The two services you need

Worked example — latest graphic surface analysis, E. Pacific

The product is the OPC E. Pacific surface analysis radiofax chart PYEA11.gif, served from tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/ (broadcast by NMC Pt. Reyes).

Saildocs

To: query@saildocs.com
Subject: (blank)

send http://tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/PYEA11.gif

ftpmail

To: NWS.FTPMail.OPS@noaa.gov
Subject: (anything)

open
cd fax
get PYEA11.gif
quit

Finding the right filename (tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/)

Radiofax files use a 6-character WMO product code. The E. Pacific charts are broadcast from NMC Pt. Reyes; the N. Atlantic from NMF Boston. Common ones:

Browse the tgftp fax index or the NOAA radiofax schedule PDF for the full catalog with every station and product code.

OPC direct URLs (alternative — web-served PNGs)

If you'd rather pull the OPC web charts than the radiofax file, these also work with Saildocs send <URL>:

Saildocs — full command reference

GRIB files

send GFS:35N,50N,135W,120W|0.5,0.5|0,6..72|WIND,PRMSL,WAVES

• Model: GFS:, ECMWF:, ICON:, NAM:, HRRR:, WW3:, RTOFS:.
• Area: N lat, S lat, W lon, E lon. Use N/S and E/W letters.
• Grid: lat step, lon step in degrees (1,1 keeps files small).
• Hours: 0,6..72 = 0, 6, 12, …, 72 h. Or list: 0,12,24,48.
• Params: WIND, PRMSL, PRESS, TMP, RH, GUST, WAVES, HGT500, CAPE, CLOUDS, PRECIP, APCP.

Text forecasts by WMO header

send fzpn02.kwbc     # N. Pacific high-seas forecast
send fznt01.kwbc     # N. Atlantic high-seas forecast
send fzus51.kwbc     # US offshore zones (Atlantic)
send fzus56.kwbc     # US offshore zones (Pacific)
send miatwdat.txt    # Atlantic tropical weather discussion

Any URL (used for the radiofax example above)

send http://ocean.weather.gov/P_sfc_full_ocean_color.png
send http://tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/PYAA11.gif
send https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/MIATCDAT1.shtml

Subscriptions (auto-send on a schedule)

sub GFS:35N,50N,135W,120W|1,1|0,12,24,48|WIND,PRMSL days=7 time=06
sub fzpn02.kwbc days=7 time=00,12

• days=N — run for N days then stop (cap protects you from forgotten subs).
• time=HH,HH — UTC hours to deliver.
• Cancel with unsub <name>. Email sublist to see all your subs.

Housekeeping

send list            # catalog of available text products
send info            # Saildocs help
send samples         # example commands

ftpmail — how the session works

Your email body is treated as FTP commands in order. No authentication needed for the NWS public server (default site is tgftp.nws.noaa.gov).

open                      # connect to default site
size 1000000              # avoid splitting attachments (max 2M)
cd fax                    # change to /fax
ls                        # (optional) list files
get PYEA11.gif            # E. Pacific surface analysis
get PPBE10.gif            # can chain multiple gets
quit                      # end session

• Plain text only — HTML-formatted emails are silently rejected. The most common error message ("ftpmail has failed to queue your request… Must have an 'open [site [user [pass]]]'") almost always means HTML formatting got through.
• Capitalization matters — directory and file names are case-sensitive on the NWS server.
• One cd at a time — cd data/forecasts/marine fails ("Directory not Found"); use a series: cd data, cd forecasts, cd marine.
• No leading/trailing spaces on any command line — symptom is a reply full of =20.
• Spam filter — allowlist NWS.FTPMail.OPS@noaa.gov in your email host. No reply at all is usually a filter problem.
• Attachment size — files > ~400 KB are split into multi-part replies. Avoid this with size 1000000 after open (max 2M).
• ftpmail help: send a message with body help.

ftpmail — directory cheat sheet (/fax/)

The /fax/ directory on tgftp.nws.noaa.gov has plain-text index files listing every product code by region. Pull these once, keep them onboard.

open
cd fax
get rfaxatl.txt           # Atlantic radiofax index
get rfaxpac.txt           # Pacific radiofax index
get rfaxmex.txt           # Gulf of Mexico + Tropical Atlantic
get rfaxak.txt            # Alaska
get rfaxhi.txt            # Hawaii
get otherfax.txt          # Foreign charts
get marine1.txt           # High-seas, offshore, Open Lakes, NAVTEX
get marine2.txt           # Hurricane text products
get marine3.txt           # Coastal + nearshore forecasts
get marine4.txt           # Offshore forecasts by zone
get marine5.txt           # Atlantic coastal by zone
get marine6.txt           # Pacific coastal by zone
get marine7.txt           # Gulf of Mexico coastal
get marine8.txt           # Great Lakes
get marine9.txt           # Alaska coastal
get marine10.txt          # Hawaii + Trust Territories
get uk.txt                # UK marine forecasts (Bracknell)
get canada.txt            # Canadian marine forecasts
get tsunami.txt           # Tsunami products
get buoydata.txt          # Buoy + C-MAN observations
get rfaxtif.txt           # TIFF viewer suggestions
get ftpcmd.txt            # Full ftpmail command reference
quit

Every line above is one filename — strip out the ones you don't need before sending. Each .txt reply is small (a few KB) and contains the file paths you'd cd / get in subsequent sessions.

ftpmail — pulling text forecasts by WMO/AWIPS header

Many NWS products are also reachable directly by their WMO header without navigating the marine subdirs — handy when you only know the header.

open
cd data
cd raw
cd fz                     # FZ = forecast/zone family of products
get fznt01.kwbc.hsf.at1.txt   # Atlantic high-seas (FZNT01 KWBC, AWIPS HSFAT1)
quit

The path under /data/raw/ mirrors the first 2 letters of the WMO header. Land zone forecasts go via cd data; cd forecasts; cd zone; cd md; get mdz004.txt (Frederick County MD example). Look up your county's UGC/zone code at alerts.weather.gov.

Workflow recipes

Daily passage-planning pull (Eastern Pacific, coastal California)

To: query@saildocs.com

send GFS:30N,45N,135W,118W|1,1|0,6..72|WIND,PRMSL,GUST
send http://tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/PYEA11.gif
send http://tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/PPBE10.gif
send fzus56.kwbc

One email, four replies: near-term GRIB, current E. Pacific surface analysis, 24-hr surface forecast, NWS offshore text. Total ~200 KB over Iridium.

Atlantic crossing (Bermuda → Azores, May)

To: query@saildocs.com

send ECMWF:30N,45N,65W,25W|1,1|0,12..120|WIND,PRMSL,WAVES
send GFS:30N,45N,65W,25W|1,1|0,12..120|WIND,PRMSL,WAVES
send http://tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/PYAA11.gif
send http://tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/fax/PYAE11.gif
send fznt01.kwbc

Gotchas

• Saildocs send has no subject requirement — don't put commands in the subject, they'll be ignored.
• Over satellite email, disable HTML/signatures. Plain text only. Many Iridium plans strip attachments > a size limit; split into multiple requests.
• ftpmail can take 5–30 min to reply during busy periods. Saildocs is typically < 2 min.
• Radiofax filenames rotate (old versions overwritten). Always get by canonical name, not dated copy.
• Subscriptions without days= run until you cancel them — always set a cap so you don't come back to gigabytes in inbox.

External references