Quote:
Originally Posted by al_typeR
Shine shoes to answer your questions in order 96% of the DSC distress calls received are from vessels not in any trouble other than finger trouble.
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Is there published data supporting this or is that just 'gut feel'? Does the MCA have a policy of following up on these calls (or inviting Ofcom to)? Are the numbers consistently high or was this a peak when people rush out to but DSC for the first time?
It is virtually impossible for someone to accidentally send a DSC Distress call without trying. If you've done no training, never opened the manual and never read a magazine article on DSC then I guess you might wonder what the red button does - but are there really that many people who have NO idea how a basic piece of equipment works?
To be clear to accidentally send a DSC Distress Alert you need to:
- lift or slide a red cover specifically designed to protect the button from accidental finger fumbles / bumps etc.
- hold down the button underneath for at least 3 seconds. Its not something you can do without trying. Its not something you could realistically do during a safety briefing.
- most (all?) radios seem to have audible and visual alerts during this process.
- most (all?) radios seem to either need an even longer press, or a second press of the button to send an undesignated distress - otherwise you are still on the screen selecting the type.
Will a message be sent if it has no MMSI number in it? If not then it becomes even less believable that someone managed to get an MMSI programmed in and failed to follow what would happen if they did the steps above.