Will covering VHF antenna affect performance?

[psneeld]

And like in the Biscayne Bay collision...the skipper of the sailboat said he had to have someone turn it on.

 

[rwidman]

There's no requirement for a recreational boat to have a VHF transceiver on board and if there is one on board there is no requirement that it be turned on.

If it is turned on, there is a requirement to monitor channel 16 but commercial operators are apparently exempt from the requirement to monitor channel 16.

So who is running this zoo?