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Marine RadioNovember 2, 2026

Marine Radio Distress Procedures - MAYDAY, PAN PAN, and SECURITE

When to use MAYDAY, PAN PAN and SECURITE on a marine VHF, exactly what to say for each, and how to cancel a distress alert you sent by mistake.

By Dragan Pecanac, aircraft maintenance technician and former USAF avionics technician

Three Words, Three Levels

Marine radio has three priority signals. Each one tells every station listening how serious your situation is before you've said anything else:

  • •MAYDAY: distress. Life or vessel in grave and imminent danger.
  • •PAN PAN: urgency. Serious, but nobody is about to die.
  • •SECURITE: safety. A warning other vessels should know about.

Pick the right one. A MAYDAY for a dead engine on a calm day pulls rescue crews away from people who need them, while a PAN PAN for a sinking boat costs you time.

MAYDAY: Distress

Use MAYDAY when there's grave and imminent danger to a vessel or a person, and you need help right now. For example:

  • •The boat is taking on water faster than you can pump it out
  • •There's a fire you can't control
  • •Someone is badly injured or ill and needs evacuating now
  • •Someone has gone overboard and you can't recover them

Sending a MAYDAY

If your radio has DSC, send a DSC distress alert first. Lift the cover on the red DISTRESS button and hold it down until the radio confirms. The alert gives the Coast Guard and nearby vessels your MMSI and, if the radio is connected to GPS, your position.

Then go to Channel 16 and make the voice call. Speak slowly and clearly:

MAYDAY call

MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY.

This is [vessel name], [vessel name], [vessel name], call sign or MMSI [number].

MAYDAY [vessel name].

My position is [latitude and longitude, or bearing and distance from a known landmark].

[What's wrong: "We are taking on water", "We have a fire aboard"].

[Help needed]. [Number of people aboard].

[Anything else useful: vessel length, color, type, life jackets on].

[Vessel name], OVER.

Saying MAYDAY and the vessel name three times gets them through even when reception is poor.

After the Call

Let go of the transmit button and listen. The Coast Guard or a nearby vessel should answer. If nobody does within a minute or two, repeat the call. Once someone answers, do what they tell you and stay on the channel they give you.

PAN PAN: Urgency

PAN PAN (said "pahn pahn") means the situation is urgent but not yet life-threatening. You need priority attention, not a rescue. For example:

  • •Engine failure, with the vessel drifting but in no immediate danger
  • •A crew member who is sick or hurt and needs medical advice or a transfer, but isn't critical
  • •Fouled steering, a lost rudder, or anything else that leaves you unable to maneuver safely

If things get worse, upgrade to a MAYDAY. There's no rule against it.

PAN PAN call (on Channel 16)

PAN PAN, PAN PAN, PAN PAN.

All stations, all stations, all stations.

This is [vessel name], [vessel name], [vessel name].

My position is [position].

[What's wrong and what help you need].

[Vessel name], OVER.

SECURITE: Safety

SECURITE (said "say-CURE-ee-tay") announces a navigational or weather hazard. It's information for others, not a call for help. For example:

  • •A floating hazard such as a log, a drifting container or an unlit buoy
  • •A large vessel about to enter a narrow channel or pass under a bridge
  • •A sudden, severe weather warning

Call on Channel 16, then move to a working channel for the details so that 16 stays clear:

SECURITE call

SECURITE, SECURITE, SECURITE.

All stations, all stations, all stations.

This is [vessel name]. For a navigational warning, switch to channel [working channel, e.g. 22A or 13].

(Then, on the working channel: the hazard, its position and any advice.)

[Vessel name], OUT.

Priority Order

Radio traffic is handled in this order:

  1. 1.
    Distress (MAYDAY)
  2. 2.
    Urgency (PAN PAN)
  3. 3.
    Safety (SECURITE)
  4. 4.
    Everything else

If you hear a MAYDAY, stop transmitting and listen. You may be the closest vessel.

Cancelling a False Distress Alert

It happens. Someone leans on the button, or a curious kid lifts the cover. The fix is to cancel it out loud, straight away. Don't just switch the radio off and hope.

Under FCC rules, you reset the radio, go to Channel 16, and broadcast a cancellation to all stations. Don't say MAYDAY, because this isn't a distress call:

Cancelling a false DSC alert

All stations, all stations, all stations.

This is [vessel name], call sign [call sign], MMSI [number].

Position [position].

Cancel my distress alert of [date and time, UTC].

[Vessel name], OUT.

If you can, call the nearest Coast Guard station as well to make sure they've received it. You won't get in trouble for an honest mistake you report straight away. A false alert left uncancelled can send a rescue crew out for nothing.

Keep a Watch on Channel 16

If your vessel has a VHF radio, keep it on Channel 16 whenever you're underway and not using it for other calls. Most distress calls are heard by nearby boats first, not by the Coast Guard.

Practice Before You Need It

You don't want to be working out what to say while you're scared and the boat is filling up. Before you go out, check four things:

  • •Your MMSI is programmed into the radio.
  • •The radio is connected to your GPS, so a DSC alert includes your position.
  • •Everyone aboard knows where the DISTRESS button is.
  • •There's a MAYDAY card, filled in with your vessel's details, taped next to the radio.

Distress procedures are a big part of the FCC Marine Radio Operator Permit exam. Hangar Academy's MROP course is free with an account and covers them in detail, with practice questions from the official pool.