Amazed

[COLIN SIMPSON]

As an ex Private Pilot 2000 hrs it never ceases to amaze me the number of Mayday calls made to Solent Coastguard which are clearly Pan calls. I am sure a lot of people do not know the difference or think they will get a faster and better service if they call a Mayday. We wouldn't do that in the air - probably because we were trained properly in the first place.

[daletournier]

Last years in the Seychelles I heard a scratchy mayday, I couldn't make out the details. There was a Marine police boat not far from me, I went over to tell them about the mayday. Having a antenna 60ft up was allowing me to pick the transmission up, they couldn't hear it.

It turned out to be a charter boat that fouled their anchor [emoji21]

[conachair]

Originally Posted by COLIN SIMPSON

As an ex Private Pilot 2000 hrs it never ceases to amaze me the number of Mayday calls made to Solent Coastguard which are clearly Pan calls. I am sure a lot of people do not know the difference or think they will get a faster and better service if they call a Mayday. We wouldn't do that in the air - probably because we were trained properly in the first place.

Don't think the coastguard care as long as they know if there's a problem out there. Thankfully the UK is largely free from sailing regulations, though VHF is one area where training is a requirement - go listen down the Caribbean to hear people who really don't have a clue about radio protocol

[jmh2002]

Having personally been in a situation where it was necessary to issue a real mayday call - engine room fire, aluminium boat, very not good... - it is very disappointing to hear about such nonsense.

What will be next, a mayday because someone runs out of rose wine (on second thoughts maybe this is understandable...)

All joking aside, this boating, fishing, yachting, mucking around on the water lark is all fun, until all of a sudden is isn't and it all goes badly wrong very quickly.

In our case it was maybe 1 minute from fun to fire, but we were very lucky, very very lucky. We had done an engine room fire drill only a week before, and via sat phone (we were in a remote location, vhf was useless), another yacht answered our mayday and sent help, serious help. They travelled over 5nm to help us.

So the lesson is two fold:

- practice and be ready to help yourself, no matter what the situation and no matter where you are - we trained especially on the basis that 'nobody was coming to help us' and although we had our situation mostly under control, it was still huge relief when we saw help appear over the horizon.

- on the same basis, always be prepared and ready to help others no matter how big or small you are. Even the moral support can be useful, but be ready to provide all help that you can.

Rendering assistance to others is the obligation of everyone that goes to sea.

[GrowleyMonster]

Entering Charleston once, we heard a Mayday 0n 16. CG responded, asks for name of vessel, position, nature of distress, etc. Boater replies with name of fuel dock which was closed, and that he was out of gas and had paddled for hours toward a Shell sign at the deserted fuel dock, and had not named the boat yet because he had just bought it that morning. Then Silence. Then, "Uh, Coast Guard, did you hear me? I didn't hear you answer me."



One would hope that he was visited by CG and recieved at least a vigorous talking-to.

[COLIN SIMPSON]

Originally Posted by GrowleyMonster

Entering Charleston once, we heard a Mayday 0n 16. CG responded, asks for name of vessel, position, nature of distress, etc. Boater replies with name of fuel dock which was closed, and that he was out of gas and had paddled for hours toward a Shell sign at the deserted fuel dock, and had not named the boat yet because he had just bought it that morning. Then Silence. Then, "Uh, Coast Guard, did you hear me? I didn't hear you answer me."



One would hope that he was visited by CG and recieved at least a vigorous talking-to.

I rest my case!!

[Jim Cate]

and via sat phone (we were in a remote location, vhf was useless), another yacht answered our mayday and sent help,

How do you do a mayday on a sat phone?

Jim

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by GrowleyMonster

Entering Charleston once, we heard a Mayday 0n 16. CG responded, asks for name of vessel, position, nature of distress, etc. Boater replies with name of fuel dock which was closed, and that he was out of gas and had paddled for hours toward a Shell sign at the deserted fuel dock, and had not named the boat yet because he had just bought it that morning. Then Silence. Then, "Uh, Coast Guard, did you hear me? I didn't hear you answer me."



One would hope that he was visited by CG and recieved at least a vigorous talking-to.

Used to hear foolishness like that all the time on Tampa Bay...outta gas, outta beer, outta ice, lost...