mayday

[US]/'meidei/
Frequency: Very High

Translation

n. distress signal or call for help issued by a ship or aircraft.
Word Forms
Pluralmaydays

Example Sentences

The pilot radioed a mayday signal before the plane crashed.

The ship sent out a mayday distress call when it started sinking.

The hiker used a mayday whistle to signal for help.

The mayday call was heard by the coast guard who immediately dispatched a rescue team.

A mayday situation requires quick and efficient response.

The pilot declared a mayday emergency due to engine failure.

The mayday signal was picked up by a passing ship.

The stranded sailors sent out a mayday call from their life raft.

A mayday situation demands immediate attention and action.

The lost hiker used a mirror to reflect sunlight and create a mayday signal.

Real-world Examples

Frederick Stanley Mockford created the mayday call signal in the nineteen twenties.

Source: VOA Special May 2014 Collection

A mayday call would also be made over the radio.

Source: Pure flight

We received a mayday call from Hannah Wells last night.

Source: Designated Survivor Season 1

But how did this Mayday Mayday mayday Come to mean this?

Source: The World From A to Z

Mayday, mayday. Come in, Star Command. Send reinforcements. Star Command, do you copy?

Source: Toy Story

Much of the air traffic at that time was between Croydon Airport and Le Bourget Airport near Paris, France. So he proposed the word mayday.

Source: VOA Special May 2014 Collection

The international distress call is actually French for help me mayday, but the word wasn't always the official call for help.

Source: The World From A to Z

As soon as that mayday message came in on the radio, the Coast Guard responded quickly knowing it was an urgent situation.

Source: The World From A to Z

Thinking back to that spring of 1970, I'm reminded of four Yale college students, who with others, played a pivotal role in the mayday events.

Source: Celebrity High School Opening Speech

The pilot gets on his radio and calls " mayday, mayday, mayday" to tell that his plane is in danger of crashing to the ground.

Source: VOA Special May 2014 Collection

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