How/where to report distress signals?

[paulthornton]

This is possibly slightly off-topic for ATC issues, so be gentle.

Last night as I arrived home, I observed what looked very much like two red distress flares go up not too far from my house. They came from a direction where I know there is a private strip operating occasional fixed-wing and helicopter traffic.

I listened in on 121.5 but heard nothing - and then wondered what if anything should be done. There was, of course, a high probability that some neighbour had these flares "hey, they make great fireworks, and now we are all back from the pub lets let these two off" - but equally they may have had their intended, serious, meaning.

In the end I called Gatwick ATC (I'm about 5DME from the Mayfield VOR) to let them know where I'd seen them - but I'm wondering if there is a D&D contact which may have been more appropriate. I'm sure you good folks at Gatwick have enough to be doing without fielding calls from concerned members of the public...

I'm sure someone here will know the answer ... or I'll trigger a long and drawn-out debate!

Thanks,

Paul.

[Arkady]

Call the police.

[Sven Sixtoo]

Coastguard might also be good (sometimes even if the sighting is nominally inland - I've been on searches in rivers and lakes after reports of flares.)

Coastguard is available on 999 same as the other emergency services.

Sven

[SilentHandover]

Paul

It was me you spoke to last night, we passed the message on to D & D for them to deal with.

We very rarely are too busy to deal with or complain about people trying to help aviation.

TTFN

SH

[paulthornton]

Thanks for the coastguard suggestion - did think of the police but must confess that wasn't certain that with the very vague information I had it would have been beneficial. "Distress flares sir? What exactly do you mean?" was the kind of response I'd expect from non nautical and aviation fields - I could be being terribly unfair on the emergency services operators by saying that, however.

SH - thanks very much for your help.

Paul.

[effortless]

I had reason to call the police about an aircraft about which I was worried. They were very good. They took me seriousely though I didn't indicate that I had any special knowledge. They passed on my concerns to the relevant agency and kept me informed as to whether the a/c made it home. CAA rang me later to tell me all was ok and asked if I wanted to raise it as an issue. I said that I was happy the the a/c got home. The police were very quick to pass on the information. I cannot praise them highly enough.

[Jerricho]

Nice one Paul. Good for you. mate

[av8boy]

Well done. You got the info into the “system” in an appropriate way. However, don’t discount the utility of starting with the police in these cases. More often than not, they’re the group best positioned to get somebody to the location quickly. And if you feel as though they didn’t take you seriously, you can always move to the next agency on the list. In any case, don’t be shy. You’re doing the right thing.

[Pierre Argh]

sven sixtooooo

A quick dit (and cautionary tale), from a friend of mine working at RAF St Mawgan in Cornwall UK... sat in the tower one evening he sees a red flare off to the west (out over the sea)... quick thinking puts in a 999 call to the Coastguard. The ensuing conversation goes like this:

"Emergency HM Coastguard"
"Hi it's St Mawgan ATC here, I've just seen what I think might be distress flare?"
"Who'd you say you were?"
"RAF St Mawgan
"Where's that?"
"Newquay"
"That's in Cornwall, isn't it?"
"YES!!!!"
"Well why are you ringing me... this is Great Yarmouth Coastguard?"

... seems the BT call centre just puts you through to their nearest emergency service call centre, and in this case it was one on the other side of the country??? Beware, be-warned!!!

[clicker]

I work in a police control room and have done so for some 18 years now after a spell in airline ops.

Some of you would be surprised at how much we "non aviation" people know and we have a good set of operation orders to deal with aviation incidents.

I myself have been a radio controller for a number of them from simple force landings to fatal crashes.

I agree, call the police. We have the tel numbers for local airfields, D&D and other agencies as well as direct lines to coastguard, fire and ambulance. We will get the ball rolling, carry out searches and if the worst has happened protect and control the scene. Indeed only the other day I set the ball rolling when a member of public though he had seen an aircraft in difficulties perhaps making a forced landing. We later found out a similar aircraft had landed at Deanland not too far from the callers position so all ended well that day, as indeed most do.

In the case as quoted by Paul its likely we would have made a search in the area concerned although if near a coastal area we would have passed that to the coastguard for a sea search as well.

Cheers Ron