Can I get a clear definition of "Pan-Pan", who and when may it be declared.

I have hard the USCG declare "Pan-Pan", followed by a requirement that all
none "Pan-Pan" traffic on channel 16 traffic be suspended.

Can an individual boat declare "Pan-Pan", say when a crew member is lost
overboard, etc??

I fairly sure I understand when I could send a "May Day" but, to me, Pan Pan
is something more recent and I must have missed out on earlier definition..

Thanks

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

It is used to signal urgent information, such as when
someone has fallen overboard, or a boat is drifting into the
shore or a busy shipping channel.

An individual boat can definitely declare it. In other
words, it is not reserved only for USCG use.

MAYDAY is only to be used when a person, or boat is
threatened by grave or imminent danger, and requires assistance.

In the end, of course, it is the skipper's judgment whether
a situation is "grave" or "danger" is "imminent". My
understanding is that PAN conveys information whereas MAYDAY
requests assistance. Crew overboard could fall into either
category.

Chuck








Steve wrote:
Can I get a clear definition of "Pan-Pan", who and when may it be declared.

I have hard the USCG declare "Pan-Pan", followed by a requirement that all
none "Pan-Pan" traffic on channel 16 traffic be suspended.

Can an individual boat declare "Pan-Pan", say when a crew member is lost
overboard, etc??

I fairly sure I understand when I could send a "May Day" but, to me, Pan Pan
is something more recent and I must have missed out on earlier definition..

Thanks

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

In article , chuck
wrote:

It is used to signal urgent information, such as when
someone has fallen overboard, or a boat is drifting into the
shore or a busy shipping channel.

An individual boat can definitely declare it. In other
words, it is not reserved only for USCG use.

MAYDAY is only to be used when a person, or boat is
threatened by grave or imminent danger, and requires assistance.

In the end, of course, it is the skipper's judgment whether
a situation is "grave" or "danger" is "imminent". My
understanding is that PAN conveys information whereas MAYDAY
requests assistance. Crew overboard could fall into either
category.

Chuck

Nice explanation Chuck.

I would add just a few thoughts to the above.

First: Radio Prodceedures are covered extensivly in 48CFR80 starting at
80.311. Only the Master, of a US Flagged vessel, or the person
responcible for the vessels Radio Station, (Radio Officer) may
authorize the transmission of a Distress Signal, or Urgency
signal. (Mayday, Pan Pan)
Second: Urgency Siganls differ from Distress Signals in that Urgency
Siganls are messages that carry Distress Information that are
about another Station, and NOT the Transmitting Station. That
is why USCG use the "Pan Pan" Urgency Signal preceeding any
message that concerns a "Reported ship in Distress", and it
means that the information passed is in regard to a MayDay
Call received and reported. This is opposed to a MayDay Relay
Signal which is sent by a vessel that is relaying an initial
Mayday Signal for a Distressed Vessel, that may not have been
received and a Acknowledged by the appropriate Agency. (USCG
for US Waters)
Third: The Silence Signal (Seelonce Mayday) is used by the sender
of the Distress Signal, to initiate a Quiet Frequency for
the purpose of passing Distress Traffic. It may apply to
individual Stations, OR All Stations. The Distressed
Station MAY deligate control of the Frequency to another
Station at its discression. It is resinded by sending the
Silence End Signal. (Seelonce Feeenee, or Pru-donce)
Fourth: Order of Priority is:
1. Mayday (Distress Signal)
2. Pan Pan (Urgency Signal)
3. Sellonce Mayday (Silence Signal)
4. Securite (Security Signal)
5. all other traffic


Bruce in alaska wondering if this is going to start another jackieboy
rant.......
--
add a 2 before @

Silly me? I always thought a pan-pan was a high speed water taxi in
Mexico, esp. Puerto Vallarta. Oh well.

"Steve" wrote in message
...
Can I get a clear definition of "Pan-Pan", who and when may it be
declared.

I have hard the USCG declare "Pan-Pan", followed by a requirement that all
none "Pan-Pan" traffic on channel 16 traffic be suspended.

True. Pan-Pan (pronounced Pon-Pon) is a non-life threatening emergency.

Can an individual boat declare "Pan-Pan", say when a crew member is lost
overboard, etc??

Any vessel can call Pan-Pan. A crew member lost overboard would be a MAYDAY
however.

I fairly sure I understand when I could send a "May Day" but, to me, Pan
Pan is something more recent and I must have missed out on earlier
definition..

Thanks

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

Some examples may help from my own experience with my 33 ft sailboat..
Once I was in the shipping channel very close to Golden Gate bridge.
Suddenly my ruddeer breaks off and i am without steering. My boat
cannot be steered without the rudder. There is a lot of current and
also some very heavy container and ther large ships. Even though the
boat was not sinking, I felt my life was in imminent grave danger from
the rocks and possible being hit by a big boat which have no room for
maneuver. I called Mayday and the coast guard obviously agreed with my
judgement. They came out and towed me to a small yacht harbor. At this
point the emergency was over and they left after giving my vessel a
safety inspection.

If I would have been some other place where there is no shipping
traffic and no rocks, this would have been a call to a towing service,
which is neither Pan, nor an urgency call. Running out of gasoline is
not normally a Mayday ( no people in imminent danger ) nor a Pan, nor
an urgency call. It is simply a telephone call to atowing service to
bring gasoline or tow to a pump. The coast guard will not respond in
this case.

In San Francisco Bay we get a lot of securitee calls from the coast
guard, which advises people of floating logs in the water.




Doug Dotson wrote:
"Steve" wrote in message
...
Can I get a clear definition of "Pan-Pan", who and when may it be
declared.

I have hard the USCG declare "Pan-Pan", followed by a requirement
that all
none "Pan-Pan" traffic on channel 16 traffic be suspended.

True. Pan-Pan (pronounced Pon-Pon) is a non-life threatening
emergency.

Can an individual boat declare "Pan-Pan", say when a crew member is
lost
overboard, etc??

Any vessel can call Pan-Pan. A crew member lost overboard would be a
MAYDAY
however.

I fairly sure I understand when I could send a "May Day" but, to
me, Pan
Pan is something more recent and I must have missed out on earlier
definition..

Thanks

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

Last year there was another discussion of Mayday and PanPan calls on
this news group. Someone asked where the words came from. A
knowledgeable poster answered that when the words were chosen French
was the international language just as English is now. Mayday is
simply the anglicized version of the French for "help me." This
naturally led to the question of what PanPan meant. Before the
knowledgable poster could answer, a comic answered that "pan" was
French for "bread" and the French were so serious about their bread
that it was the equivalent to a cry for help. :-) Actually the
French word for bread is very close to "pan." But the correct meaning
of the word is equivalent to our "breakdown." So by using PanPan you
are technically stating that you have a breakdown and need assistance
but it is not life-theatening yet. Such as a broken rudder without
the container ships bearing down on you.

Lee Huddleston
s/v Truelove

Lee Huddleston wrote:
But the correct meaning
of the word is equivalent to our "breakdown." So by using PanPan you
are technically stating that you have a breakdown and need assistance
but it is not life-theatening yet. Such as a broken rudder without
the container ships bearing down on you.
yes this is correct, when the French have a breakdown of some device
or another it is said "tomber en panne"

Lee Huddleston wrote:
But the correct meaning
of the word is equivalent to our "breakdown."

prodigal1 wrote:
yes this is correct, when the French have a breakdown of some device or
another it is said "tomber en panne"

Last time I was in France the phrase seemed to be "il ne marche pas" but
they all understood "no workie no more."

DSK

DSK wrote:
prodigal1 wrote:
yes this is correct, when the French have a breakdown of some
device or
another it is said "tomber en panne"

Last time I was in France the phrase seemed to be "il ne marche pas"
but
they all understood "no workie no more."

Well, it ain't "real" French; but growing up in New Orleans I always
heard "ne marche pas." I never heard "tomber en panne." Maybe it's
because Cajun French is kinda archaic and therefore from the same
period that we got all the radio calls, whereas "tomber en panne" is
contemporary? Just guessing here.

Frank