The FAA hasn't done a very good job of making it easy for pilots and controllers to say "I've got a problem here and I need some help right now."Some pilots are under the mistaken impression that controllers are cops, just waiting to violate them for the slightest transgression of the FARs. And even if no FARs are busted, you can be certain that an air carrier pilot who declares an emergency will be explaining why he did so to (at least) his company. Therefore, pilots often keep quiet about problems when they shouldn't or play word games with controllers, to avoid the "E- word".
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/flight-safety/a-controllers-view-of-emergencies