Engine Fire and Competing Emergencies
You are pilot of Piper PA-31 Navajo 5Y-JKL carrying five passengers from Entebbe to Kisumu (HKKI) over Lake Victoria at 9,500 ft. At 35 nm west of Kisumu, the right engine catches fire; you shut it down, discharge the extinguisher, and the fire appears out but the engine is damaged. You are single-engine, in VMC, 25 minutes from Kisumu, with 1,500 ft cloudbase. You declare MAYDAY. At the same time, another aircraft on the frequency declares PAN PAN for a passenger with suspected heart attack and requests priority landing at Kisumu. The controller acknowledges both and says '5Y-JKL, standby.' Your engine temperature is rising and you smell smoke. You are 3,000 ft above the water and have life jackets. The passenger emergency aircraft is 10 nm east of Kisumu.
1. Was MAYDAY the correct call? Give the distress message you would transmit, with the required elements.
Read the worked answer
Yes. An engine fire in flight is a grave and imminent danger requiring immediate assistance, so MAYDAY is correct. The distress call should contain the distress signal, station addressed, aircraft identification, nature of distress, intentions, position, level, and persons on board. A suitable transmission is: 'MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY, Kisumu Approach, 5Y-JKL, Piper PA-31, engine fire right engine, fire appears out but smoke and rising temperature, single-engine, 35 nm west of Kisumu at 9,500 ft, heading 090, 6 persons on board, request priority landing Kisumu.' If time permits, add fuel endurance and whether you have life jackets. Keep the message short and repeat the critical elements if ATC does not read them back. Do not use PAN PAN for an engine fire; PAN PAN is for urgency without immediate danger to life. The word MAYDAY gives you priority over all other traffic.
2. How should you respond to the controller's 'standby', and how should the two emergencies be prioritised?
Read the worked answer
'Standby' is not a clearance and does not remove your emergency. If smoke is increasing and the engine temperature is rising, you should not wait silently. Transmit again with the distress signal: 'MAYDAY, 5Y-JKL, request immediate priority, smoke increasing.' Distress has priority over urgency. The PAN PAN aircraft has a serious medical problem, but a passenger with a suspected heart attack is an urgency condition, while an aircraft with an engine fire and smoke is in immediate danger. ATC should handle your MAYDAY first, or at least give you a routing and landing clearance without delay, then assist the PAN PAN aircraft. You should not surrender your priority because another aircraft has also declared an emergency. If ATC is overloaded, ask another aircraft or the approach unit to relay. Keep your transmissions short and use the word MAYDAY until the immediate danger is over.
3. What phraseology would you use if the fire is confirmed out and you want to downgrade, and what should you tell ATC?
Read the worked answer
Do not downgrade prematurely. If the fire is confirmed out, the smoke has cleared, the engine temperature is stable and you are satisfied that the immediate danger has passed, you may cancel the distress. Use: 'Kisumu Approach, 5Y-JKL, cancel distress, fire out, smoke cleared, request PAN PAN, priority landing.' This tells ATC that the grave and imminent danger has been removed but that you still need priority because you are single-engine with a damaged engine. If the smoke returns or the temperature rises again, immediately re-declare MAYDAY. After landing, report the fire, the extinguisher discharge, the engine damage and the diversion to ATC and the operator. The key judgement is that downgrading from MAYDAY to PAN PAN is a pilot decision based on the actual condition of the aircraft, not on a wish to free the frequency.