diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 178e677..051efaf 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -1,13 +1,3 @@
-# CI Matrix Policy
-#
-# Category A (tools-version 6.2 + macOS 26 min): macos-26 + Swift 6.2
-# Category B (tools-version 6.2 + older macOS):  macos-15 + 6.2, macos-26 + 6.2
-# Category C (tools-version 6.0):                macos-15 + 6.0, macos-15 + 6.2, macos-26 + 6.2
-# Linux:                                          ubuntu + Swift 6.3
-#
-# When Swift 6.3 ships: bump 6.0→6.1 and 6.2→6.3 in Category C
-# When bumping tools-version to 6.2: drop 6.0/6.1, move to Category A or B
-
 name: CI
 
 on:
@@ -29,8 +19,12 @@ jobs:
         include:
           - os: macos-26
             swift: "6.2"
+          - os: macos-26
+            swift: "6.4"
           - os: ubuntu-latest
             swift: "6.3"
+          - os: ubuntu-latest
+            swift: "6.4"
     runs-on: ${{ matrix.os }}
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v6
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 7323369..99c854a 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,6 +2,18 @@
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+## [1.3.0] - 2026-09-14
+
+### Changed
+
+- Lowered the platform floor to macOS 13, iOS 16, watchOS 9, tvOS 16, and
+  visionOS 1, down from 26 on every platform. The manifest had required
+  releases far newer than anything the package uses — `TimeZone.gmt` is the
+  newest API it touches — so apps that have not moved to the 26 releases can
+  now adopt the library unchanged.
+- Raised the minimum version of two package dependencies: swift-argument-parser
+  1.8.2 and swift-docc-plugin 1.5.0.
+
 ### Fixed
 
 - Parsing a truncated record no longer traps. `slice(_:)` clamped only its upper
diff --git a/Package.swift b/Package.swift
index 1528478..aaa9b73 100644
--- a/Package.swift
+++ b/Package.swift
@@ -9,13 +9,14 @@ let upcomingFeatures: [SwiftSetting] = [
   .enableUpcomingFeature("ImmutableWeakCaptures"),
   .enableUpcomingFeature("MemberImportVisibility"),
   .enableUpcomingFeature("ExistentialAny"),
-  .enableUpcomingFeature("InternalImportsByDefault")
+  .enableUpcomingFeature("InternalImportsByDefault"),
+  .strictMemorySafety()
 ]
 
 let package = Package(
   name: "SwiftCIFP",
   defaultLocalization: "en",
-  platforms: [.macOS(.v13), .iOS(.v16), .watchOS(.v9), .tvOS(.v16), .visionOS(.v1)],
+  platforms: [.macOS(.v26), .iOS(.v26), .watchOS(.v26), .tvOS(.v26), .visionOS(.v26)],
   products: [
     .library(
       name: "SwiftCIFP",
diff --git a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Cycle.swift b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Cycle.swift
index a3a5644..8d06719 100644
--- a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Cycle.swift
+++ b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Cycle.swift
@@ -141,7 +141,7 @@ extension Cycle {
 extension Cycle {
   /// The YYMM string representation (used internally for identification).
   var yymm: String {
-    String(format: "%02d%02d", year % 100, cycleNumber)
+    unsafe String(format: "%02d%02d", year % 100, cycleNumber)
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/ByteParsing.swift b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/ByteParsing.swift
index c02342c..60b2cce 100644
--- a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/ByteParsing.swift
+++ b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/ByteParsing.swift
@@ -111,14 +111,17 @@ extension RandomAccessCollection where Element == UInt8, Index == Int {
   /// Convert to trimmed String (only when actually needed).
   @inlinable
   func toString() -> String {
-    guard let string = String(bytes: Array(self), encoding: .utf8) else { return "" }
-    return string.trimmingCharacters(in: .whitespaces)
+    toRawString().trimmingCharacters(in: .whitespaces)
   }
 
   /// Convert to raw String without trimming (for exact matching like section codes).
+  ///
+  /// Decodes in place over the collection's own storage, so no intermediate array is
+  /// allocated per field. Bytes that are not valid UTF-8 yield an empty string.
   @inlinable
   func toRawString() -> String {
-    String(bytes: Array(self), encoding: .utf8) ?? ""
+    unsafe (withContiguousStorageIfAvailable(String.init(validatingUTF8Bytes:))
+      ?? ContiguousArray(self).withUnsafeBufferPointer(String.init(validatingUTF8Bytes:)))
   }
 
   /// Check if all bytes are whitespace.
@@ -127,3 +130,16 @@ extension RandomAccessCollection where Element == UInt8, Index == Int {
     allSatisfy { $0 == ASCII.space }
   }
 }
+
+extension String {
+  /// Create a string from contiguous UTF-8 bytes without copying them into an
+  /// intermediate array, yielding an empty string when the bytes are not valid UTF-8.
+  @inlinable
+  init(validatingUTF8Bytes bytes: UnsafeBufferPointer<UInt8>) {
+    guard let utf8 = try? UTF8Span(validating: unsafe bytes.span) else {
+      self = ""
+      return
+    }
+    self.init(copying: utf8)
+  }
+}
diff --git a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/CIFPLineReader.swift b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/CIFPLineReader.swift
index 1205f88..5e9642b 100644
--- a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/CIFPLineReader.swift
+++ b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Parser/CIFPLineReader.swift
@@ -26,10 +26,10 @@ struct CIFPLineReader: Sequence, IteratorProtocol, Sendable {
     lineBuffer.removeAll(keepingCapacity: true)
 
     // Scan until LF or end of data
-    data.withUnsafeBytes { buffer in
-      let bytes = buffer.bindMemory(to: UInt8.self)
+    unsafe data.withUnsafeBytes { buffer in
+      let bytes = unsafe buffer.bindMemory(to: UInt8.self)
       while position < bytes.count {
-        let byte = bytes[position]
+        let byte = unsafe bytes[position]
         position += 1
         if byte == ASCII.LF { return }
         lineBuffer.append(byte)
@@ -99,12 +99,12 @@ struct AsyncCIFPLineReader: AsyncSequence, Sendable {
       self.lineBuffer.reserveCapacity(lineBufferCapacity)
     }
 
-    mutating func next() throws -> [UInt8]? {
+    mutating func next() throws(CIFPError) -> [UInt8]? {
       guard !isEOF else { return nil }
 
       // Lazily open file handle on first call
       if handle == nil {
-        handle = try FileHandle(forReadingFrom: url)
+        handle = try openFile()
       }
       guard let handle else { preconditionFailure("handle was nil") }
 
@@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ struct AsyncCIFPLineReader: AsyncSequence, Sendable {
       while true {
         // Refill buffer if exhausted
         if bufferPos >= buffer.count {
-          guard let chunk = try handle.read(upToCount: bufferSize),
+          guard let chunk = try readChunk(from: handle),
             !chunk.isEmpty
           else {
             isEOF = true
@@ -138,6 +138,22 @@ struct AsyncCIFPLineReader: AsyncSequence, Sendable {
         lineBuffer.append(byte)
       }
     }
+
+    private func openFile() throws(CIFPError) -> FileHandle {
+      do {
+        return try FileHandle(forReadingFrom: url)
+      } catch {
+        throw .streamError(error)
+      }
+    }
+
+    private func readChunk(from handle: FileHandle) throws(CIFPError) -> Data? {
+      do {
+        return try handle.read(upToCount: bufferSize)
+      } catch {
+        throw .streamError(error)
+      }
+    }
   }
 }
 
@@ -172,10 +188,10 @@ where Source.Element == UInt8, Source: Sendable {
     }
 
     @concurrent
-    mutating func next() async throws -> [UInt8]? {
+    mutating func next() async throws(Source.Failure) -> [UInt8]? {
       lineBuffer.removeAll(keepingCapacity: true)
 
-      while let byte = try await iterator.next() {
+      while let byte = try await iterator.next(isolation: nil) {
         if byte == ASCII.LF {
           // Strip trailing CR if present (handles CRLF)
           if lineBuffer.last == ASCII.CR {
diff --git a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/Coordinate.swift b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/Coordinate.swift
index a8ef324..b30c57e 100644
--- a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/Coordinate.swift
+++ b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/Coordinate.swift
@@ -58,6 +58,12 @@ extension Coordinate: CustomStringConvertible {
   public var description: String {
     let latDir = latitudeDeg >= 0 ? "N" : "S"
     let lonDir = longitudeDeg >= 0 ? "E" : "W"
-    return String(format: "%.6f°%@, %.6f°%@", abs(latitudeDeg), latDir, abs(longitudeDeg), lonDir)
+    return unsafe String(
+      format: "%.6f°%@, %.6f°%@",
+      abs(latitudeDeg),
+      latDir,
+      abs(longitudeDeg),
+      lonDir
+    )
   }
 }
diff --git a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/MagneticVariation.swift b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/MagneticVariation.swift
index 9e8ba60..27b35c0 100644
--- a/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/MagneticVariation.swift
+++ b/Sources/SwiftCIFP/Types/MagneticVariation.swift
@@ -59,6 +59,6 @@ extension MagneticVariation {
 
 extension MagneticVariation: CustomStringConvertible {
   public var description: String {
-    String(format: "%.1f°%@", degrees, String(direction.rawValue))
+    unsafe String(format: "%.1f°%@", degrees, String(direction.rawValue))
   }
 }
diff --git a/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/OutputFormatter.swift b/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/OutputFormatter.swift
index dd81808..d2d1767 100644
--- a/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/OutputFormatter.swift
+++ b/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/OutputFormatter.swift
@@ -18,9 +18,10 @@ protocol OutputFormatter {
 extension OutputStream {
   func write(_ string: String) {
     guard let data = string.data(using: .utf8) else { return }
-    data.withUnsafeBytes { buffer in
-      guard let pointer = buffer.baseAddress?.assumingMemoryBound(to: UInt8.self) else { return }
-      write(pointer, maxLength: buffer.count)
+    unsafe data.withUnsafeBytes { buffer in
+      guard let pointer = unsafe buffer.baseAddress?.assumingMemoryBound(to: UInt8.self)
+      else { return }
+      unsafe write(pointer, maxLength: buffer.count)
     }
   }
 
@@ -39,7 +40,7 @@ struct SummaryOutputFormatter: OutputFormatter {
     stream.writeLine()
     stream.writeLine("=== CIFP Summary ===")
     stream.writeLine("Cycle: \(cifp.cycle)")
-    stream.writeLine("Parse time: \(String(format: "%.2f", elapsed)) seconds")
+    stream.writeLine("Parse time: \(unsafe String(format: "%.2f", elapsed)) seconds")
     stream.writeLine("Errors: \(errorCount)")
     stream.writeLine()
 
@@ -99,9 +100,10 @@ struct JSONOutputFormatter: OutputFormatter {
     let encoder = JSONEncoder()
     encoder.outputFormatting = [.prettyPrinted, .sortedKeys]
     let jsonData = try encoder.encode(snapshot)
-    jsonData.withUnsafeBytes { buffer in
-      guard let pointer = buffer.baseAddress?.assumingMemoryBound(to: UInt8.self) else { return }
-      stream.write(pointer, maxLength: buffer.count)
+    unsafe jsonData.withUnsafeBytes { buffer in
+      guard let pointer = unsafe buffer.baseAddress?.assumingMemoryBound(to: UInt8.self)
+      else { return }
+      unsafe stream.write(pointer, maxLength: buffer.count)
     }
   }
 }
diff --git a/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/SwiftCIFP_E2E.swift b/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/SwiftCIFP_E2E.swift
index eb0d61a..2feff54 100644
--- a/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/SwiftCIFP_E2E.swift
+++ b/Sources/SwiftCIFP_E2E/SwiftCIFP_E2E.swift
@@ -47,8 +47,8 @@ struct SwiftCIFP_E2E: AsyncParsableCommand {
       guard let (year, month, day) = dateComponents(from: effectiveDate) else {
         throw ValidationError("Failed to extract date components from cycle")
       }
-      let filename = String(format: Self.cifpFilenameFormat, year % 100, month, day)
-      guard let url = URL(string: String(format: Self.cifpURLFormat, filename)) else {
+      let filename = unsafe String(format: Self.cifpFilenameFormat, year % 100, month, day)
+      guard let url = URL(string: unsafe String(format: Self.cifpURLFormat, filename)) else {
         throw ValidationError("Failed to construct CIFP URL")
       }
       return url