Dear Joan

In the spring 1988 Bulletin, Keith Muscott wrote an article on ‘Why Radio?’, and I would like to add my experience to his. During 1990 I sailed with a handheld marine VHF radio on board Rebell. The reason for my choice of set was: I didn’t have sufficient battery power for a full marine radio; the set chosen, the ICOM M11, had the highest power output of handheld set — 6 watts; it was recommended as very reliable by friends in the radio business.

The radio gave me more opportunities to catch weather forecasts — shipping forecasts from Thames Radio at 0833 and 2033 BST, and coastal forecasts from Thames Coastguard 0010 and every 4 hours. It added interest and safety in Harwich Harbour, where I could monitor the shipping movements, and the same would be true in Thames and Medway rivers.

There was no doubt over the reception of the set, as I could pick up Ostend Radio from the mouth of the Blackwater, but I had doubts over the transmitting range. To give this a real test, I put in a link telephone call through Thames Radio from the Blackwater to my wife. My distance from the Radio Station was about 15 miles over land, and the reception both ways was perfect. It was a relief to know that, in an emergency, someone will probably hear me.

The main problem with a handheld set is that the battery capacity is insufficient to have the set on all the time, so one must be selective in one’s listening. I have two battery packs, and keep one for emergency transmitting.

The radio itself was £299, and a spare battery pack about £55, although I did get a discount of 5-10%. The ship’s annual licence is £17.50. The course of 5 evenings was £12. This was good fun and very useful. Two RYA booklets were £2.75 and £1.75 and useful references for the RYA examination for the licence to operate, which cost £17. Total cost, excluding the hardware — £51.

Hopefully I will never require the radio for an emergency of my own, but it may help someone some day, and in the meantime it adds interest to my sailing. S Dean