Is Signaling For Help a Good Idea?

In some instances I suppose signaling for help could probably be helpful.

Question though is how can one be 100% certain that whoever will come looking for them is "a friend?"

What are you thoughts on signaling for help in a survival situation?

 

Supposing an aircraft you are traveling in crashes in some place you don't know but most of the passengers survive and you can't tell whether if the natives might be hostile or helpful, would it still be wise to signal for help?

 

In that scenario, I would be cautious of signaling for help. Until you know whether or not the natives of hostile or not, I would remain silent, so as to not give away my position.

 

Depends on the place, but really, in vast majority of the world the "natives" will assist survivors of a plane crash. Besides, unless your plane crashed in the middle of Syrian civil war, the biggest danger is that people won't have an idea about first aid, not that they will attack yopu.

 

If the situation is a natural calamity like a typhoon or earthquake, I don't think there is an issue for signaling for help. For an accident in an alien place, I would still go for the signal for help unless the place is known for headhunters or cannibals. Even in the Amazon jungle, the natives there are kind of peaceful. There were instances that they assisted in the rescue of plane crash incidents.

However, in times of war, be it war with another nation or worse, a civil war, I don't think a signal for help is practical. Especially when you are hiding from the enemy, making a signal may only make the situation worse. This reminds me of my mother-in-law's story. During the second world war when the Japanese soldiers invaded Manila, they left their home and evacuated in the southern province of Laguna. They lived a somewhat peaceful life until the Japanese soldiers extended their invasion in the said province. So in a case like that, it would be suicidal to make that signal for help.

 

This depends greatly on the situation and setting. If you are involved in an accident in a safe place then you should for sure signal for help. However, if you are in a strange place, it is important to be very cautious when signaling for help, or even drawing attention to yourself. This is why if it is possible, you should carry a gun with you. If someone is critically injured and the option is to signal for help or death, signalling for help maybe the best choice. Of course, ideally, you'll have a gun in case the helpers have different intentions.