WHY ATC COMMUNICATION PRACTICE MATTERS
ATC communication practice can help you when you fly because it allows you to study that by itself. This means you can make as many mistakes as you'd like while practicing and ask questions too.
Let's look at how you can become a better aviator by practicing air traffic control communication with your instructor.
Improves Aviation-Specific
English Skills
There are many ways that you can benefit from ATC communication practice. They include
- getting used to aviation English
- learning standard phraseology
- improve listening and comprehension
- take aside an important part of piloting in a controlled setting
- builds confidence
- and much more
Let's go into how you can benefit from all of this.
Aviation English has a unique
vocabulary and structure
To become a commercial pilot you must also speak like one. This means learning the vocabulary that is used in an air traffic control environment.
You will notice that many phrases like "ready to taxi" or "cleared to line up and wait" used in aviation are not used often in other settings.
internalize standard phraseology
Practicing ATC communication helps students learn and internalize standard phraseology, reducing the need to translate from their native language.
Builds Listening and Comprehension
It is a challenge to comprehend what ATC says sometimes. This can be because of the accent. This can also be because the instructors or information is so unexpected that we are lost as to what is being said.
For example you are downwind getting ready to turn base. Suddenly the air traffic controller tells you that a flock of birds has been reported and that you must widen your downwind leg.
Flock of birds? Widen the downwind leg? If you are having difficulties with the English and not familiar with these words then you will not comprehend them.
This is why it is better to have ATC communication practice so that new terms like this will not catch you off guard.
Real-world ATC transmissions can be fast, with background noise and varied accents
Did you know that there is now ICAO standard for the English accent? If you speak with an Australian controller or an Indian controller you will be listening to two different versions of English.
To help you mitigate that it is good to have atc communication practice to prepare you for these difficulties.
Regular exposure trains students to understand quickly and accurately, especially under pressure
Speaking in pilot phraseology is a skill. Like any skill it requires practice. The more your practice the better you will be. This will then make you able to speak ATC English without having to think about it.
When under pressure as a pilot in an ATC environment the more you have practiced the better you will be. For more on ATC radio communications click on the link.
Enhances Speaking Fluency
and Confidence
One thing that a pilot needs is confidence. If you are confident in your ATC communication that it will increase or maintain your confidence in your flying.
What's more - being fluent will make your job speaking to air traffic controllers a lot easier. Yes there is no actual ICAO English accent but speaking fluently will help others understand you.
Even better - grab this ATC communication script and you'll be on your way,
get used to speaking clearly and concisely
As you do ATC communication practice with others they will point out the difficulties they have with listening to you. This alone will help you improve your English because you will catch the bad habits early and can adjust.
Frequent repetition of
standard phrases builds automaticity
The more you practice something the more it becomes something you say normally. When you are in an ATC practice environment you can repeat ICAO phrases which helps you get better.
This takes the work from your brain so that you can do this next thing.
Promotes Situational Awareness
The more you put into your automatic brain the easier it is to have situational awareness. This can help you understand more about what is happening in a real ATC environment.
ATC communication also often contains clues about what’s happening around the aircraft such as other traffic nearby and what the weather might be nearby.
Practicing with real or simulated traffic helps students anticipate instructions and react correctly. The more you understand the language the better you can interact with your instructor too.
More than just allowing you to understand what is happening you also get to avoid misunderstandings. That's why even an ATC communication script.
Reduces Miscommunication Risks
Misunderstandings in aviation can lead to safety issues. One of the biggest reasons for aircraft incidents is miscommunication. This can happen either inside or outside the aircraft.
Approximately 70% of accidents and 10% of incidents are due to miscommunication. So what does that mean? Being aware of the dangers of miscommunication can do more than just make you a better pilot...it can keep you alive!
let's do some atc communication practice
ATC communication practice will help you become a better pilot as we have seen. Sign up for my free 30 minute consultation and we will look at how you can improve your communication easily.