Language and communication in aviation

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 470.

Conclusions

Economic impacts

Social impacts

Professional impacts

Impact on safety

Requirements

Specific features of the use of language in aviation and the ICAO language

Regulating to improve safety in aviation

Language and communication in aviation

Background

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Social, safety and economic impacts of global language testing in aviation

Philip Shawcross

A Chinese pilot flying from Beijing to Paris may cross ten national boundaries and speak to more than two dozen air traffic controllers, each with a different first-language background, speaking different regional varieties of English at varying levels of proficiency. According to international regulations, while pilots may use the language of the country they are flying over, pilots and controllers must be able to communicate in the common language of aviation: English.

Safe flights depend on successful pilot and controller communications. In fact, between 1970 and 1995, accident investigators determined that more than 1,500 passengers and flight crew lost their lives in accidents in which inadequate English language proficiency on the part of controllers and or pilots had been a contributing factor.

In 1996, a mid-air collision over India resulted in the loss of 312 lives. In this accident, as in others previously, the investigation showed that inadequate spoken English had been a contributing factor.

Most pilot-controller communications employ what is called 'standard ICAO phraseology', i.e. internationally recognized formulaic expressions which are used unfailingly to address routine and foreseeable abnormal situations. Examples of standard phraseology are:

'Cleared for ILS approach Runway 1-3 Right.'

'Start-up approved.'

'Request holding instructions.'

'Leaving Level 3-1-0 for Level 3-5-0.'

'Report leaving Flight Level 3-5-0.'

However, in many non-routine, abnormal or emergency operational situations such as system failures, passenger illness, deviated flights, bad weather conditions, obstacles on the runway, threatening passenger behaviour, running short of fuel, delays, bomb scares etc. standard phraseology is not enough for effective and unambiguous communication. Pilots and controllers must then revert to what is called 'plain' or 'common' language to manage situations. This may include utterances such as:

'The cabin crew have reported three passengers concussed, possibly with broken ribs.'

'We have ordered an ambulance to be standing by at the gate.'

'There seems to be a fuel spillage on Taxiway November.'

'Two passengers are missing and we have had to unload their baggage.'

'We heard a loud thud just after take-off and suspect a bird strike. There was a flock of gulls near the runway threshold.'