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I have never heard the word "MAYDAY" used over any radio. That said, I have heard and participated in a number of Mayday scenarios. Two of the more interesting I'll relate in moment.
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First, tho, I would never rely on hams to come to my rescue. And that is a hard statement to make, since I know quite a few I would trust my life with. But the chance of running into the careless bozo on the other end of 2 metre's negates that. In this age of 'cel phones that is what I'd always go to first.
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Second, there are plenty of everyday real Maydays. But it is very rare term, and not used except in the extreme..... like that final, universal word of pilots on the cockpit voice recorder-
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"...............Ohhh.. SH*T !!!!......................................................................................"
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I've never heard the word MAYDAY spoken over a radio.
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Okay, one of my good Mayday scenarios that sticks out in memory occurred while working on a research project in the Central Pacific. We staged our part of the mission from a large research ship that plied the tropical ocean (and what a wonderful way to have all the sasami/sushi tuna we could eat
) .....between test sites and islands.
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First World denizen's, concerned with their Malls, traffic jams and Facebooks, don't have a clue that the rest of the world is still quite a primitive place. Communications from small island villages are often no more than a single 'hacked' Kenwood on HF with a terminated long wire for an antenna.
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So even on a modern US research vessel, with it digital marvels; the Sat 'Fones and other baubles that make "calling home (ET style)" a Skype-like experience at the push of a button-- even with all this, we would each take turns assisting the crew by doing 'Radio Watches".... that is, from the bridge's radio room someone would be listening to our HF traffic channels and V/UHF radios.... and 2182Khz, 156.8....
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One of the things on our Watch List of stations and frequencies was a missionary net. These folks, scattered about the vast Pacific, (tried) to keep in contact with each other using low power HF transceivers on the woefully pathetic choice of frequencies- the 2 Mhz band. We had an agreement to listen on their frequency at regular intervals ...."just in case."
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I can't remember what I was doing when my friend Barb came and said
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"Lauri, come up to the radio shack and take a listen to what's going on."
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Cluster'd about a HF radio, were several of our guys, the captain and the ship's medical officier. On the other end of the radio was a desperate young woman trying to describe the condition of someone near death. Our doctor was talking her thru it.
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What transpired was that this island village had been unable to raise anyone on their radio (remember this, the next time using 2Mhz for anything is suggested.)
...Unable, for days .... Meanwhile someone one got dangerously sick-- and now was dying. Our's was the only station that heard them and respond'd.
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We were close to their island and our course was changed. But that wouldn't get us there fast enuff. So a call went out to the military- and the US Navy responded like Angels. A long range helicopter--- and a life saved.
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A more humorous tale involved me directly.
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................ I was standing the "watch. "
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At these times I liked to flip over and join in on the HF nets of the Peace Corps volunteers (another one on that accursed 2Mhz band.)
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On one occasion while they were conducting a roll call among the islands, after each break, I heard a weak but intelligible female voice--
"PLEASE, does anyone HEEEAAAR MEEE !! ??"
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This went on thru the roll call, and no one responded to her. They were about to conclude whatever net business they had when I broke in.
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"You have a caller no one's acknowledging, want me to call her ?"
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She answer'd;
....... "Thank You Lauri !!...I have been trying for 2 weeks now to get anyone to hear me.....Please, tell them to send me Bug Spray !-- the gnats, fleas, mosquitos are eating me alive !.... "
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".... For the Love of God, SEND me bug spray !!"
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Lauri
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