subject: Radiotelephoney For Inexperienced Pilots [print this page] For those of us who are training to become pilots, 1 of the most scary things we have to learn to do is talk on the radio. Many students will find this pretty difficult when they start their training. The transmissions are of low caliber and the language used was very complex to understand at first. For this reason, most aviation schools now offer aviation radiotelephony for pilots. Students training towards a pilot's licence will find a radiotelephony course very helpful.
Joint Aviation Regulations (JAR) expect all European pilots to have a certain level of proficiency in radiotelephony. All pilots must accomplish a pass in English Language Proficiency. Completing a radiotelephony course is the best way for new pilots to pass the test.
Pilots all over the world use the same language to avoid confusion in the air. This language is English. To avert confusion and misunderstanding among pilots whose 1st language is not English, standard words and phrases are used. Due to the standaisation of the words and phrases, pilots can time and again know exactly what a comptroller will say during a flight.
English Language tuition will be essential for anyone who does not speak English wanting to learn to fly. A great part of the English Language Proficiency check is testing whether the applicant can comprehand the English Language. The examiner will also test your perception of the language by engaging you in common conversation. He/she will possibly ask you to explain what you see in a picture so you need to have sufficient vocabulary to be able to do this. A minimal of level 4 is necessary to enable you to become a pilot.
To begin with, talking on the radio is complex and understanding what is being said on the wireless is hard but this becomes much easier with just a little practice.
Before pilots ever verbalize on the radio, they will have practiced the conversation in their mind so that they know what they are going to say. It is important to not use the radio longer than is necessary and with this in mind, it is consequently vital to rehearse what you are going to say. Time spent transmitting on the wireless should not be abused. If we spend too long making our transmissions, then other pilots might not be able to get their wireless calls through to air traffic control.
Just about all of the radio calls that are made during a flight can be practiced on the ground before flight. As part of a pilot's planning, it ought be noted when wireless calls will be necessary and where they will be mandatory. It is much better if we have rehearsed all of this before flight rather than trying to figure it all out during the flight. So as you can see, reasonable flight planning involves you working out when and where you are going to make your calls, who you are going to speak to and what you are going to say. Once you have this figured out before the flight, the flight becomes much more pleasurable and easier. The further planning we can do on the ground, the less planning you have to do in the air and the flight becomes lots more pleasant.
