One of the most controversial issues relating to marine navigation is the efficacy of ships' crews using VHF radio technology for bridge-to-bridge communications to agree manoeuvres. Through a re-evaluation of historic case studies, this paper provides background on the development of applying VHF technology in collision avoidance and the legislation, national and international, underpinning the practice; a practice that has found little or no support from the legal establishment. Finally the consequential development of a policy to require specific VHF technology to be installed on ships to facilitate agreements in relation to collision avoidance manoeuvres will be reviewed, that is the Automatic Identification System (AIS).

Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful. Samuel Johnson