GMDSS Long Range Certificate

This 4 day course is aimed at yachtsmen who wish to obtain the GMDSS Long Range Certificate which is a higher level certificate than the Short Range Certificate. The GMDSS Long Range Certificate allows you to operate on any marine frequency in the MF/HF-SSB, VHF and Satellite marine bands from onboard a yacht.

The course is a must for the independent cruising yachtsmen and bluewater sailor as you will be shown how to get the best out of your communications equipment and demonstrations of SSB email and weatherfax will be given.

The course takes place in our permanently equipped training studio at Lowford, Bursledon, Hampshire, close to the River Hamble. We will train you on real GMDSS equipment the type you would fit to a yacht. Equipment including an ICOM IC-M710, FURUNO FS-1550, ICOM IC-M501 VHF, ICS DSC2 DSC unit, ICS NAV6, NASA NAVTEX receiver and a range of EPIRB and SART.

Students are given a comprehensive set of course notes which covers all related topics. Student numbers are kept to a maximum of 6 students per course, so early booking is advised.

Students will learn: -

How to operate an SSB and VHF transceiver fitted with Digital Selective Calling.

How to operate an Inmarsat-C satellite terminal.

How to make routine, safety, urgency and distress calls.

How to use Navtex, EPIRB and SART.

Topics covered: -

Overview of GMDSS and SAR services

• Sea areas, MMSI numbers and equipment

General SSB and VHF knowledge and radio propagation

• Use of frequencies, bands and Admiralty List of Radio Signals (ALRS)

4Use of SSB MF/HF and VHF equipment in practice

• Based on Icom IC-M710 HF SSB transceiver and Icom M501 VHF transceivers

Navtex, EPIRBs and SARTs

• Operation, frequencies and use.

Regulations & procedures.

• Ships licence, operator's certificate, radio logbook and routine checks

Distress, Urgency, Safety and Routine calls

• Procedure for making distress, urgency, safety and routine calls

Satellite communications

• Overview of Inmarsat, Inmarsat-C and EGC SafetyNET

The agenda for each day is as follows: -

Day 1 - GMDSS, radio propagation, frequencies and SSB and VHF equipment

Day 2 - DSC, Navtex, EPIRB, SART and Satellite. Operational performance exercise

Day 3 - Licensing conditions and regulations and radio calling procedure

Day 4 - Revision, course conclusion and exam

The course starts at 0900 and finishing each day by 1800.

Pre-course study
It is advised that students do some pre-course study before attending the course. To support students we can supply PC simulator programs for the ICOM M710 and ICS DSC2 controller and an LRC multiple choice software program with over 200 LRC questions.

Good reading can be found in the following books: -

'Understanding GMDSS' by John Campbell ISBN 1-84037-010-6

'GMDSS for Small Craft' by Alan Clemmetsen ISBN 1-8988660-38-7

'GMDSS - A Users Handbook' by Denise Brehaut ISBN 0-7136-4837-6 (recommended)

It is also worth remembering the following distress frequencies: -

Band	Radio Telephone	Digital Selective Calling
MF	2182kHz	2187.5kHz
HF	8291kHz	8414.5kHz
VHF	Channel 16	Channel 70

Distress location beacon frequencies EPIRB 406.025MHz & 121.50 MHz SARTS 9GHz/3cms

Finally do learn the phonetic alphabet, you will need it during the exam.

The phonetic alphabet: - Alfa Bravo Charlie Delta Echo Foxtrot Golf Hotel India Juliet Kilo Lima Mike November Oscar Papa Quebec Romeo Sierra Tango Uniform Victor Whiskey X-ray Yankee Zulu

What to bring: -
On the day of the exam, candidates must bring along 2 current passport size photographs of themselves and a cheque made payable to 'AMERC Limited NAC (GMDSS)' for £83.00.

Please call us for dates: Freephone 0808 160 1006

So that you can get the best out of your SSB equipment.
we can show you how to use SSB email and receive weather fax information. We can also provide the leads to go between your SSB radio and your computer, and supply the software.

"We recommend these CDs for interactive learning...overall this is one of the best we’ve seen"
Sailing Today

“If you want to learn the ropes as a beginner or with an RYA course, it's ideal...it makes learning fun and interesting”
Yachting Monthly

“The CD is user friendly, with clear and concise text...quizzes test how much you have learned”
Practical Boat Owner.

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