§26.03. Radiotelephone required.
33 C.F.R. § 26.03
Unless an exemption is granted under § 26.09 and except as provided in paragraph (a)(4) of this section, this part applies to:
Every power-driven vessel of 20 meters or over in length while navigating;
Every vessel of 100 gross tons and upward carrying one or more passengers for hire while navigating;
Every towing vessel of 26 feet or over in length while navigating; and
Every dredge and floating plant engaged in or near a channel or fairway in operations likely to restrict or affect navigation of other vessels except for an unmanned or intermittently manned floating plant under the control of a dredge.
Every vessel, dredge, or floating plant described in paragraph (a) of this section must have a radiotelephone on board capable of operation from its navigational bridge, or in the case of a dredge, from its main control station, and capable of transmitting and receiving on the frequency or frequencies within the 156-162 megahertz (MHz) band using the classes of emissions designated by the Federal Communications Commission for the exchange of navigational information.
The radiotelephone required by paragraph (b) of this section must be carried on board the described vessels, dredges, and floating plants upon the navigable waters of the United States.
The radiotelephone required by paragraph (b) of this section must be capable of transmitting and receiving on VHF FM channel 22A (157.1 MHz).
While transiting any of the following waters, each vessel described in paragraph (a) of this section also must have on board a radiotelephone capable of transmitting and receiving on VHF FM channel 67 (156.375 MHz):
The lower Mississippi River from the territorial sea boundary, and within either the Southwest Pass safety fairway or the South Pass safety fairway specified in 33 CFR 166.200, to mile 242.4 AHP (Above Head of Passes) near Baton Rouge;
The Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet from the territorial sea boundary, and within the Mississippi River-Gulf outlet Safety Fairway specified in 33 CFR 166.200, to that channel's junction with the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal; and
The full length of the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal from its junction with the Mississippi River to that canal's entry to Lake Pontchartrain at the New Seabrook vehicular bridge.
In addition to the radiotelephone required by paragraph (b) of this section, each vessel described in paragraph (a) of this section while transiting any waters within a Vessel Traffic Service Area, must have on board a radiotelephone capable of transmitting and receiving on the VTS designated frequency in Table 161.12(c) (VTS and VMRS Centers, Call Signs/MMSI, Designated Frequencies, and Monitoring Areas).
Notes, amendments, and revision history
Amendments
[CGD 91-046, 57 FR 14485, Apr. 21, 1992; 57 FR 21740, May 22, 1992, as amended by CGD 90-020, 59 FR 36322, July 15, 1994; CGD 95-033, 60 FR 28328, May 31, 1995; CGD 92-052, 61 FR 45325, Aug. 29, 1996; CGD-1999-6141, 64 FR 69635, Dec. 14, 1999; USCG-2003-14757, 68 FR 39364, July 1, 2003; USCG-2024-1103, 90 FR 52876, Nov. 24, 2025]
Authority
Authority: 14 U.S.C. 102, 33 U.S.C. 1201-1208; Pub. L. 107-295, 116 Stat. 2064; DHS Delegation No. 00170.1, Revision No. 01.4. Rule 1, International Regulations for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea.
Source
Source: CGD 71-114R, 37 FR 12720, June 28, 1972, unless otherwise noted.
Amendments
[CGD 91-046, 57 FR 14485, Apr. 21, 1992; 57 FR 21740, May 22, 1992, as amended by CGD 90-020, 59 FR 36322, July 15, 1994; CGD 95-033, 60 FR 28328, May 31, 1995; CGD 92-052, 61 FR 45325, Aug. 29, 1996; CGD-1999-6141, 64 FR 69635, Dec. 14, 1999; USCG-2003-14757, 68 FR 39364, July 1, 2003; USCG-2024-1103, 90 FR 52876, Nov. 24, 2025]