MAYDAY CALL

[Riles4365]

Hey,

 

So I'm a student pilot learning to get my certificate and I fly at an un-controlled airfield where we use the radio to broadcast positions e.g base, rolling etc. My question is, lets say you have an engine failure in the circuit, what phrase would you use?? MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY ?? or PAN PAN PAN. or would yhou just say Traffic [location] engine failure?

 

thanks,

 

Riley

 

 

[Birdseye]

Mayday is for distress situations and Pan for urgency situations. If you want to clear a circuit because your engine has failed and you want to be able to land anywhere on the airfield, then Mayday is your call. A situation where Pan is more suited would be a fuel shortage, whereby you can carry out a normal approach and landing, but want to avoid the possibility of a go-around due to congestion in the circuit.

 

 

[Yenn]

For an engine failure I would use Mayday. Pan may be appropriate if you are absolutely certain that you can land safely.

 

Traffic locn. engine failure would just be a waste of space.

 

I have had an engine failure in the circuit and given no call, because there was no danger. I have given a mayday call when I had a burst fuel line and had to shut the engine down and land in a paddock. I was answered very quickly by a helicopter pilot about 50 miles away and advised him when I was safely down.

 

A mayday gets everyones attention.

 

 

[Yenn]

Having seen Birdseyes response. That is covered by the latest CASA wording, where shortage of fuel should mean a Mayday fuel broadcast. Not good in my opinion,but CASA have the final say.

 

 

[Downunder]

You don't know beforehand what condition you will be in AFTER landing in an emergency situation.

 

Best to call the Mayday and then cancel if all is well....... If you are injured or incapacitated, the call has already been made and help is coming.

 

Also, your radio will transmit further, the higher you are. So don't "wait and see".... get the call out early and your plb set off.

 

I was "chatted" on a BFR for not having my plb near at hand and had it stowed away. "Not good enough" I was told....

 

 

[facthunter]

Mayday it is and tell them your runway. or actions. If it's a controlled environment say REQUIRE runway (29 ?) Don't talk too much.... It's Aviate Navigate Communicate. Declaring the emergency gets their attention and they will divert other traffic alert fire services.etc. for you.. Nev

 

 

[Birdseye]

Having seen Birdseyes response. That is covered by the latest CASA wording, where shortage of fuel should mean a Mayday fuel broadcast. Not good in my opinion,but CASA have the final say.

A totally stupid CASA idea, not their first.

 

 

[Aldo]

But make the call on area not the CTAF if you want emergency response

 

 

[Roundsounds]

Hey,So I'm a student pilot learning to get my certificate and I fly at an un-controlled airfield where we use the radio to broadcast positions e.g base, rolling etc. My question is, lets say you have an engine failure in the circuit, what phrase would you use?? MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY ?? or PAN PAN PAN. or would yhou just say Traffic [location] engine failure?

 

thanks,

 

Riley

That is a question best put to your flying instructor. A MAYDAY would be the appropriate call in the event of an engine failure. Whether you transmit the call on CTAF or area would depend on available time and if the CTAF is monitored. Remember your priorities (as indicated in other posts) are in the following order; Aviate, Navigate then Communicate.

 

CAR 192 and 193 definition situations of Distress (MAYDAY) and Urgency (PAN) calls and are worth reading, here’s a link;

 

https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2017C00094/250bed88-3995-49cf-b33b-ddd8210cc7fd

 

 

[Birdseye]

But make the call on area not the CTAF if you want emergency response

It depends on your audience and situation. It may be better to notify those around you rather than worry about the police turning up.

 

 

[Riles4365]

thanks everyone

 

 

[Jaba-who]

But make the call on area not the CTAF if you want emergency response

Well maybe but maybe not.

This is a case of you have to know your environment.

 

In many cases there is no area frequency reception below fairly low altitudes but you may have have people operating on CTAF that are in contact.

 

in my area it's fairly hilly and there's lots of shadows with no area contact at all BUT there's three regional airports with good CTAF and ALL of them have repeater facility that gets retransmitted on all other CTAF airports AND the area controller gets the repeater traffic.

 

So in our case you should NOT transmit on area but transmit in CTAF.

 

A clear case of know your local networks.

 

 

[kaz3g]

And perhaps remember Aviate, Navigate, Communicate...better to keep your attention on the first one particularly as it will keep your student mind very busy without worrying too much about radio calls in the circuit.

 

It’s probably going to happen too bloody fast for that!

 

Kaz

 

 

[Bruce Tuncks]

Can calling a mayday cause you financial grief? I read that an ambulance costs $1700 in rural Victoria, and I consider that so much money that I would keep my mouth shut.

 

 

[turboplanner]

There’s a Tunks Alert for the Lower South East and Western Victoria, but it didn’t go to the vets.

 

 

[Nightmare]

I had an emergency in flight in the circuit area once. I always have my radio tuned to the area frequency on the standby channel. I had an oil hose burst losing all oil pressure. It happened so quickly. I didn't have engine failure but I knew I had to put her down quickly, with a very dicey go-around option, the more I idled her, the more likely I was going to save my engine. I was just too busy flying the plane to get the call in. I did make my mandatory calls to land on the CTAF though. I guess the fact that it was an emergency didn't quite sink in til after the incident. All my actions were automatic, and for that I thanked my flying instructor for drilling it into me.

 

 

[Bruce Tuncks]

I reckon you did the right thing Nightmare. How would a mayday call have helped you? I can imagine that it would if you were going down in a remote area, but at an airfield with people on the ground, I don't see how it could have helped.

 

The last one that happened around here, it was people on the ground who did the calling. The main people who were helped were those motorists who would have got a ticket, but all the cops were at the airfield instead.

 

 

[Jabiru7252]

Can calling a mayday cause you financial grief? I read that an ambulance costs $1700 in rural Victoria, and I consider that so much money that I would keep my mouth shut.

Get ambo cover for about $80 a year, covers the entire state in SA.

 

 

[turboplanner]

CAAP 166-1 (3)

 

7.2.1 “Effective radio communication requires the pilot to use standard aviation phraseology as detailed in the Flight Radiotelephone Operator Licence Syllabus of Training.”

 

Link to Flight Radiotelephone Operator Licence Syllabus of Training

 

Flight Radiotelephone Operator Licence – Syllabus of Training

 

CAR 183 1988 - replaces Aeronautical radio operator certificate of proficiency.

 

Aeronautical Radio Operator Certificate (AROC)

 

The Syllabus calls up this book:

 

http://aviationtheory.net.au/shop/student-and-recreational/flight-radio-for-pilots-vfr-operations/

 

There is some information on standard words, pronunciation, and phrases here:

 

https://www.airservicesaustralia.com/aip/current/aip/general.pdf

 

 

[Jaba-who]

Get ambo cover for about $80 a year, covers the entire state in SA.

Or move to Queensland. Everyone in Queensland is covered, paid for by a tariff on our electricity bills.

( a bit annoying in some regards - I personally pay for one lot on my home electricity bill, pay a second time on the electricity bill for my hangar ( which I'm at for a few hours once a fortnight and contribute a small amount as my share of the electricity bill at my business ( though I share that with my partners so it's really bugger-all). And also have private health insurance which is australia wide and pays some into your own states ambulance fund which also then covers you for ambulance care while interstate. So as a consequence I personally pay about four times.

 

But on balance I guess I don't notice it and people who can't afford it ( or wouldn't pay it) don't then end up with unpaid bills for ambulance care. The reason the current system happened here was the ambulance service was going broke with unpaid bills by our large vagrant, itinerant, tourist and indigenous population.

 

 

[Nightmare]

Or move to Queensland.Everyone in Queensland is covered, paid for by a tariff on our electricity bills.

( a bit annoying in some regards - I personally pay for one lot on my home electricity bill, pay a second time on the electricity bill for my hangar ( which I'm at for a few hours once a fortnight and contribute a small amount as my share of the electricity bill at my business ( though I share that with my partners so it's really bugger-all). And also have private health insurance which is australia wide and pays some into your own states ambulance fund which also then covers you for ambulance care while interstate. So as a consequence I personally pay about four times.

 

But on balance I guess I don't notice it and people who can't afford it ( or wouldn't pay it) don't then end up with unpaid bills for ambulance care. The reason the current system happened here was the ambulance service was going broke with unpaid bills by our large vagrant, itinerant, tourist and indigenous population.

Lucky you, you have power to your hanger!

[Jaba-who]

Lucky you, you have power to your hanger!

When we bought it, it didn’t. It was wired up for generator power and 12 volt. But it didn’t take long to be obvious that for a hangar that had weekend accomodation, two jabs with basically a full maintenance workshop we needed 240 volt mains power.

The hangar had a junction box/meter box bolted outside to the wall. It just needed a sparkie to come do it.

 

Cost about $1500 to connect up and bring some of the internal wiring up to specs.

 

Best $1500 we spent.

 

 

[Bruce Tuncks]

I would not have used the ambulance ever, so the $80 a year is a lot of money I reckon.

 

Gosh its getting harder to be a cheapskate. But I'm going to keep trying.

 

 

[turboplanner]

I would not have used the ambulance ever, so the $80 a year is a lot of money I reckon.Gosh its getting harder to be a cheapskate. But I'm going to keep trying.

The Edenhope knackery truck will cost you more.

 

 

[facthunter]

Just pay it. IF you never use it, it will go to a good cause and IF they fly you somewhere in a turboprop after you have knocked some Mulga trees around with your plane in Kickamoocow (perish the thought) you won't get a (very large) bill. You get no bill at all. Check up what ambulances COST. Nev