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Cpt Pat · 20-02-2020, 12:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptTom

I train lots of new crew on use of VHF (among other things.) I've come to the realization that, in a real emergency, a checklist simply isn't going to be used. Oh, I have one. It's similar to those above. Maybe when things calm down someone might look at it.

Here's I tell everyone during my pre-underway briefing:
- Change to channel 16 (or point out which radio is normally kept on 16.)
- KEY the mic. Doesn't matter what you say, just explain the situation briefly.
- LET GO OF THE KEY!!! People tend to clench their fists when stressed. They need to know nobody can answer until they let go of the mic key
- Someone will come on the radio, tell you what to do and ask you a bunch of questions.

It's even easier if you have your MMSI radio set up and can just tell them to "press and HOLD the red button until the radio starts beeping."

That's it. Any more than that is overload, and won't be done anyway.

The Coast Guard and any other boaters in the area will hear the stress level of the call. It's great if they can "clearly say mayday three times followed by the name of your vessel..." but it's not a requirement.

Good points. Very similar to what I tell them: "Just explain the problem in plain English. Don't worry about jargon." And mash down on the red button first until the radio starts beeping.

But... the DSC Distress button won't work on badly configured radios that haven't set an MMSI - and have either connected or integrated GPS. That's why I instruct them to make the voice call next in case they ever find themselves on another vessel with a bad configuration. It's disturbing to know there are many vessels out there like that.