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A distress call has absolute priority over all radio traffic. All stations hearing a distress call must stop transmitting immediately so that the vessel in distress is able to pass its message without interference. All stations should continue to monitor the frequency.
Mayday or Pan?
A MAYDAY call is initiated in a Distress situation. This is defined as a vessel in grave or imminent danger and immediate assistance is required; e.g. you are sinking or aground and badly holed on a reef in bad weather.
On the other hand a PAN PAN call is used in an Urgency situation. This involves the safety of a ship or person but there is no immediate danger, e.g. you require medical advice or assistance or you have run out of fuel and are drifting but not in any immediate danger.
Ultimately it is the responsibility of the person in charge of the vessel to determine if a MAYDAY or PAN PAN should be declared.
How to Send A Distress Call
Using one of the recognised distress frequencies transmit the following:
- MAYDAY MAYDAY
- This is (vessel name and calling spoken 3 times)
- MAYDAY
- Vessel name or other identification
- Particulars of your position in either degrees and minutes of latitude and longitude or bearing and distance relative to a well known geographical feature.
- The nature of your distress and the kind of assistance required.
- Any other information which may aid rescuers (include number of persons onboard, description of your vessel, life-raft, EPIRB).
If no answer is received, repeat the distress call and message particularly during the 'silence period' on the other distress frequencies or any other available frequency on which help may be obtained. If still no contact activate your EPIRB. If radio contact is established you will probably be advised to activate your EPIRB to assist rescuers locate your position.
Receiving a Distress Call
If you hear a distress call in your near vicinity and you are in an area where there is reliable communications with a Shore Station, you should wait a short time to let that station acknowledge receipt of the MAYDAY. If there is no response within a reasonable time, then you should acknowledge the call.
If you are not near the distress position wait for a short time to allow the Shore Station or nearer vessels to acknowledge. If there is no response, then you should acknowledge the call.
How to Acknowledge a Distress Call
On the same frequency as the distress call, transmit the following:
- MAYDAY
- Name/call sign of vessel in distress repeated 3 times
- This is (your vessel's Name/call sign repeated 3 times)
- Received (or Romeo) MAYDAY
- Over
If no other vessel has acknowledged the MAYDAY or if you are nearer or better suited to assist, you should then send the following information in the order shown and on the frequency the distress message was received.
- MAYDAY MAYDAY
- Name/call sign of vessel in distress repeated 3 times
- This is (your vessel Name/call sign repeated 3 times)
- Text (Your position, intentions, expected ETA)
- Over
Mayday Relay
Under certain circumstances another vessel may be in a position to relay a distressed vessel's MAYDAY call. These circumstances are:
- The ship in distress cannot itself transmit the distress message,
- The master or skipper of the ship not in distress or the person responsible for the Shore Station considers further help is necessary; or
- Although not in a position to provide assistance, it has heard a distress message which has not been acknowledged. In any of these events the vessel should relay the vessel in the following format:
- MAYDAY RELAY MAYDAY RELAY
MAYDAY RELAY
- This is (your vessel Name/call sign
repeated 3 times)
- MAYDAY distressed vessel Name/call sign
- Distress message text
- A ship station should not acknowledge receipt of a MAYDAY RELAY message transmitted by the Shore Station unless definitely in a position to provide assistance.
Post Distress Phase
If, after you have broadcast a distress message and the emergency subsequently ceases to exist, you must downgrade the distress to urgency (PAN PAN) or broadcast a cancellation message.
MAYDAY cancellation message broadcast by controlling station.
- The distress signal MAYDAY MAYDAY
- The call HELLO ALL STATIONS spoken 3 times
- The Name/call sign of station sending the message
- The time the message originated
- The Name/call sign of the vessel which was in distress
- The words SEELONCE FEENEE
If you activated your EPIRB for the distress phase, don't forget to recover it and switch it off. EPIRBs not recovered and switched off have been known to transmit for up to 6 days. This not only has the potential to mask another EPIRB's transmission from the same area, but it can mislead and delay rescue aircraft from their primary mission.
REMEMBER, the misuse of distress messages or the deliberate broadcasting of hoax calls may endanger the lives of fellow mariners, airmen and other potential rescuers. Additionally, scarce rescue resources may not be readily available for actual distress situations.
There are severe penalties under the Radiocommunications Act for transmitting false distress calls.
Readers who want to learn more about Radiocommunications procedures are encouraged to contact an office of the Department of Transport and Communications and obtain a copy of the current edition of Handbook for Radiotelephone Ship Station Operators.
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