For mid-shore navigation, fixed VHF on board becomes mandatory from 1 January 2010 er january 2017 for boats that sail more than 6 miles from a shelter. But having a VHF radio requires you to have a CRR or a pleasure licence. To help you make your choice, here is a presentation of the RRC and its implementation.
The Restricted Radiotelephony Certificate (RRC)
In national waters, the permit is sufficient, but internationally, the CRR is mandatory. In any case, the permit can also be applied for in foreign countries, such as Croatia, where it is required to navigate on a leased vessel.
The CRR is regulated by the Decree of 22 February 2011 amending the Decree of 18 May 2005 on restricted radiotelephone certificates for the maritime mobile service and the river mobile service. There are two categories of review, the marine and the river RRC.
The RRC is an examination that is conducted in the same way as the driver's licence code. The examination consists of a multiple-choice questionnaire and covers the Marine Readiness Manual program. This is the National Frequency Agency who organizes and administers the exams.
To register
To register, you must go to the ANF website to download a registration form. The application must include the completed and signed registration form (river or sea), the payment of 78 euros, a copy of the identity card and two recent passport photos.
Pass the exam
Several sessions are organized each month, throughout France. Simply choose your examination centre by consulting the CRR calendar (on the ANF website) and book according to your choice.
Preparing for the exam
To prepare for the examination, it is necessary to study the preparation manual, which is based on the programme resulting from the decree of 18 May 2005 and which is available on the ANF website. Several programs exist depending on where it is navigated. Those who navigate in river areas will choose the river manual those who navigate in river, seawater and maritime areas will choose the maritime manual and those who navigate in maritime areas will also choose this manual. An online training module is also available on the ANF website.
In the manual, you will learn everything about the maritime mobile service (texts, provisions, communication categories, frequencies and channels in the marine VHF band...), the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) (definition, functions...) and everything about VHF (commands for a VHF without DSC, DSC general principles, DSC VHF distress communications...).
The examination
The RRC exam is conducted in the same way as the driver's licence exam and consists of answering 24 multiple-choice questions using a remote control. Here is an example of questions:
A distress message is used to signal:
- a danger related to navigation safety
- an emergency concerning the safety of the ship
- the threat of serious and imminent danger
- pirates attack the ship
To obtain your diploma, you must obtain the average in each category, i.e.:
CRR Maritime
- General information on the maritime mobile service: 6 questions
- VHF Radiotelephony: 8 questions
- Practical use of VHF DSC: 10 questions
- General: 10 questions
- Practical knowledge: 10 questions
The National Frequency Agency
Acting on behalf of the Ministry of the Sea, the ANF issues radiomaritime identifiers (call sign, MMSI) for the use of VHF radios, distress beacons... It also manages the radio operator certificate for river and maritime vessels, which is none other than the CRR.
A few figures
In 2013, 87,000 licences were issued (+5%) and 83% of new licences were issued for pleasure craft. 3,321 boaters were candidates for the RRC (+5%).
