Sole Watchkeeper Misses a Mayday on VHF Ch 16
MV Nilgiri Trader is at anchor in Mumbai anchorage. At 0230 the sole bridge watchkeeper - a GOC holder - is on the bridge. The VHF Ch 16 watch alarm has been disabled because 'it kept beeping' during bunkering; the deckhand has selected Ch 06 on the main VHF for the bunker barge. The GOC holder hears only the last few words of a MAYDAY from a fishing vessel on Ch 16, then silence. The VHF DSC controller shows an unacknowledged distress alert on Ch 70 from an MMSI beginning 419 (Indian fishing vessel). No coast station acknowledgement is heard. The vessel's own VHF licence and GOC certificate are valid. The master asks whether the ship must relay, and whether the watchkeeping arrangements need to change.
1. What are the immediate actions on hearing the Mayday and seeing the VHF DSC alert, and should the ship acknowledge on Ch 70?
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Do not transmit a DSC acknowledgement on Ch 70. The DSC channel is for alerting; acknowledgment and distress traffic belong on the associated radiotelephony frequency. Switch the main VHF to Ch 16, restore the watch alarm, and listen. If the fishing vessel's MAYDAY is still in progress, let it finish; if no coast station acknowledges, acknowledge on Ch 16 using the vessel's identity and say 'MAYDAY RECEIVED'. If a coast station is handling it, keep silence unless you can assist. Because the DSC alert is unacknowledged and no coast station is heard, the ship should relay: 'MAYDAY RELAY' on Ch 16 to the Coast Guard, passing the fishing vessel's MMSI, position if known, and the fact that a DSC alert was received on Ch 70. Inform the master, keep a continuous Ch 16 watch, and log all times. Do not use Ch 06 for the relay.
2. Explain the watchkeeping and licensing failures in this setup and the corrective actions.
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Failures: continuous VHF Ch 16 and DSC Ch 70 watch was not maintained; the watch alarm was disabled; the sole GOC holder was distracted and the main VHF was on Ch 06 for routine bunkering. These breach GMDSS watchkeeping and radio licence conditions. The vessel's VHF licence and GOC certificate being valid does not cure the operational failure. Corrective actions: restore the Ch 16 watch alarm and test it; keep Ch 06 only as a working channel and return to Ch 16; provide a relief watchkeeper or move the bunkering coordination to a handheld without losing Ch 16; ensure the person on watch is not given competing tasks; brief the deckhand not to change the main VHF; check the DSC controller is on and logged; report the defect to the master and company; record in the radio log. If the alarm is faulty, repair it before the next watch rather than disabling it.
3. What should be entered in the radio log, and why does the relay matter even though the vessel is at anchor?
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Log: time of hearing the MAYDAY, Ch 16/Ch 70, fishing vessel identity/MMSI, received position, action taken, time of acknowledgment/relay, coast station response, master informed, watch alarm defect, and corrective action. The radio log is a legal record and may be requested by the administration or SAR authorities. The relay matters because a fishing vessel may have low power, a poor antenna or no DSC shore coverage; a ship at anchor with a tall antenna and a clear horizon can be the only station that hears the alert. Even though the vessel is not underway, it is a radio station with a watch obligation and can pass the alert to MRCC Mumbai. Failure to relay could delay rescue. The fact that the vessel is at anchor does not remove the obligation to keep a proper watch and assist if able.