Originally Posted by
BEagle
Lonewolf 50, just WHY do the USN and Mreenkaw-ooh-rah b!
No need to be rude, BEagle, unless being in the RAF makes it compulsory.
I think I understand the logic on that bit of training. (And the reason that I looked it up on line was that it had been ages since I'd seen the book; it's posted on the CNATRA web site).
If not in radar contact (which is how flying was for decades before the ubiquity of radar contact became the norm) then you need to get the attention of anyone listening on the freq by saying Mayday. That gets anyone/everyone listening on the frequ to pay attention to what follows.
If you are already in radar contact, you are already talking to a controller. In that case, it's a briefer transmission simply tell them you have an emergency.
And funnily enough, almost all of the VFR training sorties I flew had a radar following (not radar contact) service in the MoA. The flight students were taught to say Mayday (non radar contact) as a standard transmission when they got that far into the checklist (Aviate, Navigate, Communicate). (And if they didn't they'd get marked off for not saying it during the simulated emergency)
Which means that the most common emergency radio call would start with Mayday by reflex, I expect.
I can see the advantage of simply telling the controller you have an emergency if you are already talking to them; it's clearer communication and he's already got you painted on his scope.
I'll defer to Westy on the controller side of that.
Your appeal to pedantry is noted, but we agree on this.
whoever flew that C-130 to a successful landing did an outstanding job!
yep.