Used for declaring emergencies, the term is said three times 'Mayday Mayday Mayday' signifies 'grave and imminent danger,' and comes from the French M'aidez meaning 'help me ' Mayday is the voice term, SOS in used in writing or Morse See also Pan, SOS
1 A radio signal word used to denote a distress call 2 By extension, a distress call
An internationally recognized distress signal used on a radio to indicate a life threatening situation Mayday calls have priority over any other radio transmission and should only be used if there is an immediate threat to life or vessel Mayday comes from the French "M'aidez" which means "help me " For urgent situations that are not immediately life threatening there is the PAN PAN identifier Less urgent messages such as navigational hazards should send a SECURITE message