Connection information appears in the owner's manual and is available from an on-screen menu. Navtex transmitters are along the coasts of nearly all countries. They transmit digital messages containing information about navigational warnings, weather, ice reports, searches and rescues, piracy and armed robbery. To avoid interference among stations, each transmitter in a given sea area is assigned a specific transmit time. Routine messages are usually sent every four hours, emergency messages when necessary.
Navtex coverage is reasonably continuous for the Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific coasts.
There may be some coverage gaps in the Southeast U.S., Alaska and Guam areas. Navtex messages are coded to identify the sending station, the message subject and the message number. Prefixes B and F aren't normally used in the United States because the National Weather Service includes meteorological warnings in forecast messages, which are coded with the letter E. Coast Guard notices for mariners are coded with the letter A. Electronics Archive More Electronics features from past issues. Inc. All rights reserved.