🔍 Key Concepts
• Digital Selective Calling (DSC) distress procedures on GMDSS equipment
• The meaning of "will always" vs. "must always" in multiple-choice wording
• Which radio services (VHF, MF, HF) use DSC distress frequencies and how equipment chooses them
💭 Think About
• Ask yourself: Is a DSC distress alert tied to only one specific channel, or can it use different frequencies depending on the equipment and sea area?
• Consider whether the question is about the operator’s obligation (what you must do) or about how the DSC system is designed to operate automatically (what will always happen).
• Think about whether MF/HF sets send on a fixed combination of frequencies, or whether they can send on one or more appropriate distress frequencies.
✅ Before You Answer
• Verify which dedicated channel is used for VHF DSC distress alerts (channel number and band).
• Verify that DSC distress alerts on MF/HF are defined in terms of specific DSC distress frequencies, not in terms of a fixed sequence you must manually follow.
• Check the wording difference between options that refer to a single mandatory channel versus those that refer to one or more DSC distress frequencies, and which best matches the GMDSS DSC design.