Lifejackets are useless unless worn

[Cantata]

The problem I have with the IWF, at least in the Thames/Dover area, is that it's far too vague and frequently inaccurate! Been talking to various people about this and one of the responses is that the MCA would not be able to allocate a longer timeslot for a fuller forecast.

 

[Yeoman of England]

IWF Forecasts/BX

Sorry Cantata
We are only allowed to BX the message we receive from our friends/allies/enemies at the Met Office
However you can always call us and ask for current conditions. We sometimes resort to various other wx sites via the net to ascertain tide info etc for various obscure locations eg Queenborough
Regards
Yeoman

 

[Lucky Duck]

Would it be possible to change the timing of either yours of Dover's MSI broadcasts?

My experiance is that on the Southern half of cross Thames passage (say Blackdeep downwards) your broadcasts become overspoken by Dover's which can lead to a half intelligable message which is not very helpful.

 

[Yeoman of England]

IWF Timings

Gooday
Alas our Lords & Masters have dictated that the timings of the MSI are in pairs, to cover navigational sea areas. Sadly this does not help the pleasure sailor.
It is historic. Before BC we would tx the bx every 4 hours, this created a nice slot. Now we are AD and we must bx in partnership
It is an unfortunate fact that VHF coverage overlaps and we have limited channels to broadcast the relevant information. In high pressure situations we are often swamped by broadcasts from the West coast stations. Every hour of evey day we are swamped by our French colleagues -we can do nothing about it.
The timings were changed a couple of years ago in the vain attempt to stop this problem.
Sadly it has worsened.
As to the way ahead - I know nothing
This is not a big help - but persevere with switching channels
Regards
Yeoman

 

[Cantata]

Sorry Cantata
We are only allowed to BX the message we receive from our friends/allies/enemies at the Met Office
However you can always call us and ask for current conditions. We sometimes resort to various other wx sites via the net to ascertain tide info etc for various obscure locations eg Queenborough
Regards
Yeoman

I think you miss my point. What you broadcast is a result of negotiations between the MCA and people like the RYA and the Met Office. The feedback I got re lack of time available for a longer forecast was from people with knowledge of those negotiations.

 

[tillergirl]

Forgive me, this is not intended as a criticism of the people at the sharp end who have always struck me as helpful, polite and patient (even when tested to the limit) but just approaching this from a logical point of view if we have an overlap between Thames and Dover - we do and inevitably there must be if full coverage is to be maintained, then surely bx'ing from both locations at the same time surely must add to the problem. Surely ships will have the same overlap problem as yachts? Am I missing a point?

 

[Yeoman of England]

Tillergirl

You have hit the nail spot on. When the changes were announced it was pointed out that due to the vagaries of VHF comms fading and/or distortion would occur. We now handle more calls for the IWF via phone than before.

This info was ignored. A few weeks ago, when we had a sustained period of high pressure over the UK I could receive Liverpool, Swansea, Solent, Portland, Humber, Yarmouth & Dover all giving different versions of the wx for at least 2 hours. What is the way ahead? I know not.
Ch16 is now swamped with WX intros and Cap France! Ho hum.

Yeoman