Module 6 - Distress & Mayday
Position and Follow-Up
What you will learn
Give a position that responders can use, state response-critical information and maintain an accurate update loop after the first call.
A precise-looking position is not useful if it is stale, misread or in the wrong reference. Give the best verified position available, say how it is expressed and add local context when that helps nearby responders.
The MCA format prefers latitude and longitude. Read the latitude and longitude carefully from a current source and include north or south and east or west. If a reliable latitude/longitude is unavailable, a clear bearing and distance from a named charted point or an unambiguous local position is better than silence or an invented coordinate.
Check the displayed time and position source before trusting a digital value. A DSC alert and a spoken position derived from the same failed or stale source are not independent confirmation. Where time permits, compare another reliable source or a known local feature and state uncertainty rather than presenting a guess as exact.
Other useful information is selected for the response: injuries, whether people are accounted for, lifejackets or liferaft, EPIRB or handheld radio, vessel description, abandonment intentions and hazards. Keep it concise. When the position, people, nature or assistance requirement changes, update the coordinating station and read back critical instructions.
Build a location that can be plotted and recognised
The chartplotter shows 50° 42.3′ N, 001° 18.6′ W with a current time. The yacht is also visibly about two miles south of a named headland.
1. Read the coordinate completely
Say degrees and minutes, decimal minutes, north, degrees and minutes, decimal minutes, west without dropping the hemispheres.
2. Add useful local context
If accurate and helpful, add the approximate bearing-and-distance or local relationship so nearby listeners can recognise the area quickly.
3. Monitor movement
Note time and update if the casualty drifts, abandons or moves enough to alter the response picture.
Sense check: Another crew member should be able to repeat the position back without guessing a hemisphere, datum or reference feature.
Common mistake or limitation
- Reading a coordinate without north/south or east/west.
- Assuming the DSC and voice positions corroborate each other when both use the same stale GNSS feed.
- Giving a long narrative while omitting injuries, people accounted for or an updated position.
Recap
- Prefer a current verified latitude/longitude and state it completely.
- Use a clear known-point relationship when that is the best usable position or helpful local context.
- Update material changes and keep response information concise.
Optional quick check
Section 6 of 10
The radio's position time is old and no independent check is available. What should the caller do?
Sources and factual review
Reviewed 1 September 2026 - Compass Revision editorial review.
Continue studying Distress & Mayday
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