ALT EXCURSION BY A B767-300 FLT CREW ON AN EXTENDED OVERWATER OP. CREW REALIZED AFTER THE DEV THAT THEIR ACTIONS AND STATEMENTS OF AN EMER WERE NOT IN KEEPING WITH ICAO PHRASEOLOGY WHILE ON FREQ WITH GANDER RADIO; CZQX; NF.

Narrative

WE ENCOUNTERED CONTINUOUS MODERATE; APCHING SEVERE; TURB. AFTER REPEATED UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS TO GET A CLRNC TO CLB; WE EXERCISED EMER AUTH; DECLARED AN EMER; AND CLBED WITHOUT A CLRNC TO FL370. I BELIEVED THE SAFETY OF THE ACFT WAS IN JEOPARDY. WE WERE; HOWEVER; IN CONTACT WITH GANDER AND MADE NUMEROUS RPTS ABOUT OUR POS ON HF. WE ALSO MADE RPTS ON 123.45 TO OTHER ACFT. WE WERE TOLD BY GANDER WE WERE THE ONLY ACFT ON NAT A; AND WE USED TCASII TO CONFIRM WE WERE CLR OF OTHER ACFT. ALL PAX AND CREW WERE IN THEIR SEATS WITH SEATBELTS FASTENED. NO INJURIES OR DAMAGE TO THE ACFT WERE RPTED. FL370 SMOOTHED OUT AND WE WERE FINALLY ABLE TO BE RECLRED AT FL370. THE ENTIRE EVENT LASTED AROUND 20 MINS. IT WASN'T UNTIL AFTER THE INCIDENT AND THINGS SETTLED DOWN THAT I REALIZED WE DID NOT PROPERLY DECLARE THE EMER USING ICAO STANDARD RADIO PHRASEOLOGY. CONCERNED ABOUT THIS AFTER THE FACT; I CALLED GANDER USING AN AIR PHONE VIA DISPATCH. I DISCUSSED THE SIT WITH THE SHIFT MGR. HE WAS SYMPATHETIC; AND TOLD ME HE UNDERSTOOD OUR SIT. HE ADVISED ME HE WAS ADDING TO THE RECORD WE HAD DECLARED AN EMER. IN THE HEAT OF THE BATTLE; THIS WAS A MISTAKE WE MADE. I HAD MY HANDS FULL TRYING TO KEEP THE ACFT SAFE AND IN POSITIVE CTL. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 609915: FLT ENCOUNTERED CONTINUOUS LIGHT TO MODERATE TURB FROM W045; REQUESTED CLB TO FL370 TO EXIT TURB. GANDER FREQ WAS BUSY WITH POS RPTS. FO ACTING AS PIC AND PF EXERCISED EMER AUTH FOR SAFETY OF FLT IN ORDER TO EXIT CONTINUOUS MODERATE TURB AS HE FELT IT MAY BECOME SEVERE DUE TO ALT AND ALTDEVS BEING EXPERIENCED. CONTINUED TO ADVISE GANDER RADIO OF CLB ON HF. GANDER RADIO FINALLY ACKNOWLEDGED AND RELAYED ALT CHANGE TO ATC AND THEN RELAYED BACK A CLRNC TO CLB AND MAINTAIN FL370. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 609914: I RETURNED TO THE COCKPIT AFTER MY CREW BREAK AND WAS ADVISED BY THE FO THAT AN ATC FLT DEV HAD OCCURRED DUE TO MODERATE TO SEVERE TURB. HE ADVISED ME THAT A CLB FROM FL350 TO FL370 HAD TAKEN PLACE WITHOUT CLRNC FROM GANDER. DISPATCH WAS ADVISED OF THE TURB AND DEV.