Speak

PilotSPEAK
Three Pillars of Communication


Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Listen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Build a Mental Picture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Learn What to Expect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Learn From Other Pilots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Speak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
A.I.R. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Keep it Short . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Unclear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Emergency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Cooperate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Closing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

 Listen
Congratulations on your purchase of PilotSpeak! We
have realized through getting to know our followers
that many of you are in need of guidance for your
communications.
Listen

Speak
Well, here we are to assist you.

Through this short e-book we will build a great foundation

for the rest of your days as a pilot and aviator.
Speak
You Will learn hoW To:

Cooperate
Cooperate
Listen
Listen
One thing you may have heard your mother say to you
at some time is “Listen twice as much as you speak”. In
aviation there is no difference.

The motto here is “listen before you speak”. Speaking

is the easy part with radio calls. Listening, with all the
other things going on with your flight, is a different story
entirely.

By listening you can be informed.

A great radio call starts with a well-informed pilot.

We listen for many reasons, including:

Build a mental Picture

Learn What to Expect
Learn from Other Pilots

Let’s take these one-by-one and talk about each of them.

 Picture
Build a Mental Picture
One of the best ways to assist you with radio calls and
your communications with air traffic control (ATC) is to
simply listen and build a picture in your mind as to what
is going on.
If you know there is another aircraft in front of you, and
he asks the same question of ATC you were going to ask,
then there is no need for you to repeat the question.
Another example would be for an area without control.
This is, in fact, the most important time to listen and
build a picture of your surrounding environment. When
you are not under control and you are speaking on an
open frequency like CTAF (Common Traffic Advisory
Frequency), then it is up to you to avoid other aircraft
and not cut anyone off. In this case, there is no controller
to blame in this case. It is entirely up to you as the pilot-
in-command.
Even controllers make mistakes. Contrary to belief, they
are human. Even though you may be under ATC control,
you must always listen to know what is going on. When
in doubt, always speak up and ask. You, as the pilot, are
solely responsible for the lives of those on board and the
overall safety of flight. In some extreme cases that may
even mean not complying with a controller instruction; or
worse, breaking rules.
You are in a unique position in the sky. No one is sharing
your exact circumstances, your exact conditions or in the
same place as you in that moment. Therefore it is entirely
up to you to build this mental picture as to where you are,
what ATC needs from you, where other aircraft are, and
what you’re being asked to do vs. what you want to do.
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Learn What to Expect
From Controllers
Expect
Controllers are just like pilots in the sense that they all
have their own personality and requirements. Depending
on the area, controllers have different things they need
ATC is doing with other aircraft, they will more than likely
do the same thing for you.

Knowing what ATC needs in advance and being prepared

to comply with their request will go a long way in not only
and want. As a pilot,if you listen, you can become ATC’s promoting safety within your own aircraft, but also mak-
best friend and get what you want if you listen (most of ing the flow of air traffic much smoother and the life of
the time). the controller much easier.

One of the major things taught in flight schools is to sim- Controllers are not the enemy. They, too, have a stressful
ply ‘be ahead’ of the aircraft. This means: think ahead job. Learn to listen for their needs and you’ll make every-
and basically have things planned out BEFORE you get one’s lives easier.
there. I am a huge proponent of this ideal and I have
talked about it extensively in our other products, like the
PMDG 747 training.

Part of this ‘thinking ahead’ business means you must

listen to ATC talking to other aircraft. By knowing what

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Learn What to Expect
From Other Pilots
Expect
Now, controllers are not the only people you need to be
concerned with. When you are in an area without control
you essentially become the controller for other pilots. It
Although circumstances will arise when you are alone in
the area, we pilots still make radio calls. Even if it’s 3a.m.
on Christmas Day, make the appropriate radio calls.

becomes important to share your position and intentions

so other pilots know what you are doing, where you are,
and whether that is of concern or not. This cooperation
is essential.

Listening is perhaps the largest part of this particular

cooperation with other pilots. This way you can build a
picture in your mind as to what is going on in the area
and then act accordingly.

For example, if you are just getting into an area where you
are getting the weather, entering the traffic pattern and
preparing for your arrival, it’s important to listen to what
other pilots are doing. That way you won’t have to ask ‘what
runway is in use?’ or ‘traffic in the area; please advise?’

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Learn From Other Pilots Others
While enroute to your destination or even in your local
area you can learn a lot just by listening to other pilots.
Are they clear? Are they sharing all the info needed? Did
their call help you visualize where they are? Did they use
correct language? Were they professional?
on the radio will be determined by the good and the bad
things you hear over the airwaves. At times you will hear
pilots speaking too fast, making unnecessary radio calls,
making extended radio calls, and more.

LisTen anD learn WhaT NOT To Do.

All of These QuesTions CerTainly maTTer.
You can learn a lot from other pilots by simply listening
to what they are saying. A lot of these guys you hear on
radio frequencies are seasoned pilots with more flight
experience in their left pinky finger than you have in your
whole body. That is not to say their level of professionalism
cannot be achieved.
LisTen anD learn GooD habiTs.
Listening is an essential building block to becoming a
great communicator from the flight deck. It’ll serve you
in the beginning of your flying career and for the rest of
your flying career.
If you are at home and you don’t get to go flying that
much there are ways to learn how to not only listen, but
talk as well.

Now, it’s also possible to learn what NOT to do or say as a

pilot. Much of the character you build as a pilot speaking

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Others
Learn From Other Pilots
A pure listening source that you can gain a lot of
knowledge from is LiveATC.net. At LiveATC.net you can
listen to many real time audio streams of air traffic around
the world. Pick an area near you and it can be streaming
in seconds. This is great for learning the basics as well as
the advanced stuff.

A way to learn to listen and speak would be through

something like VATSIM.net for Flight Simulator. This
network of volunteer air traffic controllers and hobbyist
virtual pilots make for an ultra realistic flight environment
where it is perfectly safe to learn proper pilot lingo.

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speakSpeak
If you’re just starting out as a pilot, you’re going to be a
bit radio shy at first. It has or will happen to all of us. Most
of this fear or ‘mic fright’ as it has been called is due to a
simple lack of knowledge. If you don’t know what to say,
how can you say it in the first place?

This is why I wanted to share first how to learn by listening

and then, only then, are you ready to talk.

First, let’s get a few things straight.

One, You ARE GoinG To maKe misTaKes.

TWo, You ARE GoinG To sounD really sTupiD.

But it doesn’t matter. We have all been there, and all

pilots know that if there is a voice on the radio that is a
bit squeamish in their speak, to just let them work it out
and deal with it. Besides, even the pilots listening have
been there at some points.
speakSpeak
Going in with a knowledge of how pilots present
themselves on the radio is a great start, and you learn
that by listening. But until you yourself key the mic using
that push-to-talk button on the yoke, you will never truly
know what it is like to communicate, or how to do it
well.

Although listening will teach you a lot, you will learn

much faster once you are actually doing. It would be like
talking about flying and actually going flying. You can’t
really know how to control an aircraft unless you actually
control an aircraft.

If you start from nowhere, suck up your pride, and just

learn to laugh at your mistakes and continually improve,
you’ll be talking like a pro on the radio in no time.

The TruTh is ThaT praCTiCe maKes perfeCT.

 Speak
speak
A while back I was over-flying an area around the Grand
Canyon,with a Bonanza, on my way to Phoenix, Arizona.
Salt Lake Center switched me over to LA Center, as I was
now going into their airspace.
Your trails in the sky are not meant to be like a movie
script. There is no set dialogue between the Star Role of
the pilot and the supporting act by ATC.

In large part it is up to you to come up with your own

In a moment I got a big tongue twister when calling up
LA and said, ‘LA Center, Banana Three Four..... (Now half
laughing I tried again) LA Center, BONANZA Three Four
Three Zero Victor with you One Seven, Seventeen”
In the minutes following, my wife and I were just sitting
there chuckling at the thought of me checking in as a
Banana. Tell ya’ what... I really slipped on that peel!
character language while still using the correct terms and
structure that everyone can understand.
We’ve talked quite a bit about theory so now let’s talk
about specifics on how to speak.
The most basic of all radio calls can be broken down into
a very simple and relevant acronym:

We all maKe misTaKes.

In your flying career, the more relaxed you are about

speaking on the radio the better. Making radio calls is
meant to be a communication and not some perfect little
script where everyone says exactly what they have to say,
and not a word out of place.
Speak
A.I.R.
Address: Address the area you are flying in or the
controller you are speaking to.
Ident: Identify yourself by aircraft number or flight number.
Radio Call: Your reason for calling in the first place.

Here are a few examples.

Chicago Center, Bonanza 3-4-3-0-Victor with you Six

Thousand.

Logan Area Traffic, Bonanza 3-4-3-0-Victor taking runway

Three Five, North Departure.

Very simple. Let’s move on.

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 Short
Keep it Short
This is something I have really been trying to work on. Often
times we as pilots like to add in words that are unnecessary
to get your point across such as words like ‘we, it, I, us, and’.
Let’s take a radio call you’ll hear often and break it down into
something a bit more simple.
Long- “Salt Lake Center, Citation 54Kilo would like to climb
to 5000 if at all possible”
Short- “Salt Lake Center, Citation 54Kilo request 5000”
Ahhhh, yes. Much shorter. I don’t want to spend too long
harping on this because I believe it just makes sense not to
get all chatty on the radio. The VHF frequency or frequencies
are no place for conversation. It’s a place for direction.
Now, with that said, there are instances where I do believe
it’s a bit harsh just to leave it short, and at times it is
unnecessary.
An instance where I would make it a bit more ‘friendly’
sounding is if I wanted to kiss some butt of a controller who
I felt forgot about me. Rather than having a radio call that
sounds like, ‘Hey, jerk, you forgot about me so let me climb!’
you would have a radio call that is a bit more friendly and
sounds more like, ‘Hey, I know you’re busy, but can I climb
to this altitude?’.
Here’s an example.
After flying at an altitude without traffic or terrain around
you and a pretty dead radio frequency you can ask ‘Denver
Center, any chance Bonanza 3-0-Victor can get a climb to 7
thousand?’. This is a bit more informal, but honestly, I think
it sounds a bit more polite.
Now, this is appropriate in the US, but many countries are
much stricter in with d
communications. They’d rather you give it to them straight.
Alright, so that’s an example of when to use long hand to be
the nice guy.
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 Short
Keep it Short
What about when you just need to say something long?

DO IT!
Again, you’d know he was
too busy if you were listening.
Listening is how to form many
of your radio calls.
If something pretty complex needs to be shared, such as
a concern with ATC, there is no reason you can’t make
your radio calls a bit longer. Besides, ATC and pilots
know the scope of language needed for every day radio
calls. If something is out of the norm and you abbreviate,
it’s not going to make any sense to anybody.

With that said, for the most part, you can keep your radio
calls short and ATC and other pilots will know exactly
what you’re talking about. Throwing in a thank you or
bye-bye every now and again isn’t a huge issue and I
encourage friendly radio chatter.

At times things just need to be short, to the point, and

down to business. Although a controller may have done
a huge favor for you, maybe you shouldn’t add in the
‘thank you’ if he’s too busy.
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Speed
Speed
Short doesn’t always mean fast when it comes to radio
calls. Some pilots and controllers talk too fast. Find your
tempo as a pilot and keep things understandable from a
speed perspective.

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Unclear
Unclear
It is much better to sound like an idiot on the radio than
to do something stupid that could kill somebody. If you
ever have any doubt what ATC has said, ask them to
clarify or repeat.
If it’s a matter of simply hearing them better, you can
listen better next time, but make sure you know what
they said.
If it is a matter of not knowing exactly what they expect
you to do while flying a departure or simply taxiing, ask.
If you are a bit confused on what they gave you as it is
out of the normal for them or seems unsafe, ask.
AsK. AsK. AsK.
There are so many horrible instances where the pilots and
controllers could have simply just asked each other for
clarification but didn’t, and many people ended up dying.
This same principle goes for an area that is not controlled.
In fact, in these areas it is often more important to ask for
clarification as pilots get a bit cavalier and careless with
their speech when Big Brother isn’t listening.
If another pilot has said something confusing, or you need
a better idea of where he is, then ask him. There is no
reason to sit there silently and get into a sticky situation.
Pilots will more often than not be willing to speak up and
help everyone out.
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Emergency
Emergency
AFew Months
year or so ago I was on an instrument flight in Instrument
Conditions (relying solely on instruments for navigation)
and we started to build ice. Ice is a pretty dangerous
situation if left unchecked, and you certainly don’t want
to let it ‘build’ up.

So I called up Center, who I was already speaking with, and

they were able to get me to a lower altitude where ice could
not build. They worked hard to find a route that would work,
and did all they could to get me to a safer situation.

We succeeded. I was extremely grateful for these guys.

They did a fantastic job.

Sometimes you’ve got to talk to ATC and just tell them what
is going on. ATC is there to assist you. If you were to go
down on their watch, it is not something they will forget.

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16
Emergency
Emergency
Sometimes you’ve got to talk to ATC and just tell them
what is going on. ATC is there to assist you. If you were
to go down on their watch, it is not something they will
call up ATC and get their assistance rather than flat out
declaring an emergency.

forget. I’m not saying you shouldn’t kill yourself for the
mere fact that you might make the controller feel bad,
but what I am saying is that they are there to assist you in
your moments of need.
Declaring an emergency will get you all the clearance
you need to do whatever you need to do, but it will also
start a long string of paperwork and reviews on your
pilot competency.
So, ask for assistance when needed. An emergency to
me is defined as being an immediate danger where
you REALLY need to get someone’s attention. This is a
situation like an in-flight fire, serious aircraft malfunction,
and more.
Also, as mentioned earlier, you are solely responsible
for yourself and your passengers, not ATC. You can even
break rules to save lives. Let’s put it this way: If you are
willing to lose your license in order to save lives, break all
the rules you want.
In closing on the speak section, I just want to note that
speaking is very important to your growth as an aviator.
Remember that you are going to make a fool of yourself,
and to just let it go and learn. You’ll be making great
radio calls in no time.

A situation where you can work with the controller to get

out of, say icing conditions, is a situation where you can
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Cooperate
cooperate
Cooperation with other pilots and ATC is perhaps the
missing piece of the often confusing puzzle that is avi-
ation communication. It is part of the old adage, ‘Why
can’t we all just get along?’.

The truth about communication is that we can get along.

Your relationship with ATC and other controllers is much

like that of a relationship with a significant other. At the
core of any relationship is open communication and a
great sense of cooperation.

I am certainly not saying that you

should get on the radio and spill your
guts to the controller about how great the view
is ‘up here’. What I’m saying is that with great
cooperation comes a great
relationship of trust in the skies
and everything will flow better.
Cooperate
cooperate
Let me give you a real example.
If you are flying into an airport on an IFR flightplan and
the weather is VFR, you are an extra set of information
and separation that the controller has to handle. When a
controller asks you, ‘What are your intentions’ or ‘I could
do this, but it might make X happen’, it means that they
are willing to work with you on a solution that can work
for everyone.
So, what do you do? You ask, communicate, and see what
YOU can do to assist the controller. More often then not
this means better clearances for you and getting to your
destination ahead of time or on time, rather than having
a wild vector because ATC had to meet separation.
This isn’t a one way relationship.
You can give to a controller too.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with asking the
controller what their requirements and suggestions
are when situations like this arise. A controller cannot
and will not make a decision for you. They are legally
obligated not to. They can however make suggestions,
tell you what their rules are for that area, and what would
probably work best. You can then make a decision.
The cool thing about a situation like this is that you can
become very cooperative with the controller and know
what they expect ahead of time. Then you can let them
know, ‘We plan on doing X when we get to X so we can
get out of your hair’ or simply ‘We’ll do X for you at X’.
This way they know you are not only familiar with the
area, but you are intelligent. Yes, there are bad pilots out
there just like there are bad drivers. When a controller
knows you are willing to cooperate then they will treat
you like gold.
 Cooperate
cooperate
Here’s the thing. You are not the only aircraft in the sky.
There could be hundreds of flights in your particular area
wanting to do exactly what you want to do. As pilots it
is important to know our place, and how we can better
assist not only the controllers but the air traffic system as
a whole.

Sometimes this means changing our plan, or getting

off the frequency entirely by simply going VFR in visual
conditions. If you’re almost to your destination, there’s
no issue with that. In fact, even switching from IFR to VFR
Flight Following helps quite a bit.

If you are a beginner that may be a confusing example,

but just know that you can assist the controllers by simply
asking what their requirements are.

Now, cooperation is not limited to pilot-controller only.

When in an area with no control it is up to us pilots to
cooperate in a few ways.
Cooperate
cooperate
Some of these ways are as follows

• Always Do Your A.I.R. radio calls, Even at 2AM.

• Be willing to slow down, speed up (as long as it is safe) to accommodate others
• When it is busy, keep things short and VERY clear
• Ask clarifying questions like ‘Last call, what is your altitude’ if they forgot to state it and they are nearby
(or something similar)
• Hold short of the runway longer if the traffic is questionably close
• Make regular position reports. Every 10 minutes should do during off airport maneuvers and naturally
you’d want to make all the appropriate airport area radio calls.

You can see that cooperating is important but you’d be surprised how little pilots:

A. Listen
B. Speak Up
C. Cooperate

Whether it is because there is a fear of looking stupid in front of peers or just sounding stupid, I don’t know. Pride and
a know-it-all attitude is not a trait that any pilot should have. Some would argue this is untrue, at least the pride part.
Closing
Closing
If I was to summarize this e-book in a quick and memorable bullet list, it would be as follows:

Listen

• Listen twice as much as you speak

• Listen before you speak
• A great radio call comes from a well informed pilot
• Build a Mental Picture
• Controllers are human and make mistakes. Be on the lookout.
• You are in a unique position and situation in the sky.
• Listen to other aircraft ahead of you. Think ahead.
• Controllers are not the enemy.
• Listen closely when not under ATC control to local traffic.
• Learn what to do by listening to other pilots.
• Learn what not to do by listening to other pilots.
• Listening will serve you for your entire aviation career.
• Listen to LiveATC.net
• Learn to communicate on VATSIM.net
Closing
Closing
Speak

• Learn what to say when by first listening.

• You are going to make mistakes when speaking.
• You are going to sound stupid when speaking.
• The only way to truly learn is by pushing the ‘push-to-talk’
switch and speaking up yourself.
• Laugh at your mistakes.
• Practice Makes perfect
• You are not bound by a perfect ‘script’ in the sky.
• AIR. Address, Ident, Radio Call.
• Keep the Radio call Short. Avoid useless words.
• Use long calls when you need to sound friendly.
• When you need to say something long, say it long hand.
• Don’t talk too fast or too slow. Find your radio call Tempo.
• When unclear, ask for clarification.
• Ask. Ask. Ask.
• Know the difference between an emergency and a situation
where ATC can simply assist you.
Closing
Closing
Cooperate

• Pilots and controllers can get along.
• You can assist a controller as well.
• A controller cannot tell you what to do, just as you cannot tell them what to do.
• A controller can tell you their requirements and situation. Then you can decide.
• You can cooperate well when speaking to other pilots as well.

This e-book is useless unless you go out and try some of this stuff. Inaction will result in this being a waste of hard
earned money for you. Or, you can try some of the things I’ve mentioned and be honest with yourself and how you
present yourself on the flightdeck and change/improve.

I do want to share my great thanks and appreciation for the controllers and pilots out there who have assisted me
in the past to cruise the airways in relative safety and comfort. I am continually reminded of the professionalism and
great camaraderie in this industry and the overall desire for the utmost safety.

To all of you pilots reading this and controllers out there, happy con-trails to you.
Throttle on
John Lee
Chris Palmer
Angle of Attack Productions
Author

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