Navtex OnlineNAVTEX in Greece
Greece broadcasts NAVTEX from three coast stations: Kérkyra (Corfu), Irákleio (Crete) and Límnos. Together they cover the Ionian Sea, the Aegean and the waters around Crete. The warnings come from the Hellenic Navy Hydrographic Service, and the stations belong to NAVAREA III (Mediterranean and Black Sea).
Each station has two services: an international one in English on 518 kHz and a national one in Greek on 490 kHz.
Stations and broadcast times (UTC)
| Station | Letter | Frequency | Language | Range | Broadcast times (UTC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kérkyra | K | 518 kHz | English | 250 nm | 01:40, 05:40, 09:40, 13:40, 17:40, 21:40 |
| Kérkyra | P | 490 kHz | Greek | 250 nm | 02:30, 06:30, 10:30, 14:30, 18:30, 22:30 |
| Límnos | L | 518 kHz | English | 250 nm | 01:50, 05:50, 09:50, 13:50, 17:50, 21:50 |
| Límnos | R | 490 kHz | Greek | 250 nm | 02:50, 06:50, 10:50, 14:50, 18:50, 22:50 |
| Irákleio | H | 518 kHz | English | 250 nm | 01:10, 05:10, 09:10, 13:10, 17:10, 21:10 |
| Irákleio | Q | 490 kHz | Greek | 250 nm | 02:40, 06:40, 10:40, 14:40, 18:40, 22:40 |
Each slot is a 10-minute window, repeated every 4 hours. Urgent messages can go out at any time. Range is the designed range in nautical miles.
Which station for which waters
- Ionian Sea and the approaches to the Adriatic: Kérkyra.
- Northern and central Aegean: Límnos.
- Southern Aegean, Crete and the sea south of it: Irákleio.
In much of the Aegean you can receive two or all three. If you sail between areas, set your receiver to accept all three station letters. On the Turkish side of the Aegean, İzmir also broadcasts; see NAVTEX in Turkey.
Latest messages from these stations
- Weather forecast from Límnos LE95 · 11 Nov 05:52 UTC
- Weather forecast from Kérkyra KE95 · 11 Nov 05:46 UTC
- Navigational warning from Irákleio HA05 · 11 Nov 05:14 UTC
- Weather forecast from Irákleio HE70 · 11 Nov 05:13 UTC
- Weather forecast from Límnos LE94 · 10 Nov 21:54 UTC
- Weather forecast from Kérkyra KE94 · 10 Nov 21:42 UTC
- Weather forecast from Límnos LE93 · 10 Nov 17:56 UTC
- Weather forecast from Kérkyra KE93 · 10 Nov 17:41 UTC
- Navigational warning from Irákleio HA03 · 10 Nov 17:18 UTC
- Navigational warning from Irákleio HA02 · 10 Nov 17:17 UTC
Few or no messages from Kérkyra P, Límnos R and Irákleio Q have reached us in the last week, so their pages may be empty.
What the messages contain
- Navigational warnings (subject
A): military exercises and firing practice, unlit or missing buoys and lights, wrecks, underwater work, cable laying, search areas. - Meteorological warnings (
B): gale and storm warnings. - Weather forecasts (
E). - Search and rescue (
D): distress relays and requests to keep a lookout.
Every message starts with ZCZC, the station letter, the subject letter and a serial number, and ends with NNNN. How to read a NAVTEX message
Reading the messages online
Navtex Online shows the messages received from these stations, each with the original text and a readable version with the abbreviations written out. They come from receivers that publish what they hear and from official lists of warnings; see data sources.
Official sources for this region:
Not for navigation. Reception on land can be incomplete or garbled, and a message can be missing. This site does not replace a NAVTEX receiver on board or the official broadcasts.
Questions
What frequency is NAVTEX in Greece?
518 kHz: Kérkyra K, Límnos L and Irákleio H (English). 490 kHz: Kérkyra P, Límnos R and Irákleio Q (Greek). Most receivers can listen to 518 kHz and 490 kHz at the same time.
When are the weather forecasts sent?
Weather forecasts (subject E) go out at least twice a day, in each station's own time slots in the table above. The latest forecasts received are on each station's page.
Can I read these messages without a receiver?
Ashore, yes: the messages received from these stations are on this page and on each station's page, for planning. At sea, carry a NAVTEX receiver: internet access is not reliable offshore, and an online copy can be late or incomplete.
More: NAVAREA III (Mediterranean and Black Sea) · Other regions · What is NAVTEX · Station map