Hi all,
quote
The channel doesn't concern me so much due to the reasonably short distance
and the ships there are plenty to pick one up.
unquote
This and some similar postings on this issue have urged me to share one
important observation - not from flying (which is a relatively new field to
me) but from sailing a fair bit on yachts and large ships:
Do not count on anyone on a commercial vessel seeing you on "final approach"
or when actually hitting the water, unless you have been able to alert them
by a mayday call on MARINE VHF ch. 16.
Sure, there is a duty officer (supposedly) and a helmsman on the bridge, but
they are not scanning the sky, and scanning the horizon is infrequent unless
there is crossing traffic. Even at daytime, radar is mainly used to detect
and track surrounding traffic. On modern cargo ships, the helmsman's
position is fairly far back in the wheelhouse, and the same goes for the
comfortable chair used by the duty officer. The angle of the sky above the
horizon seen from these positions is very small. A small airplane coming in
to ditch has a very small chance of being seen, both because of the short
time it is in the crews' possible field of vision and because only one, at
most two will be looking out at all, and maybe none of them in the direction
you are coming down during those few seconds you can be seen through the
windows. On a sea with any amount of white-caps, the ditching will probably
not be seen at all, unless very close and if someone happens to be looking
at that particular spot.
I do not have the numbers readily available, but it takes a fair distance to
stop and turn a ship, if anyone indeed did see you ditching. If he does not
keep his eyes on you CONSTANTLY, the chance of finding you again when the
wind is blowing 15-20 knots or more is very, very slim, unless fairly large
pieces of the airplane still floats around you, or unless you are in an
inflated raft (orange colour). If you have a choice, circle and ditch close
to a fishing vessel, not to a commercial vessel under way. There may be
fishermen out on the deck and they can stop much faster and maneouver right
up to you.
Therefore, when I do finish my Europa and fullfill my dream of attenting one
of the fly-ins in England, I will probably wear either a light survival suit
or a wet suit (much better than normal clothes if getting into cold water
and not as uncomfortable in a warm cockpit as a survival suit will be), and
carry onboard a hand-held MARINE VHF radio to alert any ships in the
vicinity, after having transmitted the aeronautical mayday message. In my
jacket I will carry some of the stick-type light/smoke signals readily
available for sailors.
Regards,
Svein K. Johnsen
A225 (now in Norway)
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