Forecasts on Marine VHF and MF from MRCCs

RADIO TELEPHONY BROADCASTS

Full MSI broadcasts are made by Radio Telephony (R/T) twice a day. A new Inshore Waters Forecast and any Gale Warnings will be broadcast every 6 hours and will be repeated together with any Strong Wind Warnings (SWW) three hours later. The broadcast times shown in the schedules on another page are in local ‘clock’ time i.e. they will remain unchanged throughout the year.

NOTE  The broadcast of MSI may be interrupted or delayed as a result of Search and Rescue operations.  Maritime Safety Information is pre-recorded,

often by different Coastguard Officers. A single MSI transmission may include different voices and accents. This is not an indication that  transmissions are from different locations.

MSI is broadcast 3-hourly on VHF Channels 23, 84 or 86, and exceptionally Channel 10. This prevents mutual interference and allows one operator to broadcast simultaneously on two or more aerials. This is important especially when some broadcasts take up to 20 minutes and in order to minimise the delay in transmitting the information nationally.

METEOROLOGICAL WARNINGS

Gale warnings for Sea Areas are broadcast as soon as possible after receipt and are valid for 24 hours unless cancelled. After 24 hours a gale warning still in force will be renewed. Strong wind warnings for Inshore Waters Waters are also broadcast as soon as possible after  receipt.

.Strong wind warnings will only be issued if the wind in an Inshore Waters forecast area is now expected to exceed force 6 but was not identified in the previous  Inshore Waters forecast. These will be broadcast on receipt and

 may be included in the repetition broadcast; they are valid until the next new Inshore Waters forecast. Users are encouraged to listen to these broadcasts as an alternative to calling co-ordination centres for meteorological information.

Gale warnings, Inshore Waters Forecasts and Shipping Forecasts can also be accessed from the Met Office Web Site and on the BBC site available as a text only version,.

VHF and MF

Routine A - VHF and MF, Twice a day.  Full Maritime Safety Information broadcast, including new Inshore Waters Forecast and Outlook, Gale Warnings, Shipping Forecast, WZ Navigation Warnings including negative Tide Surge Warnings , SUBFACTS & GUNFACTS where appropriate, and the 3 Day Fisherman’s Forecast when and where appropriate. 

Routine B - VHF only, Twice a day.   New Inshore Waters Forecast plus Gale Warnings.

Routine C - VHF only, Four times a day. Three hour after a Routine A or B broadcast.  Repetition of Inshore Waters Forecast and Gale Warnings as per previous Schedule A or B Broadcast plus new Strong Wind Warnings.

Routine D  MF. only when gale warnings are in force.  Repetition of Inshore Waters Forecast, Gale Warnings This (MF) routine is only made if there are gale warnings in force.

Schedules, VHF channels, MF frequencies and broadcast content are on another page.

Fisherman's 3 day forecast

MRCC Shetland                     Northern North Sea including Sea Areas: Fair Isle, Viking, Cromarty and Forties.

MRCC Aberdeen                    Northern North Sea including Sea Areas: Viking, Cromarty, Forth, Forties, Fisher and Fair Isle.

MRCC Humber                      Southern North Sea including Sea Areas: Tyne Dogger, German Bight, Humber and Thames.

MRCC Falmouth                    South Western Approaches including Sea Areas: Plymouth,  Fastnet, Shannon, Sole and Fitzroy.

MRCC Stornoway                  North Western Approaches including Malin, Hebrides, Rockall, Faeroes.

When Abroad

Western European VHF services are listed below, Other European areas VHF forecast services are on other pages as indicated, Areas  Times are UTC except where noted. 

• For latest schedules of French broadcasts see the  Météo France site. 

• For a direct link to their forecast texts, in French, click here.
• For latest  Spanish broadcast schedules,  see the Spanish Met service site. For a direct link to their forecast texts, in Spanish, click here.
• These links and many others throughout the world will be found on my GMDSS page.

France

French, CROSS, stations broadcasting Inshore waters forecasts (in French). Forecasts cover up to 20 M offshore.

Bulletin	Transmitter, VHF Channel and time - LT
The Belgian frontier to the baie de Somme. (Gris-Nez)	Dunkerque - VHF 79 - 7 h 20, 16 h 03, 19 h 20 Gris-Nez - VHF 79 - 7 h 10, 15 h 45, 19 h 10
The baie de Somme to Cap de la Hague (Gris-Nez)	Ailly - VHF 79 - 7 h 03, 15 h 33, 19 h 03
Cap de la Hague to Pointe de Penmarc´h (Jobourg)	Antifer - VHF 80 - 8 h 03, 16 h 33, 20 h 03 Port-en-Bessin - VHF 80 - 7 h 45, 16 h 15, 19 h 45 Jobourg - VHF 80 - 7 h 33, 16 h 03, 19 h 33
Warning for sea areas Antifer  to Casquets	Jobourg - VHF 80 - on receipt, the at every half hour H+20 and H+50 (in English)
Cap de la Hague  to Pointe de Penmarc´h (Jobourg)	Jobourg - VHF 80 - 7 h 15, 15 h 45, 19 h 15 Granville - VHF 80 - 7 h 03, 15 h 33, 19 h 03
Cap de la Hague  to Pointe de Penmarc´h (Etel)	Raz - VHF 79 - 4 h 45, 7 h 03, 11 h 03*,15 h 33, 19h03 Stiff - VHF 79 - 5 h 03, 7 h 15, 11 h 15* 15 h 45, 19h15 Batz - VHF 79 - 5 h 15, 7 h 33, 11 h 33*,16 h 03, 19 h 33 Bodic - VHF 79 - 5 h 33, 7 h 45, 11 h 45*,  16 h 15, 19 h 45 Fréhel - VHF 79 - 5 h 45, 8 h 03, 12 h 03*, 16 h 33, 20 h 03 * from 1st May to 30 September.
Pointe de Penmarc´h to Anse de l´Aiguillon (Etel)	Penmarc´h - VHF 80 - 7 h 03, 15 h 33, 19 h 03 Groix - VHF 80 - 7 h 15, 15 h 45, 19 h 15 Belle-Ile - VHF 80 - 7 h 33, 16 h 03, 19 h 33 Saint-Nazaire - VHF 80 - 7 h 45, 16 h 15, 19 h 45 Yeu - VHF 80 - 8 h 03, 16 h 33, 20 h 03 Les Sables d´Olonne - VHF 80 - 8 h 15, 16 h 45, 20 h 15
De l´anse de l´Aiguillon to the Spanish Frontier (Etel)	Chassiron - VHF 79 - 7 h 03, 15 h 33, 19 h 03 Soulac - VHF 79 - 7 h 15, 15 h 45, 19 h 15 Cap-Ferret - VHF 79 - 7 h 33, 16 h 03, 19 h 33 Contis - VHF 79 - 7 h 45, 16 h 15, 19 h 45 Biarritz - VHF 79 - 8 h 03, 16 h 33, 20 h 03

 The Baltic

For details see my Baltic Weather Forecast page

Icelandic Waters

See the Iceland page.

The Mediterranean

See the Mediterranean Weather Forecast page.

Channel Isles, Ireland, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany

 (NB Denmark only broadcasts on MF. Portugal broadcasts weather forecasts on MF although there are some port forecasts on Ch 11 and Radionaval may be heard on Ch 11 from Monsanto, try 0805 and 2005, or Sagres, try 0835 and 2035 UTC.)

German Traffic Centres give regular and frequent  updates of weather conditions in the approaches to ports and harbours

Atlantic Spain

Spanish stations broadcasting Sea Area forecast in English and Inshore waters forecasts, sometimes in English

Spanish stations broadcasting Inshore Waters forecasts in Spanish.