Strange Transmissions

Ian M · 16 July 2013, 18:49

Out yesterday, and received some very strange VHF messages, in French, from France! I even got DSC alerts

Talking to a colleague who is into such things, he says that it is a phenomenon called VHF lift, analagous to diffraction in the atmosphere, brought about by the current high pressure we are experiencing.
Later in the day I was anchored and heard a mayday, which should really have been a pan pan; looked up and it was from a yacht not 50 metres away! Seems a member of the crew had been injured.
Two extremes, isn't technology wonderful

What is the greatest extreme range VHF transmission that you have received?

ShinyShoe · 16 July 2013, 19:06

You dont say where you are!
You can sometimes hear french in the solent.

Quote:

heard a mayday, which should really have been a pan pan;

Oh lord! Why did you unleash that can of worms! Someone will be along to point out its the skippers job to determine if life is in grave or imminent danger...

Did you offer assistance?

martini · 16 July 2013, 19:22

We get Portland, Brixham and Solent quite regularly in the Channel Islands

Ian M · 16 July 2013, 19:23

My normal cruising ground is the Solent, and that is where I was yesterday.
According to the skipper she had lost a finger, very, very nasty, but I still do not think it should have been a mayday.
And yes, I did offer assistance, but they wished to use the services of the orange RIB.

ashbypower · 17 July 2013, 10:42

Extreme Range VHF for me, has been the Space Station, when there was a radio Ham as a crew memeber.. As a Ham I "Booked" a slot and had a 8 Minute conversation.

Ian M · 17 July 2013, 11:05

Wow Brian, that is what I call comms

Back down to earth

What I was impressed with was the clarity of the French comms, they came through as clear as Solent CG.
What I was trying to see was if anyone in UK waters has received signals from other areas of mainland Europe; Spain, Portugal, Italy maybe?

m chappelow · 17 July 2013, 11:20

slightly different but remember years ago being told about lifeboat station somewhere that had a new radio set installed,
radio engineer set it all up & was working fine next day bad signal ,
transpired that the height of the tide was causing a reflection of the radio waves when the tide was out they had a great signal .

Cookee · 17 July 2013, 11:36

In the days of CB radio when it was AM I used to chat with truckers in the USA - doesn't beat the space station though! Works on a similar principle but involves bounce when the signal bounces of the atmosphere and the sea to reach the USA.

ashbypower · 17 July 2013, 11:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cookee

In the days of CB radio when it was AM I used to chat with truckers in the USA - doesn't beat the space station though! Works on a similar principle but involves bounce when the signal bounces of the atmosphere and the sea to reach the USA.

Used to do similar on 144mhz (2m) although we bounced off the Moon !! was really wierd with the delay but had some awesome comms...

Bern Hanreck · 17 July 2013, 13:56

Tony Hancock - Hancocks Half Hour, "The Radio Ham" - YouTube

@ almost two minutes............" Friends all over the world...........None in this country but.......friends all over world ".....

classic

miccheck1516 · 17 July 2013, 16:20

We have been hearing lots of french recently. Some norwegian too.

Plenty of canadians on MF too.

Bushrider · 17 July 2013, 16:44

Thats the most popular clip about the German coast guard

German Coast guard trainee - YouTube

Hightower · 18 July 2013, 23:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cookee

In the days of CB radio when it was AM I used to chat with truckers in the USA - doesn't beat the space station though! Works on a similar principle but involves bounce when the signal bounces of the atmosphere and the sea to reach the USA.

Used to do the same but on Usb and Lsb, had a great contact in Yugoslavia and we used to write to each other swapping postcards and local tourist brochures etc. When war broke out I never heard from him again

My furthest contact was Campinas in Brazil which I thought was quite a feat only using a 150w burner, but nothing like talking to someone in Space.

captnjack · 19 July 2013, 00:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ian M

According to the skipper she had lost a finger, very, very nasty, but I still do not think it should have been a mayday.

It wasn't your finger!

Ian M · 19 July 2013, 11:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by captnjack

It wasn't your finger!

For heavens sake, this thread is about RF propagation.
What the hell has my finger got to do with it

I paraphrase; mayday - imminent threat to life or vessel!!
And I did say according to the skipper.
As it was, having pulled up the anchor and offered help I decided that maybe I had had enough for the day. Went back into my home port (Lymington) passing the lifeboat on its way out. After some time I saw the lifeboat come back in and the casualty walk under her own steam from the lifeboat to a waiting ambulance that did not go screaming off but spent approximately half an hour with the casualty inside before sedately driving off.
Not a mayday.

Paul Cannell · 19 July 2013, 20:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by martini

We get Portland, Brixham and Solent quite regularly in the Channel Islands

Yes, have heard them from Alderney on a H/H from Harbour Lights terrace & Sailing Club.

captnjack · 19 July 2013, 22:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ian M

For heavens sake, this thread is about RF propagation.
What the hell has my finger got to do with it

I paraphrase; mayday - imminent threat to life or vessel!!
And I did say according to the skipper.
As it was, having pulled up the anchor and offered help I decided that maybe I had had enough for the day. Went back into my home port (Lymington) passing the lifeboat on its way out. After some time I saw the lifeboat come back in and the casualty walk under her own steam from the lifeboat to a waiting ambulance that did not go screaming off but spent approximately half an hour with the casualty inside before sedately driving off.
Not a mayday.

If your head hasn't exploded yet, there's no pan-pan for HAM radio operations... Regardless if its a cool moon bounce or not. If you need help its "mayday" - whether life threatening or not. Criticizing the 'offending' skipper for using mayday for a finger amputation which you happen to feel was merely a flesh wound is armchair radio operations at its worst. Tis but a scratch Monty Python Holy Grail - YouTube

miccheck1516 · 20 July 2013, 23:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ian M

For heavens sake, this thread is about RF propagation.
What the hell has my finger got to do with it

I paraphrase; mayday - imminent threat to life or vessel!!
And I did say according to the skipper.
As it was, having pulled up the anchor and offered help I decided that maybe I had had enough for the day. Went back into my home port (Lymington) passing the lifeboat on its way out. After some time I saw the lifeboat come back in and the casualty walk under her own steam from the lifeboat to a waiting ambulance that did not go screaming off but spent approximately half an hour with the casualty inside before sedately driving off.
Not a mayday.

It would have been about Propagation if you hadn't made a silly remark.

Im pretty sure that it's the vessel's master that decides wether the situation is one of distress(and therefore a mayday) or of Alert (and there fore Pan - Pan) the Coastguard may , after discussion with the master, request that the incident be downgraded, and 9 times out of ten they will agree with the CG, but the final decision is with the master. It's certainly not with some dude sat 50 metres away who had 'had enough' for the day. (if you were the radio expert you claim to be you'd know that hearing a mayday olbiges you to offer assistance if you reasonably can.)

Unless your a professional radio operater I don't know where you got your high horse. Even then if you are your opinion still suprises me.

Besides, all incidents are dynamic in that they can be assigned to any phase, be it Distress, Alert, or Uncertainty.

Poly · 20 July 2013, 23:47

Guys play nice!

Mick - Ian did say (twice) that he offered assistance.

Ian - you invited the discussion by suggesting you thought the other skipper made the wrong call; personally if it were my finger or anyone close to me - then I'd rather they were dealing with the emergency and getting help ASAP than worrying if it was serious enough to justify a Mayday.

miccheck1516 · 21 July 2013, 00:51

Yeah,

Quote:

As it was, having pulled up the anchor and offered help I decided that maybe I had had enough for the day.

was a little unclear or ambigious, wasn't sure if he pulled up the anchor and thought 'eff this I can't be bothered' or if the ones in bother efused their help, either way the tone didn't help...
Calling Mayday also imposes radio silence, something I imagine might be somewhat useful when in a bit of a flurry, but I should know better really, I did read something about the armchair police being on here earlier...