safety equipment aboard the vessel. The following covers the basics of operation.

Marine VHF uses channels, and each channel has a designated purpose. As recreational boaters, we will usually limit extended transmissions to the non-commercial channels 68, 69, 71 & 72.

The calling channel is 16. This channel is used to initiate conversations by hailing the intended recipient and negotiating a channel to switch to for continued communication. Do not carry a conversation with any party other than the US Coast Guard over channel 16. Always switch to a more-appropriate channel.

All VHF-equipped vessels are required to monitor channel 16. Festina Lente is set up to do this through the use of “dual watch” functionality, which means that channel 16 is monitored even when the radio is tuned to a different channel. When in doubt, there’s no harm in changing to channel 16.

If a transmission ever starts with “Mayday,” “Pan Pan,” or “Securité,” cease all conversation and listen intently until you have determined that the transmission does not apply to Festina Lente. This typically involves having determined that the affected location is not close to the boat’s position. The skipper may need to react to events even if they are not directly related to the vessel’s safety.

Always pause for about 1 second after depressing the transmit key (PTT) on the VHF before speaking. This allows time for receiving radios to “break squelch” (a type of muting) and helps to ensure that your full transmission will be heard. When stating channel numbers, it can be helpful to state the individual digits, so “16” becomes “one, six.”

When speaking on a radio without having much experience, it’s common to get flustered, have “mic fright,” or to rush things. You are not being graded. Slow down, breathe, think about what you wish to communicate, and then begin your transmission, speaking slowly and clearly.

Each transmission *should* end with, “Over,” though even the most-experienced operators may forget. Your final transmission in a conversation should end with, “Festina Lente, Out.”

An Example Non-Emergency Call Initiation

To initiate a call with another station (in this example, “Endeavor”) you would first tune to channel 16 using the channel buttons on the radio. After waiting a few seconds to ensure nobody else is transmitting, you would press and hold the PTT key and hail Endeavor as follows:

“Endeavor, Endeavor, Endeavor, this is Festina Lente, Festina Lente, Festina Lente calling on channel one six. Over.”

Remember to release the PTT key. If Endeavor hears you and knows Marine VHF protocol, they will respond along the lines of:

“Festina Lente, this is Endeavor. Let’s go to channel seven one. Over.”

To which you would respond:

“Endeavor, Festina Lente. Ok, going to channel seven one. Festina Lente Out”

If Endeavor doesn’t know Marine VHF protocol, they may try to carry a conversation. At your first opportunity, you should ask them to meet you on a different channel:

“Endeavor, Festina Lente. Let’s free the channel, please. I’ll meet you on channel seven one. Over.”

Endeavor should then acknowledge you and finalize their transmission with “Out”. If nothing further is heard, try changing to the prescribed channel as it is possible they switched without acknowledgement.

Once both stations have switched to the negotiated channel, you are free to have a more detailed conversation, but remember that marine channels are a shared resource. Keep transmissions as brief as possible and be courteous to other operators.

Making An Emergency/Urgent Call

There are 3 categories of emergency or urgent calls: Mayday, Pan Pan (pronounced “pahn pahn”), and Securité (pronounced “seh cure e tay”).

Mayday is reserved for immediate threats to life or vessel (as in sinking, not simply disabled). It will bring a response by the Coast Guard and by any available vessels able to assist. Let’s hope you never have to make a mayday call. If you do need to make a mayday call, consider pressing the “Distress” button on the VHF first. This sends a digital distress call with the vessel’s identifier and current location (if available). You can follow this up with a voice mayday call to provide additional detail.

You are far more likely to need to make a pan pan or securité call.

Pan Pan is for non-life-threatening emergencies/situations. Examples include being adrift and in need of a tow (or fuel) or a serious but non-life-threatening injury requiring medical assistance.

Securité is for important navigational information and hazards. Examples include large logs floating in the water, whales spotted in the bay and at risk of ship strikes, or temporary alterations to restricted navigation areas. It’s more likely that the Coast Guard will issue this type of call in response to someone having reported the information to them (perhaps you).

Urgent calls should be initiated on channel 16, which is monitored by the Coast Guard and other mariners. The responding station may request that you change to a working channel (say, 22a or “22 alpha”). In most cases, the responding party will guide you through the call prompting you for necessary information, but there is important information you can have available prior to initiating the call which will help things go more smoothly:

• Vessel Name: “Festina Lente” in this case
• Vessel Description: 42 foot sailboat, blue hull, white deck, tan canvas
• Vessel Position: Our position is available in multiple places – the radio should display a latitude and longitude. If no position is displayed, check the chart-plotter. Failing that, you may be able to get coordinates from your phone. In Apple Maps, for example, tapping on the blue circle indicating your location will present details that include precise coordinates. When all else fails, describe what you can see with compass bearings to prominent features if possible. In an emergency, it’s easy to forget about some of the best landmarks available. If you are near a buoy, note its color and number and estimate your distance from it.
• Nature of urgency: As succinctly as possible, describe what is wrong (ie: “Our skipper has fallen ill and nobody else knows how to operate the boat.” Or “We have lost our mast and our engines will not start.”
• What assistance do you need: By providing an indication of what you need, you may get a quicker response from a nearby vessel that is able to offer help. If you just ran out of fuel, a nearby boat may have spare diesel to offer, for example.
• A phone number you can be reached at (if service is available)
• Number of persons aboard the vessel and their condition

Suppose we are becalmed (no wind) and our engine has failed near the Golden Gate during a strong ebb. We are quickly drifting out under the bridge and are in danger of entering the shipping lanes. Yikes! We would initiate our distress call by tuning to channel 16, pressing the PTT key on the handset, and speaking as follows:

“Pan Pan, Pan Pan, Pan Pan. This is sailing vessel Festina Lente, Festina Lente, Festina Lente. We are becalmed, engine disabled, and adrift. We are 200 yards north of the north tower of the Golden Gate Bridge and are being carried out to sea. We are in danger of entering the shipping lanes. We are requesting immediate towing assistance. Over.”

The Coast Guard is likely to respond to verify information you have provided and to collect additional details, including the examples above. They will likely issue their own Pan Pan call asking all vessels in the vicinity to assist if able. They are also highly likely to alert VTS of your potential to enter the shipping lane. They will guide you through what follows.

Remain calm. If possible, one person should remain available to communicate with rescuers at any time freeing others do whatever they can to manage the developing situation. It is ok to ask responders to “stand by” while you get an answer to questions they have asked if you don’t know the answer yet.