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Maritime
Distress signals at sea are defined in the International Regulations for Preventing
Collisions at Sea and in the International Code of Signals. Mayday signals must
only be used where there is grave and imminent danger to life. Otherwise, urgent
signals such as pan-pan can be sent. Most jurisdictions have large penalties for
false, unwarranted, or prank distress signals. The alerts are of utmost
importance in ensuring the safety of life at sea, and are governed by
international maritime law, specifically the International Convention for the
Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).[1]

Distress can be indicated by any of the following officially sanctioned methods:

Distress Signals

Smoke signal

 Transmitting a spoken voice Mayday message by radio over very high frequency channel
16 (156.8 MHz) or medium frequency on 2182 kHz
 Transmitting a digital distress signal by activating (or pressing) the distress button on a
marine radio equipped with Digital Selective Calling (DSC) over VHF channel 70 or over
another designated DSC frequency in the maritime MF and HF bands.
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 Transmitting a digital distress signal by activating (or pressing) the distress button (or key)
on an Inmarsat-C satellite internet device
 Sending the Morse code group SOS ( ) by light flashes or sounds
▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄

 Burning a red flare (either hand-held or aerial parachute flare)

 Launching distress rockets
 Emitting orange smoke from a canister
 Showing flames on the vessel (as from a burning tar barrel, oil barrel, etc.)
 Raising and lowering slowly and repeatedly both arms outstretched to each side
 Making a continuous sound with any fog-signaling apparatus
 Firing a gun or other explosive signal at intervals of about a minute
 Flying the international maritime signal flags NC
 Displaying a visual signal consisting of a square flag having above or below it a ball or
anything resembling a ball (round or circular in appearance)

A floating man-overboard pole or dan buoy can be used to indicate that a person
is in distress in the water and is ordinarily equipped with a yellow and red flag
(international code of signals flag "O") and a flashing lamp or strobe light.

In North America, marine search and rescue agencies in Canada and the United
States also recognize certain other distress signals:

 Sea marker dye

 White high-intensity strobe light flashing at 60 times per minute

Automated radio signals

In addition, distress can be signaled using automated radio signals such as a

Search and Rescue Transponder (SART) which response to 9 GHz radar signal,
or an Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) which operates in
the 406 MHz radiofrequency. EPIRB signals are received and processed by a
constellation of satellites known as Cospas-Sarsat. Older EPIRBs that use
121.5 MHz are obsolete. Many regulators require vessels that proceed offshore to
carry an EPIRB.

Many EPIRBs have an in-built Global Positioning System receiver. When

activated these EPIRBs rapidly report the latitude and longitude of the
emergency accurate to within 120 m (390 ft). The position of non-GPS EPIRBs is
determined by the orbiting satellites, this can take ninety minutes to five hours
after activation and is accurate to within 5 km (3.1 mi). Marine safety authorities
recommend the use of GPS-equipped EPIRBs.[2]

A miniaturized EPIRB capable of being carried in crew members' clothing is

called a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB). Regulators do not view them as a
substitute for a vessel's EPIRB. In situations with a high risk of "man
overboard", such as open ocean yacht racing, PLBs may be required by the
event's organizers. PLBs are also often carried during risky outdoor activities on
the land.

EPIRBs and PLBs have a unique identification number (UIN or "HexID"). A

purchaser should register their EPIRB or PLB with the national search and
rescue authority; this is free in most jurisdictions. EPIRB registration allows the
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authority to alert searchers of the vessel's name, label, type, size, and paintwork;
to promptly notify next-of-kin, and to quickly resolve inadvertent activations.

A DSC radio distress signal can include the position if the lat/long are manually
keyed into the radio or if a GPS-derived position is passed electronically directly
into the radio.

Mayday

A Mayday message consists of the word "mayday" spoken three times in

succession, which is the distress signal, followed by the distress message, which
should include:

 Name of the vessel or ship in distress

 Its position (actual, last known, or estimated expressed in lat/long or in distance/bearing
from a specific location)
 Nature of the vessel distress condition or situation (e.g. on fire, sinking, aground, taking on
water, adrift in hazardous waters)
 Number of persons at risk or to be rescued; grave injuries
 Type of assistance needed or being sought
 Any other details to facilitate resolution of the emergency such as actions being taken (e.g.
abandoning ship, pumping flood water), estimated available time remaining afloat

Unusual or extraordinary appearance

When none of the above-described officially sanctioned signals are available,

attention for assistance can be attracted by anything that appears unusual or out
of the ordinary, such as a jib sail hoisted upside down.

During daylight hours when the sun is visible, a heliograph mirror can be used to
flash bright, intense sunlight. Battery-powered laser lights the size of small
flashlights (electric torches) are available for use in emergency signaling.

Inverted flags

For hundreds of years inverted national flags were commonly used as distress
signals.[3] However, for some countries' flags it is difficult (e.g., Spain, South
Korea, United Kingdom) or impossible (e.g., Japan, Thailand, and Israel) to
determine whether they are inverted. Other countries have flags that are
inverses of each other; for example, the Polish flag is white on the top half and
red on the bottom, while Indonesia's and Monaco's flags are the opposite—i.e.,
top half red, the bottom half white. A ship flying no flags may also be understood
to be in distress.[4] For one country, the Philippines, an inverted flag is a symbol
of war rather than distress.[5]

If any flag is available, distress may be indicated by tying a knot in it and then
flying it upside-down, making it into a wheft.[6]

Examples of inverted flags as distress signals

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HMS Romney aground off the island Texel in 1804. In Richard

Corbould's print, Romney's blue ensign at the stern is shown
inverted, as a sign of distress




HMS Pique in a gale, flying the white ensign upside down

Device loss and disposal

To avoid pointless searches some devices must be reported when lost. This
particularly applies to EPIRBs, lifebuoys, rafts, and devices marked with the
vessel's name and port.

Expired flares should not be set off, as this indicates distress. Rather, most port
authorities offer disposal facilities for expired distress pyrotechnics. In some
areas special training events are organized, where the flares can be used safely.

EPIRBs must not be disposed of into general waste as discarded EPIRBs often
trigger at the waste disposal facility. In 2013, the majority of EPIRB activations
investigated by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority were due to the
incorrect disposal of obsolete 121.5 MHz EPIRB beacons.[7]
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Aviation

Radio beacon of distress

Modulation of a radio beacon of distress on 121.5 MHz and 243 MHz. (Radio
triangulation)

Problems playing this file? See media help.

The civilian aircraft frequency for voice distress alerting is 121.5 MHz. Military
aircraft use 243 MHz (which is a harmonic of 121.5 MHz, and therefore civilian
beacons transmit on this frequency as well). Aircraft can also signal an
emergency by setting one of several special transponder codes, such as 7700.

The COSPAS/SARSAT signal can be transmitted by an Electronic Locator

Transmitter or ELT, which is similar to a marine EPIRB on the 406 MHz
radiofrequency. (Marine EPIRBs are constructed to float, while an aviation ELT
is constructed to be activated by a sharp deceleration and is sometimes referred
to as a Crash Position Indicator or CPI).

A "triangular distress pattern" is a rarely used flight pattern flown by aircraft in

distress but without radio communications. The standard pattern is a series of
120° turns.

Ground Air Emergency Codes

Visual code used by survivors in the U.S.

Visual code used by ground search parties in

the U.S.

Ground-Air Emergency Codes are distress signals used by crashed pilots and
military personnel to send signals from the ground to an aircraft.[8][9]

Schwarzwald
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The recognized mountain distress signals are based on groups of three, or six in
the UK and the European Schwarzwald. A distress signal can be three fires or
piles of rocks in a triangle, three blasts on a whistle, three shots from a firearm,
or three flashes of light, in succession followed by a one-minute pause and
repeated until a response is received. Three blasts or flashes is the appropriate
response.

In the Schwarzwald, the recommended way to signal distress is the Schwarzwald

distress signal: give six signals within a minute, then pause for a minute,
repeating this until rescue arrives. A signal may be anything visual (waving
clothes or lights, use of a signal mirror) or audible (shouts, whistles, etc.). The
rescuers acknowledge with three signals per minute.

In practice, either signal pattern is likely to be recognized in most popular

mountainous areas as nearby climbing teams are likely to include Europeans or
North Americans.

Signal for "yes, I need help"

To communicate with a helicopter in sight, raise both arms (forming the letter Y)
to indicate "Yes" or "I need help," or stretch one arm up and one down
(imitating the letter N) for "No" or "I do not need help". If semaphore flags are
available, they can be used to communicate with rescuers.

Ground beacons
The COSPAS-SARSAT 406 MHz radiofrequency distress signal can be
transmitted by hikers, backpackers, trekkers, mountaineers and other
ground-based remote adventure seekers and personnel working in isolated
backcountry areas using a small, portable Personal Locator Beacon or PLB.

See also
 2182 kHz
 500 kHz
 COSPAS-SARSAT Search And Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking
 Digital Selective Calling DSC
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 Emergency Alert System

 Emergency telephone number
 Global Maritime Distress Safety System GMDSS
 Index of aviation articles
 International distress frequency
 Maritime mobile amateur radio
 Mayday
 Mountain rescue
 Search and Rescue Transponder
 SOLAS Convention
 SOS
 TACBE
 VS-17
 Vessel emergency codes
 Emergency locator beacon
 Air-to-ground communication

References
1. ↑

Aeronautical Information Manual, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration,

2016

2.
3. ↑

"Distress Alerts". Maritime Dictionary. Retrieved 23 November 2023.

4.
5. ↑

"GPS versus Non-GPS: A comparison of GPS vs non-GPS 406 MHz

distress beacons". Australian Maritime Safety Authority. Retrieved 21
March 2014.

6.
7. ↑

For example, 36 U.S. Code §176(a) provides: "The flag should never be
displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in
instances of extreme danger to life or property."

8.
9. ↑

"Slave Ship Mutiny Program Transcript" Archived 15 November 2010 at

the Wayback Machine. Educational Broadcasting Corporation. 2010.
Retrieved 2012-02-15.
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10.
11. ↑

"U.S. Apologizes for flying Philippine flag upside down". Reuters. 27

September 2010.

12.
13. ↑

"Flying flags upside down". [Link]. Archived from the original

on 13 December 2009. Retrieved 27 July 2009.

14.
15. ↑

Gaden, Phil. "A 406Mhz beacon is your best chance of being rescued".
Australian Maritime Safety Authority. Archived from the original on 12
December 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2014.

16.
17. ↑

The Handbook Of The SAS And Elite Forces. How The Professionals
Fight And Win. Edited by Jon E. Lewis. p.185-Tactics And Techniques,
Evasion, Capture And Escape. Robinson Publishing Ltd 1997.
ISBN 1-85487-675-9

18.
19. ↑

"International Ground-to-Air Signaling Code". December 2017.

20.

External links
 What is the meaning of SOS?
 US Coast Guard: Visual Distress Signals for Recreational Boaters
 US Coast Guard: Flares and other Visual Distress Signals
 Transport Canada: Radio Distress Procedures Card
 FM 31-70 Appendix B
 SIGNALING TECHNIQUES TO ASK HELP • Survive
 4.82 Communications and Equipment – New Zealand Private Pilots Licence Exam Notes
 [Link]
 The Postal History of ICAO
 GEN 3.6 Search and Rescue
 "Ground to Air Visual Signals" (PDF). 7 March 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2023.
 "Ground-to-Air Emergency Code". [Link]. Retrieved 13 April 2023.
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 v
 t
 e

International Morse code

 Electrical telegraph
 On–off keying
 Continuous wave
Transmission
 Modulated continuous wave
methods  Heliograph
 Signal lamp

 SOS
 CQD
 Morse code mnemonics
Notable  Prosigns for Morse code
signals  Morse code abbreviations
 Q code
 Z code

 American Morse code

 Greek alphabet
 Cyrillic script

Other o Russian
writing
systems  Hebrew script
in Morse code  Arabic script
 Wabun code
 Chinese telegraph code
 Korean code

Authority
control
databases  Germany
:
National