Around 10/6/2007 6:43 PM, Larry wrote:

Garth Almgren wrote in news:5mp15eFeendpU1
@mid.individual.net:

Some goombah cuts in on 16 immediately and snarks, "Asshole! Nobody
has call letters any more."
I hear commercial boats using call letters fairly frequently.

Oh, they're still around all right; just last month I ponied up for a
shiny new SA license and call letters from the FCC.


If you go outside the territorial waters of the USA, assuming of course
you are in the USA, you MUST get a "Ship Station License" (SA) from the
FCC to use even the most miniscule VHF walkie talkie, or be in violation
of international law (ITU).

Bingo. Though it seems to be completely unenforced for small
pleasurecraft in the Gulf Islands of BC, I have a few radiomen in my
family and didn't like the idea of illegally broadcasting.

For the same reason, I also picked up a ZA license so that I could use
my handheld GMRS at full power on those frequencies not restricted by my
being north of line A:
http://www.nwlink.com/~evenfall/radi...ne_a_gmrs.html

I'm starting to really dig radio. I've already got a plain VHF (no SSB,
DSC, or anything fancy) for the boat, GMRS/FRS for camping, hiking, and
Jeeping, CB for Jeeping and driving, and I'm also thinking about
studying up and adding ham to the list.


--
~/Garth - 1966 Glastron V-142 Skiflite: "Blue-Boat"
"There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing
as simply messing about in boats." -- Kenneth Grahame
~~ Ventis secundis, tene cursum ~~