MAYDAY is the one call that stops all other traffic and sets a rescue going. It has a fixed form so that you can say it under stress and anyone who hears it can write it down. Learn the form by heart.
1 · When to call MAYDAY
Grave and imminent danger
When is a problem at sea serious enough to call MAYDAY?
When a vessel or a person is in grave and imminent danger and needs immediate assistance: the danger is serious and here now, like a fire out of control or a hull the pumps cannot keep up with. Call at once; anyone aboard may.
MAYDAY is the distress signal. It says that a vessel or a person is in grave and imminent danger and needs immediate assistance. Both halves must be true: the danger is serious, and it is here now. When they are, call at once. Do not wait for the yacht to strike the rocks.
Situation
MAYDAY?
Fire out of control
Yes
Holed, the pumps cannot keep up
Yes
Person overboard, lost from sight
Yes: a life is in danger
No engine, anchor dragging on to a lee shore
Yes, now
Engine will not start, calm sea, sails working
No: sail on, or make a lower-priority call
In distress anyone aboard may use the radio. The rule that an operator needs a certificate never stops a MAYDAY, so show every crew member where the set is and how the call goes.
2 · Distress call
The red button, then your voice on 16
How do I send a MAYDAY on a DSC radio?
Lift the cover and hold the red distress button for five seconds, then on channel 16, high power, say MAYDAY three times, THIS IS, the yacht's name three times, and her call sign or MMSI.
On a DSC set, start with the red button: lift the cover and hold it for five seconds. The alert goes out as data and the set moves to channel 16. Check that it is on high power, press the switch on the handset and speak slowly and clearly. First comes the distress call, which says who is in trouble.
CH 16Distress call
MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY
THIS IS
Nova, Nova, Nova call sign 9A1234, MMSI 238123450
MAYDAY three times, THIS IS, the yacht's name three times, then her call sign or MMSI. Do not stop there: the message follows without a pause.
3 · Distress message
What rescuers need, in the order they need it
What do I say in a MAYDAY message, and in what order?
The distress message runs: MAYDAY and your name, position, what is wrong, the help you need, the number of persons on board, other useful information, OVER. Position comes first, so help can set out even if the radio dies.
The distress message opens with MAYDAY and the name once more. Position comes first: if the radio dies ten seconds later, help can still set out. Then what is wrong, what help you need and how many people are aboard.
CH 16Distress message
MAYDAY Nova, 9A1234, MMSI 238123450
My position 43°10.5′N 015°58.0′E
Holed and sinking
I require immediate assistance
Four persons on board
Abandoning to the liferaft. OVER
Letter
Item
M
MAYDAY
I
Identity: name, call sign, MMSI
P
Position
D
Distress: what is wrong
A
Assistance required
N
Number of persons on board
I
Information that helps: liferaft, flares, hull colour
O
OVER
Under stress people forget the help they need and the number aboard. Keep a card with the form, the yacht's name, call sign and MMSI beside the radio.
4 · Giving your position
Coordinates, or a bearing from a charted mark
How do I give my position in a MAYDAY without GPS?
Give a true bearing from a charted mark, such as a lighthouse, and your distance off: your bearing to the mark plus or minus 180°. A light bearing 040° puts you 220° from it.
With a GPS, read the coordinates: latitude first, then longitude, each with its hemisphere, north or south, east or west. Without one, give a true bearing from a charted point and the distance off: a lighthouse or a headland that rescuers will find on their own chart.
You say: "220 degrees from the lighthouse, 3 miles".
The bearing you take runs from your boat to the mark. Rescuers plot the other way, from the mark out to you, so give the reciprocal: add or subtract 180°. The light bears 040°, so you are 220° from it.
Rule
From the landmark, not to it: your bearing plus or minus 180°.
5 · After the MAYDAY
Listen, repeat, keep them informed
What do I do if nobody answers my MAYDAY?
Check channel 16 and high power, repeat the call and the message, and raise the alarm by flares and the EPIRB. When a station answers RECEIVED MAYDAY, help is being organised: answer briefly and stay on 16.
End the message with OVER, release the switch and listen on 16. A coast station or a vessel nearby acknowledges:
Acknowledgement
MAYDAY
Nova, 9A1234
THIS IS Split Radio
RECEIVED MAYDAY
RECEIVED MAYDAY means your distress call has been heard and help is being organised. The station then asks what it still needs: answer briefly and stay on 16.
No answer: check channel 16 and high power, then repeat the call and the message.
Meanwhile raise the alarm by every other means you have: flares, the EPIRB.
The danger has passed and you need no help: tell the coast station at once. Rescuers keep coming until they are told.
Abandoning ship: take the handheld VHF into the liferaft, so you can talk to rescuers as they close in.
6 · MAYDAY RELAY
Calling for a vessel that cannot
When should I send a MAYDAY RELAY for another boat?
Send a MAYDAY RELAY when you hear a MAYDAY that no station acknowledges and you cannot help yourself, or when you see a distress signal, like a red flare, from a vessel silent on the radio. Call under your own name.
Sometimes the casualty reaches nobody, and you can. Send a MAYDAY RELAY in two cases: you hear a MAYDAY that no station acknowledges and you cannot give the help yourself; or you see a distress signal, such as a red flare, from a vessel that is silent on the radio.
MAYDAY RELAY
MAYDAY RELAY ×3
ALL STATIONS ×3
THIS IS Nova ×3, call sign 9A1234
Following received from yacht Mistral: MAYDAY Mistral, position …, sinking, six persons on board. OVER
Each of the three is said three times, like MAYDAY itself, and you call under your own name. Never pose as the casualty: rescuers must know who is speaking and where the message comes from. Then pass on her position and trouble as you heard them, or say what you saw, where and when.
Practice questions
Questions from this topic, as the app asks them. Open one to see the answer.
NowFire aboard
Engine-bay fire, spreading fast
Both extinguishers used, no effect
Four crew, 8 miles offshore
Does this situation justify a MAYDAY?
Yes — grave and imminent danger to boat and crew
No — first ask the coastguard if it qualifies
Only if another vessel is in sight to help
No — not until the crew has to abandon ship
Show the answer
A. Yes — grave and imminent danger to boat and crew
MAYDAY is for grave and imminent danger needing immediate help — an uncontrolled fire is exactly that.
All 20 questions of this topic are in the app: practice by topic with the reason after every answer, your mistakes brought back, and a timed mock exam. Free, no sign-up, in the browser or in Telegram.
