RYA VHF Marine Radio (SRC)

Marine Radio Short Range Certificate Training Courses and Examinations

Please read the information below carefully before enrolling on a face-to-face training course, purchasing an online training course or booking an examination. Refunds will not be provided where prerequisites are not met.

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The marine radio short range certificate is the qualification you need to operate a marine VHF radio. Sometimes people refer to it as their 'VHF licence'. This qualification is vital if you have a marine VHF radio fitted to your boat or you are going to use a handportable to communicate with other water users. It is a legal requirement that both the operator and the equipment are licensed.

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This course will provide you with all the theoretical knowledge and practical skills you need to allow you to pass the pre-exam knowledge check. You will then be issued with your course completion certificate, which is needed before you can be examined.

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Examinations are booked and paid for separately. The course fee does not include the examination fee. Successful completion of an external examination qualifies you for the Marine Radio Short Range Certificate of Competence and the Authority to Operate.

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Validity

A marine radio short range certificate is valid for life, subject to any future changes in licensing conditions.

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Prerequisites

Candidates must be 16 years of age or older

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What's covered during the course?

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Features of VHF radio equipment

Rules, regulations and conventions

Understanding and using radio language and procedures

Making routine voice calls

Using digital selective calling (DSC) to call other vessels

The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS)

GMDSS equipment including EPIRBs, SARTs and NAVTEX

Sending a distress alert and message

Receiving distress, urgency and safety calls

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Face-to-face training

During your face-to-face training, you will use real marine radio equipment adapted for training, not computer simulators, and have plenty of opportunity to practise your radio technique.

Before your course:

Once you have booked your training, you will be sent a copy of the course book and a pre-course workbook. It is absolutely essential to read through the information provided in the book to test your understanding prior to coming on the course. You should allow three hours for this pre-course work. It also helps to have knowledge of the phonetic alphabet before you come. Click here for a printable copy to look through before your book arrives.

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Duration: Three hours self-study, plus seven hour training course - ten hours total training time. The examination is not included in this time.