Code of Federal Regulations Title 47. Telecommunication § 47.80.111 Radiotelephone operating procedures for coast stations

(1) Except when transmitting a general call to all stations for announcing or preceding the transmission of distress, urgency, or safety messages, a coast station must call the particular station(s) with which it intends to communicate.

(2) Coast stations must call ship stations by voice unless it is known that the particular ship station may be contacted by other means such as automatic actuation of a selective ringing or calling device.

(3) Coast stations may be authorized emission for selective calling on each working frequency.

(4) Calling a particular station must not continue for more than one minute in each instance. If the called station does not reply, that station must not again be called for two minutes. When a called station does not reply to a call sent three times at intervals of two minutes, the calling must cease for fifteen minutes. However, if harmful interference will not be caused to other communications in progress, the call may be repeated after three minutes.

(5) A coast station must not attempt to communicate with a ship station that has specifically called another coast station until it becomes evident that the called station does not answer, or that communication between the ship station and the called station cannot be carried on because of unsatisfactory operating conditions.

(6) Calls to establish communication must be initiated on an available common working frequency when such a frequency exists and it is known that the called ship maintains a simultaneous watch on the common working frequency and the appropriate calling frequency(ies).