- Status
Terminology is vague and so is the law
Single sideband (SSB)is a modified type of amplitude modulation (AM). "Radio" can mean either a receiver or a transceiver. It is not precisely meaningful to call a radio an "ssb radio". There are AM or AM/FM broadcast radios, short wave radios, VHF radios, CB radios, ham radios, marine radios, FRS radios, cell phones, etc. None of those descriptions is really precise in that they refer to either modes of modulation, frequencies, functionality, or the type of radio service. Some have transmitter capability and some may not. From the context of this forum, I surmise that you mean a marine HF SSB transceiver. You can receive marine band transmissions using a short wave receiver or the receiver part of a transceiver. A marine SSB radio will often be useful for getting weather reports or faxes. That would not technically require a license. Theoretically and historically, you do not need a license to receive anything. You are however generally legally prohibited from disclosing what you hear to a third party. It is complicated and archaic law. It is rarely enforced especially if you are a liberal democrat senator revealing conversations of a bunch of evil republicans to the NY Times for them to publish. Do not count on politics like that to protect you though. Fred is not precisely correct. You need two licenses which come from the same agency. Marine radio transmissions are regulated by the FCC as a "commercial" service. Thus the licensing is for keeping the frequencies for that purpose only. No one else can legally use them or interfere with those who are licensed to use them. The FCC licenses manufacturers who make marine transmitters so that they are appropriately suited for marine use - IE: stable and do not cause interference to others, etc. The boat is licensed as a station capable of transmitting on marine frequencies and must meet these FCC standards. There are other "transmitters" which are also licensed by the FCC such as radars and EPIRBs. An EPIRB is also supposed to be registered with NOAA but there is no license that I know about with them. That may change. If there is any transmitter aboard your boat, it can be an issue with the FCC and other government agencies like the Coast Guard or local law enforcement as to whether you need a station license to have it aboard. Sometimes they will require it and sometimes not especially in foreign waters. The operator of a marine radio is expected to have a license to ensure that he knows the applicable laws for using it. A person not licensed may operate a marine radio only under the supervision of someone who is licensed. Further complicating the subject are ham radios which often are capable of receiving marine frequencies. Most of them can be modified to transmit on those marine frequencies as well. A modified ham transmitter is not likely to be type accepted by the FCC. It is not legal to transmit on marine frequencies with a transmitter (such as a modified ham radio) which is not "type accepted" by the FCC. Many people have done it though without any consequences. Others have been fined severely. You could be jailed if they wanted to prosecute for not having either an operator license or a station (boat) license. There are some marine radios which will transmit on ham frequencies too. You must have a ham license for that purpose but the FCC does not license ham radios as such. No ham license is technically required if you do not transmit on ham frequencies. Foreign governments will often want you to have all of the applicable licenses (be they marine operator, vessel station, or ham) and they may assess "fees" when you clear customs. I have heard that they will, upon occasion, confiscate unlicensed radios. To further add to the confusion on these issues is that you may transmit on any frequency or service with or without a license in a serious emergency. You may be expected to prove the emergency. Then there is the NTIA - oh well, never mind that.
Single sideband (SSB)is a modified type of amplitude modulation (AM). "Radio" can mean either a receiver or a transceiver. It is not precisely meaningful to call a radio an "ssb radio". There are AM or AM/FM broadcast radios, short wave radios, VHF radios, CB radios, ham radios, marine radios, FRS radios, cell phones, etc. None of those descriptions is really precise in that they refer to either modes of modulation, frequencies, functionality, or the type of radio service. Some have transmitter capability and some may not. From the context of this forum, I surmise that you mean a marine HF SSB transceiver. You can receive marine band transmissions using a short wave receiver or the receiver part of a transceiver. A marine SSB radio will often be useful for getting weather reports or faxes. That would not technically require a license. Theoretically and historically, you do not need a license to receive anything. You are however generally legally prohibited from disclosing what you hear to a third party. It is complicated and archaic law. It is rarely enforced especially if you are a liberal democrat senator revealing conversations of a bunch of evil republicans to the NY Times for them to publish. Do not count on politics like that to protect you though. Fred is not precisely correct. You need two licenses which come from the same agency. Marine radio transmissions are regulated by the FCC as a "commercial" service. Thus the licensing is for keeping the frequencies for that purpose only. No one else can legally use them or interfere with those who are licensed to use them. The FCC licenses manufacturers who make marine transmitters so that they are appropriately suited for marine use - IE: stable and do not cause interference to others, etc. The boat is licensed as a station capable of transmitting on marine frequencies and must meet these FCC standards. There are other "transmitters" which are also licensed by the FCC such as radars and EPIRBs. An EPIRB is also supposed to be registered with NOAA but there is no license that I know about with them. That may change. If there is any transmitter aboard your boat, it can be an issue with the FCC and other government agencies like the Coast Guard or local law enforcement as to whether you need a station license to have it aboard. Sometimes they will require it and sometimes not especially in foreign waters. The operator of a marine radio is expected to have a license to ensure that he knows the applicable laws for using it. A person not licensed may operate a marine radio only under the supervision of someone who is licensed. Further complicating the subject are ham radios which often are capable of receiving marine frequencies. Most of them can be modified to transmit on those marine frequencies as well. A modified ham transmitter is not likely to be type accepted by the FCC. It is not legal to transmit on marine frequencies with a transmitter (such as a modified ham radio) which is not "type accepted" by the FCC. Many people have done it though without any consequences. Others have been fined severely. You could be jailed if they wanted to prosecute for not having either an operator license or a station (boat) license. There are some marine radios which will transmit on ham frequencies too. You must have a ham license for that purpose but the FCC does not license ham radios as such. No ham license is technically required if you do not transmit on ham frequencies. Foreign governments will often want you to have all of the applicable licenses (be they marine operator, vessel station, or ham) and they may assess "fees" when you clear customs. I have heard that they will, upon occasion, confiscate unlicensed radios. To further add to the confusion on these issues is that you may transmit on any frequency or service with or without a license in a serious emergency. You may be expected to prove the emergency. Then there is the NTIA - oh well, never mind that.
Fred, last I heard
you need a ship (station) license and an operator license for using a commercial marine HF radio. That is two licenses and two pieces of paper. Has that changed? They both come from the FCC and require separate application forms and two different fees. The operator license will not expire but the ship license will. Unless it has changed.
you need a ship (station) license and an operator license for using a commercial marine HF radio. That is two licenses and two pieces of paper. Has that changed? They both come from the FCC and require separate application forms and two different fees. The operator license will not expire but the ship license will. Unless it has changed.
license
The renewal is for 10 years. The paper work is confusing and if you get it wrong or it is incomplete they keep your money and do not tell you that it failed. You must resubmit with the fees until you get it right. I down loaded the paper work and about choked. We ended up using Dockyard to submit and they gaurenteed the license with minimal info. Had the call sign 4 days after submission. In the US a VHF is not required but ssb is, outside a licenses is required for both, but most of the cruisers we know operate illegally. Some foreing countries ask for the call sign, but not many
The renewal is for 10 years. The paper work is confusing and if you get it wrong or it is incomplete they keep your money and do not tell you that it failed. You must resubmit with the fees until you get it right. I down loaded the paper work and about choked. We ended up using Dockyard to submit and they gaurenteed the license with minimal info. Had the call sign 4 days after submission. In the US a VHF is not required but ssb is, outside a licenses is required for both, but most of the cruisers we know operate illegally. Some foreing countries ask for the call sign, but not many
Two years ago
when launching after our rebuild I applied for and was granted a ships radio license for about a hundred bucks. It covers everything from VHF to SSB to Radar. They are all listed on the front. When I get back to the boat and take some pictures tomorrow, of the new fuel line installation, I'll try to take a picture of the license. That isn't illegal is it?!
when launching after our rebuild I applied for and was granted a ships radio license for about a hundred bucks. It covers everything from VHF to SSB to Radar. They are all listed on the front. When I get back to the boat and take some pictures tomorrow, of the new fuel line installation, I'll try to take a picture of the license. That isn't illegal is it?!
In addition to the ships license,
You will need an FCC commercial operators license. Mine looks like a paper drivers license without a picture. Keep it with you at all times on the boat. From FCC web site to wit: http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/wncol.html "You need a commercial radio operator license to operate the following: Ship radio stations if: the vessel carries more than six passengers for hire; or the radio operates on medium or high frequencies; or the ship sails to foreign ports; or the ship is larger than 300 gross tons and is required to carry a radio station for safety purposes. " The marine SSB radios operate on medium to high frequencies. That is the second item listed requiring a license. The third item should interest everyone with a VHF radio and travels to Mexico or Canada. To satisfy this requirement, I think that you will need to obtain a restricted radiotelephone operator permit (RP) See: http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/rp.html Note that you will need this license if you travel to foreign countries and have even a VHF radio. This license is not required for VHF radios used only in this country. Fred, I would not post your ships license here if I were you. Call me superstitious if you want - I just wouldn't do it.
You will need an FCC commercial operators license. Mine looks like a paper drivers license without a picture. Keep it with you at all times on the boat. From FCC web site to wit: http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/wncol.html "You need a commercial radio operator license to operate the following: Ship radio stations if: the vessel carries more than six passengers for hire; or the radio operates on medium or high frequencies; or the ship sails to foreign ports; or the ship is larger than 300 gross tons and is required to carry a radio station for safety purposes. " The marine SSB radios operate on medium to high frequencies. That is the second item listed requiring a license. The third item should interest everyone with a VHF radio and travels to Mexico or Canada. To satisfy this requirement, I think that you will need to obtain a restricted radiotelephone operator permit (RP) See: http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/rp.html Note that you will need this license if you travel to foreign countries and have even a VHF radio. This license is not required for VHF radios used only in this country. Fred, I would not post your ships license here if I were you. Call me superstitious if you want - I just wouldn't do it.
Here is a pic of mine
I went to the boat today and took a picture of my current license. It was on 2 pages so I did a little clip/paste and is in the attached jpg file. When I applied for it 10 years ago, I selected almost all the license options even though I didn't have all the equipment. I figured that eventually I would be installing the other components and I didn't want to re-apply for a license and pay the bucks again. So, in case you are interested what type of equipment will need a FCC license, here it is.
I went to the boat today and took a picture of my current license. It was on 2 pages so I did a little clip/paste and is in the attached jpg file. When I applied for it 10 years ago, I selected almost all the license options even though I didn't have all the equipment. I figured that eventually I would be installing the other components and I didn't want to re-apply for a license and pay the bucks again. So, in case you are interested what type of equipment will need a FCC license, here it is.
My license is over ten years old....
It dealt with my ssb (with weatherfax) and 406 EPIRB/ Never got at reminder but do I need to renew/update it as it seems from the posts above? Jim W
It dealt with my ssb (with weatherfax) and 406 EPIRB/ Never got at reminder but do I need to renew/update it as it seems from the posts above? Jim W
- Status