Distress, Urgency & Communications FailureRadio Telephony — DGCA CPL practice questions

Question 1 of 18

The distress signal is:

A.PAN-PAN ×3

B.MAYDAY ×3

C.SECURITE ×3

D.SOS ×3

All 18 questions — Distress, Urgency & Communications Failure

Radio Telephony · DGCA CPL. The correct option is marked on each.

Q1. The distress signal is:
- A.PAN-PAN ×3
- B.MAYDAY ×3✓
- C.SECURITE ×3
- D.SOS ×3
Why: MAYDAY spoken three times signals distress.
Q2. Distress is a condition of:
- A.Minor inconvenience
- B.Grave and imminent danger requiring immediate assistance✓
- C.A passenger query
- D.A frequency change
Why: Distress = grave and imminent danger needing immediate help.
Q3. The urgency signal is:
- A.MAYDAY ×3
- B.PAN-PAN ×3✓
- C.SEELONCE
- D.7700
Why: PAN-PAN three times signals urgency.
Q4. A distress call has priority:
- A.Only over VFR traffic
- B.Absolute, over all other transmissions✓
- C.Equal to urgency
- D.After area control
Why: bsolute, over all other transmissions. Distress has absolute priority over everything; urgency over all except distress.
Q5. The transponder code for a general emergency is:
- A.7500
- B.7600
- C.7700✓
- D.7000
Why: 7700 emergency; 7600 radio failure; 7500 hijack.
Q6. If not already in contact, a distress call is made on:
- A.123.45 MHz
- B.121.5 MHz✓
- C.243.0 MHz
- D.2182 kHz
Why: 121.5 MHz is the international VHF emergency frequency.
Q7. The three things ATC most needs in a distress message are:
- A.Fuel, weather, route
- B.Nature of emergency, intentions, position✓
- C.Squawk, frequency, call sign
- D.Wind, QNH, runway
Why: Nature, intentions and position — with call sign and any extra info as time allows.
Q8. To impose radio silence for a distress, the phrase is:
- A."DISREGARD"
- B."STOP TRANSMITTING, MAYDAY" / "SEELONCE MAYDAY"✓
- C."STANDBY"
- D."SEELONCE FEENEE"
Why: SEELONCE MAYDAY (or "stop transmitting, mayday") imposes silence.
Q9. Radio silence is lifted with:
- A."SEELONCE MAYDAY"
- B."DISTRESS TRAFFIC ENDED, SEELONCE FEENEE"✓
- C."PAN-PAN"
- D."ROGER"
Why: SEELONCE FEENEE (silence finished) ends the silence.
Q10. A passenger taken seriously ill, not yet life-threatening to the aircraft, is a:
- A.Distress (MAYDAY)
- B.Urgency (PAN-PAN)✓
- C.Routine call
- D.Radio failure
Why: A safety concern not requiring immediate assistance is an urgency (PAN-PAN); escalate to MAYDAY if it worsens.
Q11. An emergency descent is most often caused by:
- A.Engine fire
- B.Pressurisation failure✓
- C.A blocked pitot
- D.A radio failure
Why: Loss of pressurisation demands a rapid descent to a breathable level.
Q12. On an emergency descent, ATC broadcasts to other traffic:
- A."SEELONCE FEENEE"
- B."ATTENTION ALL AIRCRAFT … emergency descent in progress"✓
- C."Squawk 7600"
- D."Resume own navigation"
Why: The all-stations broadcast warns and clears traffic below the descending aircraft.
Q13. On a complete communications failure, the pilot squawks:
- A.7500
- B.7600✓
- C.7700
- D.2000
Why: 7600 indicates a radio/communications failure.
Q14. If you can still receive but not transmit, you should:
- A.Land immediately anywhere
- B.Comply with instructions heard and acknowledge by transponder/turns✓
- C.Switch off the transponder
- D.Ignore ATC
Why: omply with instructions heard and acknowledge by transponder/turns. A transmitter-only failure still lets you follow ATC and acknowledge by ident/turns.
Q15. A steady green light to an aircraft in flight means:
- A.Stop
- B.Cleared to land✓
- C.Do not land
- D.Return for landing
Why: leared to land. Steady green in flight = cleared to land; on the ground = cleared for take-off.
Q16. Red flashes to an aircraft in flight mean:
- A.Cleared to land
- B.Aerodrome unsafe — do not land✓
- C.Cleared to taxi
- D.Give way
Why: erodrome unsafe — do not land. Red flashes in flight warn that the aerodrome is unsafe — do not land.
Q17. Transmitting your intentions with no expectation of acknowledgement is prefixed:
- A."PAN-PAN"
- B."Transmitting blind"✓
- C."SEELONCE"
- D."Standby"
Why: "Transmitting blind" tells anyone listening you cannot receive a reply.
Q18. After a communications failure, an IFR aircraft should generally:
- A.Descend immediately to the ground
- B.Continue in accordance with the last clearance / flight plan and complete the flight✓
- C.Orbit until fuel runs low
- D.Squawk 7500
Why: ontinue in accordance with the last clearance / flight plan and complete the flight. Continue per the last acknowledged clearance and flight plan, using light signals to land.