2.3 Watchkeeping & Logkeeping Duties

2.3 Watchkeeping, Logkeeping & Inspections

Quick Answer: Keep a continuous Channel 16 watch on compulsory radiotelephone stations; cargo ships outside harbor also watch 2182 kHz (non-GMDSS context). DSC watches include Ch-70, 2 MHz MF DSC, 8 MHz HF DSC, and one other HF DSC. VTS participants may drop Ch-16 if monitoring bridge-to-bridge and the VTS channel. Logs live at the principal operating position (GMDSS log at the GMDSS position); distress entries keep 3 years. Inspection applications go to the Engineer-in-Charge of the nearest FCC district office.

Subelement A finishes with what you must listen to, what you must write down, and who inspects the installation. These rules protect the distress system: a brilliant transmitter is useless if no one is watching the distress channel or the log cannot prove what happened.

Compulsory radiotelephone watch — Channel 16 first

Radio watches for compulsory radiotelephone stations include a continuous VHF Channel 16 watch.

• Channel 16 = 156.8 MHz, international distress, safety, and calling for VHF radiotelephony.
• Each compulsory vessel, while underway, must maintain a watch for radiotelephone distress calls on 156.8 MHz whenever the station is not exchanging other communications.
• All compulsory non-GMDSS vessels in the open sea must monitor Channel 16 at all times (exam wording).

Cargo ships outside harbor (classic Element 1 pair)

All compulsory equipped cargo ships (except those operating under GMDSS regulations or in a VTS), while navigated outside of a harbor or port, shall keep a continuous radiotelephone watch on:

2182 kHz and Channel 16.

Remember the pairing: outside harbor, non-GMDSS cargo → both MF distress voice and VHF Ch-16, not “pick one.”

Silent periods on 2182 kHz

When a 2182 kHz watch is required, a 3-minute silent period is observed twice each hour beginning at H+00 and H+30 UTC. Except for distress, urgency, or safety messages, stations must not transmit on 2182 kHz during those silence periods. Element 1 may ask the clock times: 00 and 30 past the hour—not 15/45 or 05/35.

VTS may relieve the Channel 16 watch

The Ch-16 watch is not required in specific cases, including:

1. Ship station operating only with handheld bridge-to-bridge VHF under the applicable Part 80 provision; or
2. Vessels subject to the Bridge-to-Bridge Act and participating in a Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) when watch is maintained on both:
   • the bridge-to-bridge frequency (commonly Channel 13 in many U.S. waters), and
   • a separately assigned VTS channel

Exam composite: Ch-16 is compulsory at sea until further notice unless the vessel is in a qualifying VTS arrangement; in an A1/VTS bridge-to-bridge situation, monitoring Ch-13 (bridge-to-bridge) and the VTS channel can replace the Ch-16 watch; Ch-16 remains compulsory in other sea areas as framed by the pool. If a stem says “all of the above” about those Ch-16 truths, that is often the keyed answer.

Mandatory DSC watchkeeping bands/channels

Mandatory DSC watchkeeping (exam list):

1. VHF Channel 70 (VHF DSC)
2. 2 MHz MF DSC
3. 8 MHz HF DSC
4. One other HF DSC frequency

Distractors mix in Ch-16 (voice, not DSC), 6 MHz only, or omit the second HF DSC. Memorize the four-part set: 70 + 2 MHz + 8 MHz + one other HF.

Logkeeping — responsibility, location, retention

Who is responsible and who writes

• Station licensee and the radio operator in charge of the station are responsible for proper maintenance of station logs.
• Entries in a required service or maintenance log are made by the operator responsible for the station operation or maintenance (not “any RR holder,” and not automatically “the tech who turned the screwdriver” unless that person is the responsible operator).

Where logs live during a voyage

Do not park the working voyage log in the captain’s cabin safe or take it home in the operator’s sea bag. Inspectors and watchstanders need it at the operating position.

Corrections

• No erasures or obliteration during the retention period.
• The person who originated the entry strikes out the error, initials the correction, and dates it (electronic logs use strikethrough + dated electronic acknowledgment).

Retention periods

Element 1 loves the distress retention figure: three years.

What goes in the log (high-yield)

Radiotelephone stations required to keep transmission logs include, as applicable:

• Station identification, date and time (UTC as required)
• Name of operator on duty / on-watch and off-watch entries
• Call signs of stations communicated with
• Distress, urgency, and safety traffic summaries as required
• Equipment tests and failures
• Ship’s position at least daily where required

Abbreviations and key letters are allowed if their meaning is explained in the same log.

Safety communications on VHF are not all required to be logged the same way as non-VHF safety traffic affecting the ship—the false statement trap is “all Safety communications received on VHF must be logged.”

GMDSS log placement is specifically at the GMDSS operating position, not “anywhere convenient.”

Principal operating position and master’s control

• The principal radiotelephone operating position must be in the room (or adjoining room) from which the ship is normally steered while at sea—bridge/wheelhouse context, not a remote cabin with no conning connection.
• Ultimate control of service at a ship’s radio station rests with the master of the ship. The radio operator runs the equipment; the master remains responsible for the vessel.

Inspections — where to apply

Where do you make an application for inspection of a ship GMDSS radio station?

To the Engineer-in-Charge of the FCC District Office nearest the proposed place of inspection.

Compulsory ship inspections and certificates are Part 80 process items; Element 1 only needs the nearest district Engineer-in-Charge address for the application.

International and Part 80 frame

Use and operation of FCC-licensed ship stations in international waters are governed by Part 80 of the FCC Rules plus the international Radio Regulations and agreements to which the United States is a party (including SOLAS-related carriage concepts and the Great Lakes Agreement). International agreement carriage of radio for safety of life at sea classically reaches cargo ships of more than 300 gross tons and vessels carrying more than 12 passengers (passenger-ship definition threshold).

Watch + log + inspection checklist

1. Listening: Ch-16 always (with VTS dual-watch exception); cargo outside harbor also 2182 kHz; DSC on 70 / 2 MHz / 8 MHz / other HF.
2. Silence: 2182 kHz quiet H+00 and H+30 UTC for three minutes.
3. Writing: responsible operator; principal (or GMDSS) operating position; strike-through corrections; 3-year distress retention.
4. Inspection request: Engineer-in-Charge, nearest FCC district office to the inspection site.
5. Command: master has ultimate control of the ship radio service.

Nail this trio—watch, log, inspection—and you complete Element 1 Subelement A (topics 1–6) ready for Subelement B communications procedures.