Marine SSB radio

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Why marine SSB

Marine SSB (Single Side Band) is a popular means of communications for the independent cruising yachtsmen and a must if you are planning to do bluewater cruising to the Caribbean, Pacific or Mediterranean. The range of SSB is up to several thousand miles and calls between yachts are free. There are stations around which will let you make link calls (telephone calls) and even email is available over SSB radio. Having an SSB MF/HF transceiver on board your yacht offers communication independence, you are not tied into any contracts or connection charges and you are able to use the radio for the following :-

Marine Distress Frequencies (Radio Telephone (R/T) & DSC)

Band	R/T Frequency	DSC Frequency	Day Time Range	Night Time Range
MF	2182 kHz	2187.5 kHz	150 nm	500 nm
HF4	4125 kHz	4207.5 kHZ	300 nm	1000 nm
HF6	6215 kHz	6312 kHz	600 nm	1500 nm
HF8	8291 kHz	8414.5 kHZ	1000 nm	2000 nm
HF12	12290 kHz	12577 kHz	2500 nm
HF16	16420 kHz	16804.5 kHz
VHF	156.800 MHz (Ch16)	156.525 MHz (Ch 70)	30 nm	30 nm

NOTE: Range is for guidance only and will depending on your operating conditions and HF radio propagation conditions.

Marine SSB frequencies

The frequencies used for marine communications are internationally agreed by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Below you will find a list of HF frequencies. In the main most frequencies are Duplex and intended for ship to shore use. Some bands do have simplex channels which can be used for either ship to shore or intership working.

Simplex ship to ship HF frequencies, shared with fixed services

In the Caribbean 8104 MHz is the Safety, Information and Calling frequency used by yachtsmen.
Best time to monitor is from 07:30 to 0930 local time.

4000 kHz	4024 kHz	4048 kHz	8101 kHz	8125 kHz	8149 kHz	8173 kHz
4003 kHz	4027 kHz	4051 kHz	8104 kHz	8128 kHz	8152 kHz	8176 kHz
4006 kHz	4030 kHz	4054 kHz	8107 kHz	8131 kHz	8155 kHz	8179 kHz
4009 kHz	4033 kHz	4057 kHz	8110 kHz	8134 kHz	8158 kHz	8182 kHz
4012 kHz	4036 kHz	4060 kHz	8113 kHz	8137 kHz	8161 kHz	8185 kHz
4015 kHz	4039 kHz		8116 kHz	8140 kHz	8164 kHz	8188 kHz
4018 kHz	4042 kHz		8119 kHz	8143 kHz	8167 kHz	8191 kHz
4021 kHz	4045 kHz		8122 kHz	8146 kHz	8170 kHz

Primary HF ship to ship frequencies

Ch	4 Mhz	6 Mhz	8 Mhz	12 Mhz	16 Mhz	18 Mhz	22 Mhz	25 Mhz
A	4146 kHz	6224 khz	8294 kHz	12353 kHz	16528 kHz	18825 kHz	22159 kHz	25100 kHz
B	4149 kHz	6227 kHz	8297 kHz	12356 kHz	16531 kHz	18828 kHz	22162 kHz	25103 kHz
C		6230 kHz		12359 kHz	16534 kHz	18831 kHz	22165 kHz	25106 kHz
D				12362 kHz	16537 kHz	18834 kHz	22168 kHz	25109 kHz
E				12365 kHz	16540 kHz	18837 kHz	22171 kHz	25112 kHz
F					16543 kHz	18840 kHz	22174 kHz	25115 kHz
G					16546 kHz	18843 kHz	22177 kHz	25118 kHz

Listening times

The best time to listen is early morning 0600 to 0930 and in the evenings 1800 to 2100 local time, this is when radio conditions are ideal. You should hear a number of yachtsmen talking to each other although in Northern Europe it is not so popular compared to the the Mediterranean and Caribbean.

Net Areas	frequency	Times GMT
Mediterranean Net	8122 kHz	0530
Caribbean calling frequency and safety net	8104 kHz	1215 (0815 AST)
Atlantic Net (Herb)	12359 kHz	2000
Bahamas weather net	4003 kHz	7:00 am AST
Caribbean weather net	4045 kHz 8104 kHz 8137 kHz	from 07:00 AST
Cruiseheimer's net (East coast and Bahamas): 8152 @ 8:30 am ET	8152 kHz	08:30 AST
Northwest Caribbean	8188 kHz	08:00 AST

Telephone Link Calls via coast radio stations (CRS)

There are caost radio stations around the world which offer link calls service, telephone calls from your yacht.

Methods of Billing
- Coast Radio Station charge by Accounting Authority Identification Code (AAIC), details of companies offering a AAIC service can be found in the back of the ships licence booklet.

Details the Coast Radio Station will need before connecting you are:
- Vessels name and International callsign,
- Telephone number you require
- Billing details (AAIC)

Here is a list of coast radio stations offering link call service, all in ITU channel numbers.

Duplex ship to shore ITU channels

Station	Callsign	4MHz	6MHz	8MHz	12MHz	16MHz	18MHz	22MHz	25MHz	WX
ITU Channels		401 to 429	601 to 608	801 to 837	1201 to 1241	1601 to 1656	1801 to 1815	2201 to 2253	2501 to 2510
DISTRESS Channels		421	606	821	1221	1621	1806	2221	2510
Olympia, Greece	SVN	424		806	1232	1640
Cyprus Radio	5BA	406		807	1208	1603
Lyngby, Denmark	OZX	418		808	1203 1214
Monaco Radio	3AC	403		804	1224	1607
Hefa radio Israel	4XO			810		1617
Istanbul, Turkey	TAH	417		811
Lisboa, Portugal	CUL			802	1203	1615
Madrid Spain	EHY			804	1201	1637
Rijeka, Croatia	9AR	408		810	1229
Roma, Italy	IAR	412		831	1221	1621		2202
Shipcom - USA	WLO	405 414	607	824 830	1212 1226	1607 1641	1807	2237	2503
Shipcom - USA	KLB	417		805	1209	1624				1200 utc
Shipcom - USA	WLO	406	606	806 810 815	1205 1211	1605 1615	1810	2215	2510	1800 utc
Barbados	8PO			816	1213
Jamaica		405	605	812	1224
USA		405 421	605 606	821 816	1213 1224
Brunei Bay Radio	V8V2222	428	608	835	1239		1804	2229

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