Comms / Nav upgrade

My Iridium 9555 Satphones arrived from WA last week so talking with Airtime service providers to get the best bang for buck given I require the data service for the Solo Tasman race followed by several months with no requirement and then in Aug-Dec my solo sail back from The Netherlands on Roaring Forty.

Next week when our removals is delivered, I should know if I need to update the SeaPro Routing Navigation software dongle. Also on the cards is the Lighthouse 2 software upgrade to the Raymarine systems since they have been dormant for the past three years. 

My old trusty Raymarine 101 VHF handeld lives on, however it will be relegated to dinghy duties as I have upgraded to a Standard Horizon HX870 VHF GPS/DSC floating handheld and a HX300 VHF floating handheld with USB and and 12volt charging.

My ICOM 801E HF radio is a solid, reliable and high performing piece of gear so all that is required after I drop the new batteries in is to perform a radio check with Kordia in NZ one evening to confirm operation.