Mark
“We had a fantastic weekend—learned so much in a fun, welcoming atmosphere. The instructors were truly first-class, patient, and supportive throughout. Highly recommended!”
The RYA Short Range VHF Radio Operators Course (SRC) is essential for anyone who needs to operate a VHF radio fitted with Digital Selective Calling (DSC). This one-day course equips you with the knowledge and skills to safely use modern VHF radios for distress calls, safety communications, and routine radio calls. Whether upgrading an old VHF licence (pre-1999) or learning from scratch, this course prepares you for the mandatory assessment and certification required to operate modern VHF equipment.
Before attending, you'll be expected to complete about 3 hours of pre-course study using the VHF Radio Handbook (G31), which we’ll send to you upon booking. The course itself consists of 7 hours of classroom-based learning, starting at 09:00. You’ll use VHF radio simulators to practice real-world scenarios, such as sending distress signals and routine communications using Digital Selective Calling (DSC). The day concludes with a final exam conducted by an independent RYA Assessor. To succeed, you’ll need to demonstrate a clear understanding of the phonetic alphabet, distress procedures, and how to use VHF radios.
Our VHF SRC courses are held at our training centre in Newark, Nottinghamshire. We run these courses every two months, but we’re also happy to schedule courses to suit your group’s diary.
As a fully accredited RYA training centre, we provide top-quality training with experienced instructors who guide you through every step of the course. Our small class sizes (maximum 8:1 ratio) ensure you get the personalised attention you need to feel confident in your VHF radio skills. We offer a supportive, relaxed environment, and our classroom is well-equipped with VHF simulators to give you practical, hands-on experience. We also understand the importance of flexibility, so if you’re booking for a group, we can arrange course dates to suit your schedule.
Note: The course requires minimum numbers to run. If these are not met, we will reschedule and either transfer your booking or issue a refund.
No prior experience is required to take the RYA VHF SRC course. However, you’ll need to complete about 3 hours of pre-course study using the VHF Radio Handbook (G31) to ensure you’re prepared for the practical and theory parts of the course.
The course fee of £97 covers tuition from an experienced instructor, use of VHF radio simulators, and tea and coffee throughout the day. You’ll also receive the RYA VHF Handbook (G31) for pre-course study. Please note that the RYA exam fee of £70 is not included in this price and must be paid directly to the RYA.
The RYA exam fee is £70, payable directly to the RYA using their online exam payment system. Once paid, you’ll receive an RYA Exam Application form, which you must bring with you to the course along with a passport-sized photograph.
You are required to complete 3 hours of pre-course study using the RYA VHF Handbook (G31). Focus on chapters 1–3, 4–6, and 9–10. Familiarise yourself with the phonetic alphabet and distress call procedures (pages 42–45), as you will be tested on this during the exam.
Please bring the following items to the course:
The course runs from 09:00 to 18:00 and is divided into classroom-based learning and practical sessions using VHF radio simulators. You’ll practice real-world scenarios, including making distress calls, safety communications, and routine calls using Digital Selective Calling (DSC). The course concludes with a 30-minute to 1-hour exam, conducted by an independent RYA Assessor.
Yes, if you hold the old VHF licence issued before 1999, you will need to complete this course and pass the exam to upgrade to the Short Range Certificate (SRC) and use modern VHF radios with DSC functionality.
The final assessment is a 30-minute to 1-hour practical and theory exam conducted by an independent RYA Assessor. You’ll be tested on the material covered in the pre-course study and the practical exercises completed during the course. This includes distress call procedures, the phonetic alphabet, and using a VHF radio with DSC.
We run VHF SRC courses at least every two months. However, for groups or commercial/government organisations, we are happy to arrange courses on dates that suit your schedule.
We recommend spending time familiarising yourself with the phonetic alphabet before the course, as it will be an important part of the exam. The alphabet is included in the pre-course study material in the RYA VHF Handbook (G31) and can also be found online.
“We had a fantastic weekend—learned so much in a fun, welcoming atmosphere. The instructors were truly first-class, patient, and supportive throughout. Highly recommended!”
The course was fantastic and very enjoyable, worth every penny, intend to book other useful courses for myself in the new year.
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