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Seaview Marina

Wellington

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Rule Number One - Monitor Channel 16 at all times.

All authorities and rescue organisations work Channel 16 initially in a Mayday situation. If you are not listening, you might not hear a call and so not be able to help. Monitor any other channels as well, but always 16, as this is the channel the rescue people, commercial boats like the ferries and all land stations monitor. Channel 14 is used by commercial operators for inner harbour Trip Reports.

TR REPORTS (TRIP REPORTS) TO-FROM THE SOUNDS
The objective of a TR is to tell an authority where you are going and when you expect to arrive, so that if something goes wrong you will be helped.

In Wellington and in Cook Strait, reports should be filed with Wellington Maritime Radio. Why? Apart from the fact they are the prescribed authority, they also have very powerful transmitters and very good ears. This means that if you need help they are likely to be listening.

Don’t use Beacon Hill. They are busy enough with harbour traffic. They will hear and possibly log your TR, but that is not their duty. They are the Harbour radio. At night, separately from your TR, log your movements in and out of the harbour entrance with Beacon Hill. That is required and will get a response from them telling you of other movements. They will also tell others of your movements.

HOW TO DO A TRIP REPORT
Select Channel 16. Listen to make sure the channel is not being used. Speak slowly and clearly. There is no rush. Channel 16 is normally a quiet and calm channel.

Say: Wellington Maritime, Wellington Maritime, Wellington Maritime (3 times gives them time to get ready to note your call). This is (boat, boat, boat) (3 times) call sign, with a TR.

Wellington Maritime will respond with:

Boat, this is Wellington Maritime please go to Channel 71 (they might ask you to use 68. They know from your call where you are and which channel to use).

Your response is:

Going Channel 71. Change to Channel 71 and call: Wellington Maritime (boat). They will respond: Go ahead please (boat).

You then reply:

Wellington Maritime this is (boat) departing Wellington for Tory Channel ETA x hours. We have x adults and x children on board. It is not necessary to give the adult /child breakdown, but if you do, in a rescue situation they will know what they are dealing with.

The response from Wellington Maritime will be:

(Boat) this is Wellington Maritime, that is all logged thank you, or some other request.

Your reply is to confirm their response with something like:

Thank you Wellington Maritime this is (boat) listening 16, out.

If you decide to stop and go fishing, or your trip is taking longer than expected, you must call back starting again with Channel 16 and advise at the time you make such a decision in order to keep them updated of your new arrival time, or abandonment if you turned back.

At the end of the trip the format is similar to departure and you can save some of the channel changing if you call Wellington Maritime on 16 and say, very slowly and clearly:

Wellington Maritime (3 times) this is (boat)(3 times), call sign, with an arrival TR.

They will normally respond with something like:

(Boat) this is Wellington Maritime, that’s all received, have a good day.

Your response is:

Thank you for listening, this is (boat) listening 16.

Don’t try to call Maritime Radio on Channel 71 or 62. They listen for 16. Neither they nor any of the other authorities formally monitor those other channels, although they might be listening at times. Also, Channel 16 is normally quiet, so if you or anyone else makes a mayday call or TR report, it is likely to be heard. It is comforting to know there is another boat out there. You can hear the boats if they are close, you can only hear Maritime Radio if they are not. Wellington Maritime is very professional. They know the who, why, where, and are quickly in touch with authorities.

May you never need to mayday.