Not sure but most ham HT's these days can tune to frequencies outside of ham bands. I've listened to Marine Ch 16 with mine, but clearly can't transmit. Wonder how he could have called the tanker or they saw him and passed not being able to slow to make the turn. Glad he was rescued.
I have heard so many times that CW is the mode to use during emergencies that I figured he must have used that.
I doubt that. Morse Code is an available mode to use in an emergency when nothing else is available or works. Modern high intensity flashlights can travel a long way in the dark at sea, in the deserts of AZ where you live, and many other places. Ham radio is far from required, just some basic code knowledge.....do YOU have any ?? ....I think not.
Have worked many different modes over the years mostly CW but where does it say CW is the preferred mode in an emergency ? You use what you have and what works for you .
Some reports imply that Aldi may have been alert enough to QSY his HT to different channels, and that perhaps instead of contacting the bridge directly, his shout for help was intercepted by a crew member (with another HT?) that happened to be on another channel that was being used for intra-ship or other comms. "But just after the Arpeggio passed him on Aug. 31, Aldi was able to dial his radio to a frequency the vessel was using. According to video posted by a crew member, Aldi's distress message — "Help Help Help" — reached the cargo ship's chief mate, Emmanuel Soriano, who informed the captain, Narciso Santillan — who ordered the ship to change course to carry out a rescue operation." Someone from the ORARI should contact him, publish all the rescue comms details, and encourage him to become a licensed radio amateur. He has shown the spirit.
Here's what I do know: That you have no idea of my knowledge or lack of knowledge of any subject, yet you choose to speculate anyway.
It is easy to speculate based upon your posting history on the subject. Some people make a lot of money by speculating and the stock market is just a part of it. I see you have not denied anything.
More info on Adilang's use of radio has surfaced in a recent interview: Aldi Novel Adilang, 18, picked up his walkie-talkie and radioed a message to his friends. “Phone the boss,” he told them over the crackly connection. “My anchor has snapped.” To cope with the isolation they would amuse each other by telling jokes and stories over their walkie-talkies. There was no phone signal, but on rompong less than five miles apart the radios worked. The first came a few weeks in when an Indonesian ship sailed by. Aldi managed to talk to the captain by walkie-talkie, who promised they would turn around and get him after finishing work for the day. They didn’t return. “When I saw the boat I was waving my towel at them in the air and over the radio I was saying ‘help, help’ because I knew that word in English,” Aldi said. “The ship had already passed by me, about one mile, but then they turned around and picked me up.”
Some kind of cheap solar still might be good for that situation. There are expensive ones for storing on life rafts that I would not be without if I was working on the ocean. There's a couple of different brands of this thing. Reviews are decent, and you can supposedly use it on land. But on land you can make one in a few minutes with a piece of clear plastic sheet, a cup or pot, and a piece of tubing, so you don't need one of these on land. https://www.amazon.com/Aquamate-Solar-Emergency-Purification-Inflatable/dp/B004TOAELS
