In addition to 3 EPIRBs and the Yellowbrick transmitter, Tainui has an HF transceiver (Icom M802) which, using a Pactor modem and Sailmail, has been our main method of long distance communication at sea. But our Iridium telephone has taken over, and we now send short emails via satellite instead. It is much more reliable and not too expensive, if you save the emails and package them together. A couple of dollars a day, perhaps.
Our satellite phone charging connector broke a week ago and I have been ruminating about the hellish cost ($1,600 +/-) and practical difficulty replacing the phone here in Cabo Verde.
Sometimes you’re lucky – blow me down, at the marina office there was an identical phone on display, being sold at very reasonable price, by a French yacht here. I bought it and now we’re in touch with the world again.