Mediterranean: SSB Net – MedNet
Previously known as Dragnet, this net (known as MedNet in 2014) started on 1st April 2014 on 6516 kHz USB at 0530 UTC for the Mediterranean cruising season.
JAN 2023: CURRENTLY TRYING TO FIND OUT IF THIS NET STILL OPERATES
Published 10 years ago, updated 6 years ago
Previously known as Dragnet, this net (known as MedNet in 2014) started on 1st April 2014 on 6516 kHz USB at 0530 UTC for the Mediterranean cruising season.
The net is open for cruisers from Greece to Gibraltar to give position reports, discuss whether and to share any other useful information.
See comment below by Kay Parkes re. the plans for 2015.
Related to the following Cruising Resources: Communications, Cruising Radio Nets, Mediterranean
I would like to express a word of caution about installation of SSB and installers. Recently we had an ICOM M 802 installed in Palma de Mallorca by a German installer (JD), recommended by the World Cruising Club. He came to Palma from Germany. He completed the installation and we paid in full the requested fee. We did not get any installation certificate nor training on the radio as promised.
Upon testing the SSB radio all the LED lights started flickering like in a discotheque and the regulator/charger of the solar panels started alarming. He said that that was normal. Later he realized that the regulator/charger was actually burned “because it was not grounded”. He admitted this problem as his own mistake for not recognizing that the regulator/charger was not grounded and offered to ship a new one next morning. He left the boat, did not send the new regulator and failed to respond to our calls and emails. He later offered to fix his mistakes just before the start of the ARC, in our opinion too late for us to learn the SSB operation. I had three other electrician/electronic experts in Palma de Mallorca and San Diego, USA examine the installation or its pictures. All agreed that: 1. the tuner was erroneously placed inside the cabin and in proximity to the regulator/charger. 2. the antenna from the tuner to the insulated backstay was 1 1/2 meters inside the cabin and wrongly passing parallel and bundled with the electric cables of the solar panels, radar, Iridium Pilot, Simpson davits and navigation lights. They all agreed that these are fundamental mistakes and offered to provide a valid legal opinion. I had an electrician relocate the tuner in the stern locker and the copper strip away from any other electric cable. Needless to say, the fix for JD’s mistakes in Palma and during high season was very costly.
There is also a net for Europe, the preARC radio net. Every morning at 8:15 UTC on 8.297. Many sailors for the Atlantic crossing check-in. Call preARC radio net. best regards Joerg from Yachtfunk.com Supporter of the ARC and WARC.
Hopefully, MedNet will come alive again sooooooooon. Ticketeeboo will be listening-in once we get underway from Gibraltar, heading E.
Don – see http://www.noonsite.com/Members/sue/R2008-08-05-4
There are also many local VHF cruisers nets – listed on noonsite on the country/port pages.
Hopefully, some other Med cruisers will come back with active SSB nets that operate currently in the Med – I have tweeted your question.
It seems a shame that the Mednet has closed so soon. I wasn’t aware of its existence until I read this. I would like to participate while we are cruising the Med. Are there any other SSB nets for cruisers in the Med that anyone is aware of.
It operated this summer as Mednet at 05.30 UCT on 6516 kHz. The boat numbers dwindled to 2 so it has closed for the winter and will re-open in April 2015. There were fewer boats checking in this year – new legislation in Turkey and Greece perhaps?