Radio procedure when no reponse (From avoiding big ships thread)

SimonFa said:
Being ex-Royal Signals its automatic for me to respond with "nothing heard, out" whenever I don't get a response.
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You and me both.
My next Tx would be to the CG for a radio check.

I have always found it very useful to call a ship on 16 and ask his intentions when AIS indicates that we will be 'very close', if he hasn't changed course within my comfort zone!
I've never failed to get a response, possibly because 16 is monitored and the ships captain would have a lot to answer for if an 'incident' took place.
 
I have often heard the CG using the "nothing heard" phrase when they have been calling someone and had no response. They usually call about 3 times over a period of 5-10 minutes before saying it. That presumably allows for a single person to finish whatever he may be doing away from the VHF.
 
A1Sailor said:
I've always thought "Nothing heard - out" with or without "listening channel xyz" was standard practice. Silly me. :p

.....
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Never heard it from a professional.
Never seen it in a respectable book or document from any of the authorities.
Does no seem to be common practice in the English channel.
 
lw395 said:
Never heard it from a professional.
Never seen it in a respectable book or document from any of the authorities.
Does no seem to be common practice in the English channel.
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Though looking sensible, FWIW this "Nothing heard, out" expression does not appear anywhere on the IMO SMCP "Standard Marine Communication Phrases" document.
 
A1Sailor said:
Mmm. I wonder where HMCG get it from.
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I don't recall hearing it from HMCG.
I must admit I don't often listen continuously on 16 lately.
I can see the point of it when you have tried calling several times over ten minutes or whatever, as distinct to a first response to not getting an instant reply.
 
I guess it serves as an invitation to a third party to relay the conversation.
I appreciate life is a little different down here compared to the wilds of the East Coast or Scotland, most of the area covered by my nearest CG aerial has 3G coverage..
 
LadyInBed said:
I don't have DSC and as said above I have never had a problem contacting a ship by name.
Point to note: AIS shows a ships MMSI long before its name is shown (well that's what mine does).
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It's surprising how many large ships you see that are called "No Smoking"...
 
Now you lot have got me racking my memory. I use "nothing heard - out" after calling a couple of times and getting no response and have done for years. Where did I get it from? I can't find the RYA VHF SRC handbook that I got with the course all those years ago. It seems much too common (and sensible) to be an ad hoc creation.
 
Roberto said:
Though looking sensible, FWIW this "Nothing heard, out" expression does not appear anywhere on the IMO SMCP "Standard Marine Communication Phrases" document.
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So it could well be a military procedure that has infiltrated!
But it is still useful, as anyone else listening who had heard both ends of a transmission could offer to relay.
 
lw395 said:
Never heard it from a professional.
Never seen it in a respectable book or document from any of the authorities.
Does no seem to be common practice in the English channel.
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And 'Twerking' wasn't in the Oxford Dictionary last year either... :rolleyes:
 
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