I read this letter and apart from the patent stupidity of "don't call Mayday on the radio", the 'facts' as stated did not make sense to me in that the "Controller" (as referred to twice) allegedly said "we are XXX TRAFFIC when you call". As far as I am aware TRAFFIC is used e.g. out-of-hours at a FIS aerodrome or for a blind call if no response received from an A/G "Radio" station. In neither case would a "Controller" be involved. That made me question the accuracy of the content of the letter as presented.
Earlier this year I had to make my first distress call for real when I had one and a half mags failure, and needed a prompt rejoin to my FIS base aerodrome, with priority in the active circuit as any go-around would be impossible; I must admit one reason I called a Pan and not a Mayday was the incorrect assumption that the latter would involve formal paperwork! Where I got that idea from is a mystery. The Pan call was the correct one to make, even if for the wrong reason. All ended well, circuit was cleared for me and I landed with a dead engine. Phew.
Slip