Radio regulations, licensing, watchkeeping and interference
Regulation and licensing
Ship radio stations are licensed by the national administration-in Nigeria, NIMASA-and the ship must carry the licence, call sign and MMSI assignment. The GOC certificate authorises the holder to operate the GMDSS equipment and handle distress, urgency and safety traffic; it is not a ship licence. Radio records, battery tests, equipment failures and distress communications must be logged as required. The ITU Radio Regulations govern frequencies, emissions, priority and secrecy of correspondence.
Watchkeeping
Ships must maintain the required radio watch: VHF Ch16 and DSC Ch70 where fitted; MF 2182/2187.5 kHz in A2; HF DSC/voice frequencies in A3/A4 as applicable; NAVTEX/SafetyNET for MSI. A watch officer should not leave Ch16 unattended during watch. Distress, urgency and safety frequencies take priority over routine calls. Interference must be reported, not retaliated against.
Worked example
A GOC holder hears unauthorised music on VHF Ch16 and another ship starts arguing on the channel. Reasoning: do not join the argument or transmit music back. Note the time, frequency, station identity if known and nature of interference; inform the coast station; keep Ch16 clear for distress. The coast station can investigate. Retaliation is itself an unauthorised transmission.
Traps
Do not treat a GOC certificate as a ship station licence. Do not let the EPIRB registration MMSI differ from the DSC MMSI. Do not leave the radio watch to 'just check' something. Do not use distress frequencies for testing or routine calls. Do not conceal an equipment failure that affects GMDSS.