12 March, 2025 - Boaties in Wellington Harbour and Cook Strait now have a more reliable 24/7 connection with Coastguard, thanks to improved VHF radio coverage by Coastguard Wellington.
Two dedicated VHF radio channels – CH 03 Wellington Harbour and CH 61 Cook Strait - now directly link to Coastguard’s Operations Centre, making it simple for Wellington boaties to log trip reports and to stay in touch.
This long-term initiative replaces the previously shared CH 62 and addresses infrastructure limitations now making communication more reliable in the region.
The Coastguard Wellington team is excited the channels will be fully utilised to ensure safer boating in the area.
“For a long time, we knew Coastguard Wellington needed to start using the VHF channels CH 03 and CH 61 to stay better connected with the local boating community after years of sharing Channel CH 62 with the owners, local boating clubs,” Coastguard Wellington President James Groombridge said.
“Boaties are now able to communicate with Coastguard 24/7, and also when Coastguard Wellington is operating with other agencies in an emergency, it can fully utilise these dedicated channels for communications.”
The channels also help ensure the Maritime Radio Channel 16 remains primarily for emergencies, he said.
All ship-to-ship communications will continue to follow Maritime New Zealand guidelines.
The VHF channels will be monitored by Coastguard’s Operations Centre based in Auckland and local Coastguard Wellington radio operators.
Boaties are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the channels and use them to log all trip reports when going out boating every time.
