And some other legal stuff;
11. DISTRESS CALLS
11.1 T he obligation to accept distress alerts, calls
and messages is absolute and such messages
must be accepted with priority over all other
radiocommunications.
◆•
12. FALSE OR DECEPTIVE DISTRESS, URGENCY OR
SAFETY SIGNALS
12.1 The transmission of false or deceptive
distress, urgency or safety signals is strictly
forbidden. Extremely severe penalties,
including imprisonment, exist under the
Radiocommunications Act 1992
for any person
found guilty of making such a transmission. ◆•
13. UNNECESSARY TRANSMISSIONS
13.1 Transmissions should be as brief as possible
consistent with the legitimate requirement for
which a station is licensed. Non essential remarks,
bad language and unnecessary conversations
should be avoided.
◆•
13.2 It is an offence under the
Radiocommunications
Act 1992 to use a transmitter in a manner that
is likely to cause a reasonable person to be
seriously alarmed or affronted, or for the purpose
of harassing a person. ◆•
14. AVOIDANCE OF INTERFERENCE
14.1 Operators should take every precaution to ensure
that their transmissions will not cause harmful
interference to other stations. It is important that
all operators:
>> listen before transmitting to ensure the
frequency is not already in use;
>> use the minimum transmitting power
necessary for reliable communications;
>> strictly observe the purpose for which a
frequency is assigned; and
>> keep test signals to a minimum.
◆•
15. DOCUMENTS TO BE HELD ON BOARD
15.1 In addition to the station licence and operator’s
certificate, a copy of this handbook and material
suitable for use as a radio log book should be held
aboard a vessel.
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