Module 5 - Routine Calls
Marina and Harbour Calls
What you will learn
Prepare a marina or harbour call from current local information and provide only the facts needed for a safe operational reply.
Local stations need a usable picture: who you are, where you are, what you need and any vessel detail relevant to the instruction. The monitored channel and reporting requirement must be checked for that harbour.
Ofcom allocates maritime channels by service, but that does not create one universal UK marina channel. A marina, harbour authority, vessel traffic service or port operations station may monitor different locally published channels for different purposes. Use the current harbour guide, notice, almanac or station instruction rather than a number remembered from another port.
Before the high-workload approach, note the station name, channel, reporting point, vessel identity, present position and concise request. Add length, draught, direction of approach or other vessel details only when the service requests them or they affect the instruction.
Listen before calling and do not infer that silence means the channel is unallocated. Once answered, write down the reply and read back critical operational details such as a berth, waiting area, reporting point or channel change. A readback is a confirmation step, not a word-for-word replay of every sentence.
Worked example
Westhaven instructs North Star to wait south of Fairway Buoy and call again on the same channel after the outbound ferry clears.
- 1Reply: 'Wait south of Fairway Buoy and call again after the outbound ferry clears. North Star. OVER.'
- 2Confirm the instruction matches the charted safe water and the vessel's immediate position.
- 3Brief the helm and maintain the listening watch for any changed instruction.
Sense check: If 'south of' or the reference buoy was unreadable, request that exact part again before manoeuvring.
Prepare the arrival call before the harbour entrance
The current harbour notice asks visiting yachts to call Westhaven Harbour at Fairway Buoy on its published marina channel.
1. Build the prompt card
Write: Westhaven Harbour; published channel; North Star; Fairway Buoy; request permission and berth instruction; 10 metres if asked.
2. Call at the reporting point
Listen, identify the station and vessel, then state the position and request after the reply.
3. Confirm the instruction
Read the allocated berth, waiting area, reporting point or channel back and challenge anything unclear before acting.
Sense check: The helm team should be able to act from the written instruction without guessing a berth, direction or waiting area.
Common mistake or limitation
- Assuming a channel used at one marina is the standard channel everywhere.
- Calling without a position or purpose, forcing the station to extract each fact.
- Repeating every word instead of reading back the operational details that must be correct.
Recap
- Local service and channel information must be current and tied to the named station.
- Prepare identity, position and request before entering the high-workload area.
- Read back critical operational instructions and resolve any ambiguity before acting.
Optional quick check
Section 3 of 10
Which preparation gives a marina the best chance of answering a first arrival call efficiently?
Sources and factual review
Reviewed 20 August 2026 - Compass Revision editorial review.
Continue studying Routine Calls
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