Coastal Station Radio Information Sheet (Including Technical Frequency Assignment Criteria)

1 Introduction

This information sheet is designed to explain the legal requirements for the use of maritime radio frequencies from a coast radio station situated in the United Kingdom. It also provides information on the technical frequency assignment criteria used for coastal station radio.

As radio signals are used by millions of people worldwide and do not stop at national frontiers, their use must be carefully controlled and agreed internationally. The Radiocommunications Agency (The Agency) is an Executive Agency of the UK Department of Trade and Industry and is responsible for the management of the civil radio spectrum. The principal legislation governing the use of radio in the UK is the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 (WT Act 1949). This act requires the possession of a licence to install or use wireless telegraphy (radio) apparatus unless the equipment has been exempted from this requirement. Coastal Station Radio (CSR) licences are designed to allow coast (base) stations on shore to communicate with vessels.

Operating without a licence or failing to comply with the terms of a licence increases the likelihood of harmful interference being caused to other radio users and can pose a threat to the safety of human life. Consequently the penalties for unlicensed or incorrect use are severe and can include a fine, imprisonment and forfeiture of any equipment associated with the offence. The licensee is ultimately responsible for the actions of anyone using the equipment covered by the licence. Licensees should therefore study the conditions attached to the licence carefully and ensure that anyone using the radio is familiar with them.

2 CSR licence types

There are three types of CSR licence and each is designed for a specific type of use and all are renewable annually. Temporary licences are available to cover special events.

2.1 CSR (Marina)

CSR (Marina) licences are for sailing or yacht clubs, marinas and similar organisations to cover communications concerning the movement and berthing of pleasure craft and to control races. There are three channels available to the licensee:

Channels M and M2

These are simplex channels each using a single frequency for transmitting and receiving. As these channels are not international maritime channels, the user is not required to hold a Maritime Radio Operator's Certificate of Competence and Authority to Operate.

Channel 80

Licensees also have the option to use Channel 80. This is a duplex channel using two frequencies; one to transmit to the ship station and one to receive from the ship station. Channel 80 is an international channel and its use must be by, or under the supervision of a holder of a Maritime Radio Operator's Certificate and Authority to Operate. Vessels wishing to transmit on Channel 80 must have their own ship radio licence and the operator of the radio must possess a Maritime Radio Operator's Certificate and Authority to Operate.

2.2 CSR (International)

These licences are available to those operating ports and harbours for port operations and ship movements.

A port operations service is defined as a maritime mobile service in or near a port, between coast stations and ship stations, in which messages are restricted to those relating to the operational handling, the movement and the safety of ships and, in an emergency to the safety of persons. Public correspondence messages are excluded from this service.

A ship movement service is a safety service in the maritime mobile service, other than a Port Operations service, between coast stations and ship stations or between ship stations in which messages are restricted to communications concerning the movement of ships. Public correspondence messages are excluded from this service.

The licence covers the coast station only; all vessels should be covered by their own ship radio licences. CSR (International) licensees are allocated international maritime channels and those using these channels must hold a Maritime Radio Operator's Certificate and Authority to Operate. The fee for a licence is calculated according to the number of base stations and channels. Channels are assigned subject to local availability and regional conditions.

Telephone interconnect

Calls made from the CSR installation may be connected to the public telephone network. For this to be allowed, the licensee must demonstrate that the equipment has been approved by BABT for this purpose. A licence granted under the Telecommunications Act 1984 may also be required. Details of these licences are available form Oftel at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

2.3 CSR (UK)

These licences allow organisations to communicate with their vessels on commercial matters using a private maritime channel.

The channels assigned to this service are UK maritime mobile channels rather than international channels and do not require users to hold a Maritime Radio Operator's Certificate and Authority to Operate. The licence covers the base station and any number of associated mobiles being used from ship stations. Individual vessels need only hold a ship radio licence if they are fitted with a radio, which uses international maritime mobile channels in which case the radio operator must possess a Maritime Radio Operator's Certificate and Authority to Operate. The fee for the licence is calculated according to the number of base stations and channels. Channels are assigned subject to local availability and regional conditions.

There are a number of special facilities which may be available to CSR (UK) licensees:

Data services

In certain circumstances the transmission of data on voice channels may be permitted. There are special provisions for the type of equipment to be used in these cases and these are detailed in section three. Further details are available from your local office of the Agency or from the Agency's Aeronautical and Maritime section at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

CTCSS tones

Continuous Tone Coded Signalling System (CTCSS) tones can facilitate the selective use of channels, including channel sharing. The Agency assigns these tones with all CSR (UK) licences, however, not all radio equipment is able to use CTCSS tones and there may be occasions when their use cannot be allowed.

Telephone interconnect

Calls made from the CSR installation may be connected to the public telephone network. For this to be allowed, the licensee must demonstrate that the equipment has been approved by BABT for this purpose. A licence granted under the Telecommunications Act 1984 may also be required. Details of these licences are available form Oftel at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

2.4 Special licensing features on CSR

Receive only

If the coast station is intended for receiving messages only and will not be transmitting on any channel, then a licence may not be required. However for the equipment to be exempt it must be inherently incapable of transmission on any channel.

It is a criminal offence to obtain information about the content, sender or addressee of any radio message which you are not specifically authorised to receive even if the information is not conveyed to a third party. Further details of the legal use of receive only radio can be found in the Agency information sheet RA 169 which is available free of charge from the Agency library at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

Talkthrough

Talkthrough enables one ship station to communicate with another, via the coast station. This can be achieved without interrupting an existing call. It is available only on certain duplex channels and its use must be authorised in the terms of the licence.

Non-fixed base stations

In exceptional circumstances the Agency may be prepared to consider licensing a base station, which is to be used from a number of geographical locations. Applicants should contact the aeronautical and maritime section of the Agency at the address given at the end of this information sheet to discuss whether they fulfil the criteria for this type of licence before completing an application form.

2.5 Temporary use

All three types of CSR licence are available as temporary licences to cover sporting and other special events. Temporary licences are valid for a period of up to 28 days and are issued by the maritime section of the Agency. Applications should be made to the address given at the end of this information sheet.

2.6 Technical frequency assignment criteria

Technical frequency assignment criteria describe the technical principles and guidelines used by RA to identify which particular radio frequency or radio frequency channel(s), from the bands specified for the relevant licence type, are available for authorisation at any particular location and under what technical conditions. The criteria may limit (or prevent) the availability of a licence, and/or grants of rights under a licence, at a particular location if this is necessary to prevent interference to existing services. The channels available for the CSR licence class are set out in Table 1.

When making a CSR assignment, we apply formalised assignment criteria in concert with the expertise and judgement of our assignment staff, with the aim of achieving the most efficient use of the available spectrum and avoiding interference. The criteria and processes we apply will ensure that:

the distance to the nearest base stations operating on the same frequency (co-channel) does not fall below the minimum required separation;

the geographical location of the proposed assignment is carefully considered when making a decision on the viability of a proposed assignment; and

the technical restrictions required (e.g. maximum antenna height above ground level and maximum base station ERP) are defined so as to ensure the best possible use of the available spectrum.

Detailed questions and queries on RA's CSR assignment criteria should be directed to our local offices, whose contact details are set out at the end of this document.

3 Equipment

If you have a CSR licence, your radio equipment must meet certain specific requirements:

• the European Union's Radio Equipment and Telecommunications Terminal Equipment (R&TTE) Directive 1999/5/EC, implemented by the Radio Equipment and Telecommunications Terminal Equipment Regulations (SI 2000:730);
• the relevant UK Radio Interface Requirements; and
• the Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Regulations 1999.
  
  Under the Radio Equipment and Telecommunications Terminal Equipment Regulations (SI 2000:730), which implement the R&TTE Directive, it is a legal requirement that all radio equipment (with certain specific exceptions) meets certain essential requirements. It is the responsibility of any person who places radio equipment on the market or takes it into service to ensure that the requirements of the R&TTE Directive are met, that it is marked with the CE marking together with the "alert" symbol , and that a written declaration of conformity has been drawn up for it together with information for the user on the intended use of the equipment (e.g. Maritime radio ).
  
  The R&TTE Directive has replaced the old type- approval regime. To be placed on the market, all new equipment must comply with the R&TTE Directive, although equipment already type-approved prior to 8 April 2000 (e.g. to specification MPT 1250) may continue to be taken into service. Moreover, any such equipment already taken into service does satisfy the terms of the licence. Further guidance may be sought from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA).
  
  In addition, it is the licensee's responsibility to ensure that all maritime radio equipment to be covered by the ship licence meets the relevant UK Radio Interface Requirement. UK Radio Interface Requirements provide a high level description of spectrum use (frequency range, channel spacing, output power, where appropriate a technology to be used, licensing regime, etc). Details of the relevant UK Radio Interface Requirements can be obtained from the Radiocommunications Agency, telephone 020 7211 0211.

One of the exceptions mentioned above is that of maritime radio equipment within the scope of the Directive 96/98/ EC (the "Marine Equipment Directive"). This is implemented by the Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Regulations 1999. This equipment is not within the scope of the R&TTE Directive but must meet the requirements of the Marine Equipment Directive. This equipment will be marked with the ship's wheel marking rather than the CE marking.

In order to comply with the licence terms, any channel(s) not covered by the licence should be rendered incapable of transmission.

It may be possible to permit the transmission of data under a CSR (UK) licence, but approval for this should be specifically requested (see Section 2.3).

Applicants for CSR licences should not commit to purchasing base station equipment until the Agency has assigned a channel. If this advice is ignored there is the risk that the licensee may incur additional costs in having to arrange for equipment to be re-programmed should the assigned channel differ from what has been pre-programmed into the equipment.

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4 Antenna siting

The effective radio range of a base station is governed largely by the height of the antenna. The Agency may therefore place limits on the height of an antenna to ensure that the operational range of the station is no more than is needed. This allows a more efficient use of the channels available.

Site Clearance will be required in cases where a station has an antenna more than 30 metres above ground level or more than 300 metres above mean sea level. It is strongly recommended that applicants for CSR licences await clearance before making any investment in the station.

It is common for several antennas to share one mast, however this can cause interference such as through inter-modulation products. In these cases the Agency will strive to identify a more suitable channel for one or more of the users if a more suitable engineering solution is unavailable. Whilst the Agency may be able to provide technical assistance, it cannot be held liable for any costs incurred as a result of any engineering changes required.

5 Operator certification

CSR base stations licensed to transmit on international maritime channels may only be operated by, or under the direct supervision of, a holder of a valid Maritime Radio Operator's Certificate and Authority to Operate. These will include CSR (international) licences as well as CSR (Marina) licences covering the use of international channel 80. The minimum acceptable qualification is a Restricted (VHF only) Radiotelephone Operator's Certificate, or, for VHF stations installed with Digital Selective Calling equipment, a Short Range Certificate. Further information on maritime radio qualifications is available from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

6 Correct radiotelephone procedures

As radio is the principal means of communication at sea and is relied upon to protect human life it is very important that it is used correctly. It is the responsibility of those using maritime radio to ensure that they know and use the correct operator procedures. An information sheet on these procedures (RA 292) is available free of charge from the Agency's library and information service at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

In general, if several simple conventions are observed, all of those wishing to use Coastal Station Radio can do so without fear of undue interference from others. Messages will also be more easily understood. In some areas, more than one licensee may have been allocated a particular channel. In these instances it is important that consideration is shown for other users of the channel.

Use your callsign

It is a requirement of the licence that a callsign is used at the beginning of outgoing calls and when acknowledging messages. The use of a callsign ensures that the station receiving the call is sure of its origin.

Avoid chit chat

The duration of an average transmission should not exceed 10-15 seconds. When passing a message over 20 seconds in duration the caller should pause occasionally to permit other stations to send any urgent messages.

Interruptions

Never interrupt another user on the channel that you wish to use, even if it is an emergency. This would cause interference and it is doubtful that the message would get through.

Reply promptly

When a call is received always make sure it is acknowledged promptly using a callsign. This will avoid the need for calls to be repeated.

No response

When a station does not respond to a call that has been addressed to it, the calling station should not persist in attempting to reach it. This will occupy the channel unnecessarily and affect others' ability to use it.

Be understood

It is important that all calls are made in a clear voice at a reasonable volume. Shouting may distort the message and render it unintelligible.

Message content

The station must not be used to send false or misleading distress messages or to cause deliberate interference to any radio service. It is also important that the station is not used to transmit music, retransmit radio broadcasts or to transmit obscene language. All of these are prohibited by the terms of the CSR licence, the Radiocommunications Agency monitors all uses of radio and instances of abuse will be pursued and carry the same penalties as unlicensed use.

7 Special channels

There are a number of maritime channels that are allocated for special uses only, or are available for priority users, such as HM Coastguard. These channels are identified in the channel tables at the end of this information sheet. It may be possible to allocate these channels to CSR licensees however this will be at the discretion of the Agency, in consultation with the safety of life services. Once a licensee has been allocated a special channel they must yield to those with priority use of these channels when asked; failure to do this could endanger human life. Further details on the use of special channels can be found in information sheet (RA 264) which is available free of charge from the Agency Library and Information Service at the address at the end of this information sheet.

Channel 70 is to be used exclusively for digital selective calling for distress, safety and calling under the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS). Channel 70 may not be used for voice communication and its use is permitted only with suitable digital selective calling equipment (DSC). Details on GMDSS and DSC equipment are available from the MCA at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

It is the intention that Channel 16 will continue to be monitored for distress and safety alerts by HM Coastguard in the UK and by sea going vessels up until 2005. There are severe penalties for its misuse.

8 Oil platforms

The Agency's area of responsibility under the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 extends to any sea areas around the British coastline in which the United Kingdom has oil interests. Fixed maritime radio equipment on an oil platform must be licensed. However, the Agency is not able to issue a licence for any platforms that have been registered as a ship station under another Flag State. In these cases the platform should be licensed by the administration that has registered it.

As many installations are situated in close proximity to the coasts of other countries their use of radio must be carefully co-ordinated with neighbouring European administrations. It may therefore not be possible to permit some services.

9 Fees

The fee payable is dependent on the number of base stations and the number of channels used by each station. Where however, there are base stations used only for backup, only the main station needs to be issued with a licence provided the backup equipment is not able to use any additional channels.

A concessionary fee is available to registered charities of half of the normal fee. When applying for this discount the applicant should include proof of their status with the application form.

Copies of the Coastal Station Radio application form (RA 276) are available from the Agency's library and information service at the address given at the end of this information sheet.

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Table 1: Channels and frequencies available for coastal station radio

 

¹. Used by HM Coastguard in search and rescue operations

². Used by the Marine Pollution Control Unit of HM Coastguard, in anti-pollution operations

³. Digital Selective Calling for distress, safety and calling

⁴. Also used by CSR (Marina) for mooring, berthing and race control

⁵. International channel

⁶. These channels (AIS 1 and AIS 2) will be used for an automatic ship identification and surveillance system capable of providing worldwide operation on high seas, unless other frequencies are designated on a regional basis for this purpose.

10 Further information

Applications for licences as well as general enquiries on licences should be address to your local Agency office as follows:

Other sources of information include:

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