Lecture_01_Introduction_to_Aviation

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AVIATION TERMINOLOGY I · LECTURE 1
Introduction to Aviation and Aviation
English
Type: lecture · Time: 80 minutes · Level: B1 · Language: English
This lecture gives students the first 80 aviation words they need and explains why all pilots
and air traffic controllers must speak English.
1. Lecture plan and objectives
Plan of the lecture
1. What is aviation?
2. A short history of flight
3. Branches of aviation
4. Aviation today
7. English as the language of aviation
8. Plain English and standard phraseology
9. The ICAO spelling alphabet
10. Numbers, units and time
5. People in aviation
6. Aviation organisations
11. Common abbreviations
After this lecture, students will be able to:
explain the words aviation, aircraft, aeroplane and flight;
name the main types of aircraft and the main branches of aviation;
describe six important events in the history of flight;
say what ICAO and IATA do;
explain why English is used in international aviation;
spell any word with the ICAO alphabet;
say numbers, flight levels, headings and times in the aviation way.
Key words: aviation, aircraft, aeroplane, flight, pilot, air traffic controller, crew, airline, airport, runway, ICAO,
phraseology, call sign, altitude, knot, nautical mile, UTC.
2. What is aviation?
Aviation is everything that people do with aircraft. It includes the design, building, operation and repair of
aircraft. The word comes from the Latin word avis, which means "bird".
An aircraft is any machine that can fly because the air supports it. Aircraft is a general word. The plural form
is also aircraft: one aircraft, two aircraft. We never say "aircrafts".
An aeroplane (British English) or airplane (American English) is one type of aircraft. It has fixed wings and
one or more engines. In everyday speech people often say plane.
A flight is one journey by air, from take-off to landing. Flight also means the action of flying.
2.1 Types of aircraft
All aircraft belong to one of two large groups.
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Group
How it flies
Examples
Lighter-than-air
aircraft
It is filled with hot air or a light gas. It goes up because it is lighter
than the air around it.
balloon, airship
Heavier-than-air
aircraft
It is heavier than air. It needs wings or rotors to produce lift.
aeroplane, glider, helicopter,
drone
Heavier-than-air aircraft can be divided again:
Fixed-wing aircraft. The wings do not move. Aeroplanes and gliders are fixed-wing aircraft. A glider has
no engine.
Rotary-wing aircraft (rotorcraft). The wings turn around a mast. They are called rotor blades. A
helicopter is the most common rotorcraft. It can take off vertically and stay in one place in the air. This is
called hovering.
Unmanned aircraft. There is no pilot on board. A person controls the aircraft from the ground. The short
name is UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) or drone.
balloon
glider
helicopter
drone (UAV)
aeroplane
Figure 1. Types of aircraft
2.2 Words that are easy to confuse
Word
Meaning
Example
aviation
the activity of flying and using aircraft
She works in civil aviation.
aeronautics
the science of flight
He studies aeronautics at university.
aerospace
aviation and space flight together
The aerospace industry builds aircraft and
rockets.
airline
a company that carries passengers or cargo by air
This airline flies to 40 cities.
airliner
a large passenger aeroplane
The Airbus A320 is a popular airliner.
airport
a place where aircraft take off and land, with buildings for
passengers
The airport has two runways.
aerodrome
any area used for take-off and landing; the official ICAO
word
The aerodrome is closed because of fog.
3. A short history of flight
People flew for the first time in 1783, and the first aeroplane flew only 120 years later. Since then aviation has
developed very fast.
3.1 The first steps
For thousands of years people watched birds and dreamed of flying. In 1783 two French brothers, Joseph and
Étienne Montgolfier, built a hot-air balloon. On 21 November 1783 two men flew over Paris in this balloon. It
was the first free flight with people on board.
In the 19th century engineers began to study wings. The English engineer Sir George Cayley understood the
four forces of flight and built the first successful glider. Later, the German engineer Otto Lilienthal made about
2,000 glider flights. His work helped the next generation of inventors.
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3.2 The first powered flight
On 17 December 1903 Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first controlled, powered flight in an aeroplane. It
happened near Kitty Hawk, in the USA. The aeroplane was called the Flyer. The first flight lasted 12 seconds
and covered 37 metres.
This short flight changed the world. For the first time a heavier-than-air machine took off with its own engine,
flew under control and landed safely.
Figure 2. The Wright Flyer (1903): two wings, one engine, two propellers
3.3 From the first airlines to the jet age
After 1903 progress was very fast. In 1909 Louis Blériot flew across the English Channel. In 1914 the first
scheduled passenger airline started in Florida, USA. It carried one passenger at a time.
In 1927 Charles Lindbergh flew alone from New York to Paris without stopping. The flight took 33.5 hours. In
1939 the first jet aircraft flew in Germany. Jet engines made aircraft much faster.
In 1952 the British de Havilland Comet became the first jet airliner to carry passengers. The Boeing 747, the
first wide-body aircraft, entered service in 1970. People called it the "Jumbo Jet". Air travel became cheaper,
and millions of people started to fly.
3.4 Timeline
Year
Event
Why it is important
1783
Montgolfier hot-air balloon flies over Paris
First flight with people on board
1903
Wright brothers fly the Flyer
First controlled, powered aeroplane flight
1909
Blériot crosses the English Channel
First international aeroplane flight over the sea
1914
First scheduled passenger airline, Florida
Beginning of commercial aviation
1927
Lindbergh flies New York–Paris
First solo non-stop flight across the Atlantic
1939
Heinkel He 178 flies
First jet aircraft
1944
Chicago Convention is signed
Start of international rules for civil aviation
1947
Chuck Yeager flies the Bell X-1
First flight faster than the speed of sound
1952
De Havilland Comet enters service
First jet airliner
1970
Boeing 747 enters service
First wide-body airliner
1976
Concorde enters service
Supersonic passenger flights (until 2003)
2007
Airbus A380 enters service
Largest passenger aircraft in the world
Useful verbs for history: to invent, to design, to build, to test, to take off, to land, to cross, to enter service, to
carry passengers.
4. Branches of aviation
Aviation has two main branches: civil aviation and military aviation. Civil aviation is divided into commercial
air transport and general aviation.
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4.1 Commercial air transport
Commercial air transport means flights that carry passengers, cargo or mail for money. Airlines do this work.
A scheduled flight follows a timetable. It flies on the same route at the same time, for example every day
at 08:30.
A charter flight does not follow a timetable. A company or a tour operator rents the whole aircraft.
A passenger flight carries people. A cargo flight carries goods. Cargo is also called freight.
A domestic flight stays inside one country. An international flight goes from one country to another.
A short-haul flight is short, usually under three hours. A long-haul flight is long, usually over six hours.
4.2 General aviation
General aviation (GA) includes all civil flights that are not commercial air transport. Most aircraft in the world
are general aviation aircraft. They are usually small.
Examples of general aviation:
flight training – student pilots learn to fly;
private flying – people fly for pleasure or personal travel;
business aviation – companies use their own aircraft;
aerial work – special jobs done from the air.
Aerial work includes crop spraying in agriculture, aerial photography, firefighting, air ambulance flights, and
search and rescue (SAR).
4.3 Military aviation
Military aviation uses aircraft for defence. The air force, the army and the navy operate military aircraft. The
main types are:
fighter – a fast aircraft that attacks other aircraft;
bomber – an aircraft that carries bombs;
transport aircraft – it carries soldiers and equipment;
tanker – it gives fuel to other aircraft in the air;
reconnaissance aircraft – it collects information.
Civil and military aircraft often use the same airspace. For this reason civil and military controllers must work
together.
4.4 Summary table
Branch
Purpose
Typical aircraft
Commercial air transport
carrying passengers and cargo for money
Airbus A320, Boeing 737, Boeing 777
General aviation
training, private and business flights, aerial work
Cessna 172, Piper PA-28, business jets
Military aviation
defence
fighters, bombers, transport aircraft
5. Aviation today
Airlines carried about 4.3 billion passengers in 2023, almost 14 times more than in 1970 (World Bank, ICAO
data).
In 1970 airlines carried about 310 million passengers. In 2000 the number was 1.67 billion, and in 2019 it
reached 4.46 billion. In 2020 the COVID-19 pandemic stopped most flights, and the number fell to 1.77 billion.
By 2023 air traffic had almost returned to the 2019 level.
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Figure 3. Air passengers carried in the world, billions per year. Source: World Bank, ICAO data
The modern aviation industry has four main parts:
Part of the industry
What it does
Examples
Aircraft
manufacturers
design and build aircraft and engines
Airbus, Boeing, Embraer, ATR
Airlines (operators)
fly passengers and cargo
national airlines, low-cost carriers, cargo
airlines
Airports
give aircraft a place to land, park and take off; serve
passengers
international and regional airports
Air navigation
services
control air traffic and give information to pilots
air traffic control centres, control towers
A fifth group, the maintenance organisations, keep aircraft safe. Their work is called MRO: maintenance,
repair and overhaul.
Safety is the most important word in aviation. Every rule, every checklist and every standard phrase exists to
keep people safe. Clear language is a part of safety, and this is why aviation terminology is a separate
subject.
Useful words: passenger, cargo, carrier, low-cost carrier, operator, manufacturer, fleet (all the aircraft of one
airline), route, hub (a large airport where passengers change flights).
6. People in aviation
A safe flight needs the work of many people in the air and on the ground. We can divide them into three
groups.
6.1 Flight crew and cabin crew
The flight crew works in the cockpit. The cockpit is also called the flight deck. A modern airliner usually has
two pilots.
The captain sits in the left seat. The captain is the pilot-in-command (PIC) and is responsible for the
aircraft, the crew and the passengers.
The first officer (FO), or co-pilot, sits in the right seat and helps the captain.
During the flight one pilot is the pilot flying (PF) and controls the aircraft. The other is the pilot monitoring
(PM). The pilot monitoring talks on the radio and checks the instruments.
The cabin crew works in the passenger cabin. Cabin crew members are also called flight attendants. Their
first duty is passenger safety. They also serve food and drinks. The chief of the cabin crew is the purser.
6.2 Air traffic services
An air traffic controller (ATCO) gives instructions to pilots by radio. The controller keeps aircraft at a safe
distance from each other. This safe distance is called separation.
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A tower controller works in the control tower and controls take-offs and landings.
A ground controller controls aircraft that move on the ground.
An approach controller controls aircraft that arrive at or leave the airport area.
An area controller controls aircraft that fly at high altitudes between airports.
6.3 Ground personnel
Job
Main duty
aircraft maintenance engineer (technician, mechanic)
inspects and repairs the aircraft
flight dispatcher
plans the flight: route, fuel, weather
marshaller
shows the pilot where to park, using hand signals
ground handler
loads baggage and cargo, pushes the aircraft back
refueller
puts fuel into the aircraft
check-in agent
checks tickets and takes baggage from passengers
security officer
checks passengers and baggage
meteorologist
prepares weather reports and forecasts
Collocations to remember: to fly an aircraft, to operate a flight, to control air traffic, to give a clearance, to
maintain an aircraft, to load cargo, to board passengers.
7. Aviation organisations
An aircraft can cross five countries in one flight, so all countries need the same rules. International
organisations write these rules.
7.1 ICAO
ICAO is the International Civil Aviation Organization. We say the name as one word: "eye-KAY-oh". ICAO
is a specialised agency of the United Nations. Its headquarters is in Montreal, Canada. It has 193 member
states.
ICAO was created by the Convention on International Civil Aviation. Fifty-two countries signed this
document in Chicago on 7 December 1944. For this reason it is usually called the Chicago Convention.
ICAO started its work in 1947.
ICAO writes international rules for civil aviation. They are called Standards and Recommended Practices
(SARPs). They are published in 19 documents called Annexes. Three documents are important for language:
Document
Title
Why it matters for this course
Annex 1
Personnel Licensing
language requirements for pilots and controllers
Annex 10
Aeronautical Telecommunications
radio procedures, the spelling alphabet
Doc 9432
Manual of Radiotelephony
examples of standard phraseology
ICAO also gives a four-letter code to every airport, for example EGLL for London Heathrow and KJFK for
New York John F. Kennedy.
7.2 IATA
IATA is the International Air Transport Association. It was founded in 1945. ICAO is an organisation of
states, but IATA is an organisation of airlines. It has more than 300 member airlines.
IATA helps airlines to work together. It deals with tickets, baggage and prices. IATA gives a three-letter code to
every airport and a two-letter code to every airline. Passengers see these codes on tickets and baggage tags.
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Airport
IATA code
ICAO code
London Heathrow
LHR
EGLL
New York John F. Kennedy
JFK
KJFK
Dubai International
DXB
OMDB
Istanbul Airport
IST
LTFM
7.3 National and regional authorities
Every country has a civil aviation authority (CAA). It makes the ICAO standards part of national law. It gives
licences to pilots, controllers and engineers. It also checks airlines and airports.
Two authorities are known all over the world:
the FAA – Federal Aviation Administration (USA);
EASA – European Union Aviation Safety Agency.
Useful words: standard, regulation, requirement, licence, certificate, authority, member state, to comply with
(to follow a rule).
8. English as the language of aviation
English is the common language of international aviation because pilots and controllers from different
countries must understand each other at once.
8.1 Why one language?
Imagine a pilot from Brazil who lands in Japan. The pilot speaks Portuguese. The controller speaks Japanese.
Without a common language they cannot work together.
ICAO rules say that radio communication uses the language of the ground station or English. English must
be available at every airport that serves international flights. In practice, international flights use English.
8.2 Lessons from accidents
Several accidents showed that poor communication can cost lives.
Tenerife, 1977. Two Boeing 747 aircraft collided on a runway in fog. 583 people died. One reason was an
unclear radio message about take-off.
New York, 1990. An aircraft ran out of fuel while it waited to land. 73 people died. The crew did not use
the word "emergency", and the controllers did not understand how serious the situation was.
India, 1996. Two aircraft collided in the air near Delhi. 349 people died. One crew did not understand the
controller's instructions well.
After these accidents ICAO decided that every pilot and controller must prove a good level of English.
8.3 ICAO language proficiency requirements
Since 5 March 2008 pilots and air traffic controllers on international flights must have at least ICAO Level 4 in
English. The requirements are in ICAO Annex 1.
The ICAO scale has six levels.
Level
Name
Is it enough for international flights?
6
Expert
Yes. No more tests are needed.
5
Extended
Yes. A new test about every 6 years.
4
Operational
Yes. This is the minimum. A new test about every 3 years.
3
Pre-operational
No
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Level
Name
Is it enough for international flights?
2
Elementary
No
1
Pre-elementary
No
The test checks six skills. A person must reach Level 4 in all six.
Skill
What the examiner checks
Pronunciation
Can other people understand your sounds, stress and rhythm?
Structure
Do you use grammar correctly?
Vocabulary
Do you know enough words for work topics?
Fluency
Do you speak at a normal speed, without long pauses?
Comprehension
Do you understand what you hear?
Interactions
Do you answer quickly, ask questions and check understanding?
A Level 4 speaker still makes mistakes. But these mistakes do not usually stop communication. The goal is
clear and safe communication, not perfect English.
9. Plain English and standard phraseology
Aviation English has two parts: standard phraseology for routine situations and plain English for everything
else.
9.1 Standard phraseology
Standard phraseology is a set of short, fixed phrases. Every phrase has only one meaning. Pilots and
controllers all over the world use the same phrases.
Phraseology has three main features:
It is short. There are no extra words such as please or I would like.
It is clear. One phrase has one meaning.
It is standard. The phrase is the same in every country.
Example of a routine exchange:
Controller: Skyline 472, climb to flight level one two zero.
Pilot: Climbing to flight level one two zero, Skyline 472.
The pilot repeats the instruction. This is called a readback. The controller listens and checks that the
readback is correct. This is called a hearback.
9.2 Standard words
Word or phrase
Meaning
AFFIRM
Yes.
NEGATIVE
No. / That is not correct. / Permission is not given.
ROGER
I have received all of your last message. (It does not mean "yes".)
WILCO
I understand your message and will comply with it.
SAY AGAIN
Repeat all, or part, of your last message.
STANDBY
Wait. I will call you.
CONFIRM
Is this correct? Please check.
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Word or phrase
Meaning
CORRECTION
I made a mistake. The correct version is...
CLEARED
You have permission.
UNABLE
I cannot follow your instruction.
REQUEST
I would like to... / I would like to know...
REPORT
Give me this information.
CONTACT
Call another station by radio.
MAINTAIN
Continue at the same level, speed or heading.
9.3 Emergency words
MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY – a distress message. The aircraft is in serious danger and needs help
immediately.
PAN PAN, PAN PAN, PAN PAN – an urgency message. There is a problem, but the danger is not
immediate.
9.4 Plain English
Phraseology cannot cover every situation. When something unusual happens, pilots and controllers use plain
English. Plain English means simple, clear, everyday language.
Pilot: Skyline 472, we have a sick passenger on board. He has chest pain. We request a doctor on
arrival.
Rules for plain English on the radio:
Use short sentences.
Use simple, common words.
Speak slowly and clearly.
Do not use idioms, jokes or slang.
If you do not understand, say "SAY AGAIN".
9.5 One word can change everything
After the Tenerife accident the rules for the word take-off became stricter. Controllers say take-off only in a
take-off clearance or when they cancel it. In all other messages they say departure.
Situation
Correct phrase
The aircraft may start its take-off now.
"Cleared for take-off."
The controller talks about the time after take-off.
"After departure, turn right."
The pilot is ready to go.
"Ready for departure."
10. The ICAO spelling alphabet
The ICAO spelling alphabet gives one clear word to each of the 26 letters, so that nobody confuses B with D
or M with N on a noisy radio.
Many English letters sound similar: B, C, D, E, G, P, T, V. On the radio there is often noise. With the spelling
alphabet, B becomes Bravo and D becomes Delta. These words are easy to tell apart, even for people with
different accents. ICAO introduced this alphabet in 1956.
The stressed syllable is in CAPITAL letters.
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Letter
Word
Say it like this
Letter
Word
Say it like this
A
Alfa
AL fah
N
November
no VEM ber
B
Bravo
BRAH voh
O
Oscar
OSS cah
C
Charlie
CHAR lee
P
Papa
pah PAH
D
Delta
DELL tah
Q
Quebec
keh BECK
E
Echo
ECK oh
R
Romeo
ROW me oh
F
Foxtrot
FOKS trot
S
Sierra
see AIR rah
G
Golf
GOLF
T
Tango
TANG go
H
Hotel
ho TELL
U
Uniform
YOU nee form
I
India
IN dee ah
V
Victor
VIK tah
J
Juliett
JEW lee ETT
W
Whiskey
WISS key
K
Kilo
KEY loh
X
X-ray
ECKS ray
L
Lima
LEE mah
Y
Yankee
YANG key
M
Mike
MIKE
Z
Zulu
ZOO loo
Note the spelling of Alfa (not "Alpha") and Juliett (with double t). ICAO chose these spellings so that
speakers of all languages pronounce the words correctly.
10.1 When do we use the alphabet?
What we spell
Written
Spoken
Aircraft registration
G-ABCD
Golf Alfa Bravo Charlie Delta
Taxiway
Taxiway B
Taxiway Bravo
Navigation point
KONAN
Kilo Oscar November Alfa November (if we need to spell it)
Airport code
EGLL
Echo Golf Lima Lima
A difficult name
Smith
Sierra Mike India Tango Hotel
An aircraft registration is like a car number plate. Every aircraft has one. A call sign is the name that an
aircraft uses on the radio. An airline flight uses the airline's radio name and the flight number, for example
"Skyline four seven two". A small private aircraft uses its registration.
11. Numbers, units and time
In aviation, numbers are spoken digit by digit, and some digits have a special pronunciation.
11.1 How to say the digits
Digit
Say it like this
Digit
Say it like this
0
ZE-RO
6
SIX
1
WUN
7
SEV-en
2
TOO
8
AIT
3
TREE
9
NIN-er
4
FOW-er
decimal point
DAY-SEE-MAL
5
FIFE
100 / 1,000
HUN-dred / TOU-SAND
Three digits are different from everyday English. Three becomes tree, five becomes fife, and nine becomes
niner. The sound th is difficult for many speakers. Five and nine sound too similar on the radio. Nine also
sounds like the German word nein, which means "no".
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11.2 Rules for saying numbers
Rule 1. Say each digit separately for call signs, flight levels, headings, runways, wind, radio frequencies,
transponder codes and altimeter settings.
Rule 2. For altitude, cloud height and visibility, use the words hundred and thousand for whole hundreds and
thousands.
Type of information
Written
Spoken
Call sign
Skyline 472
Skyline four seven two
Flight level
FL 350
flight level three five zero
Heading
090°
heading zero niner zero
Runway
RWY 27L
runway two seven left
Wind
240° / 15 kt
wind two four zero degrees, one five knots
Frequency
118.3 MHz
one one eight decimal three
Transponder code
4203
squawk four two zero three
Altimeter setting
QNH 1008
QNH one zero zero eight
Altitude
3,400 ft
three thousand four hundred feet
Altitude
12,000 ft
one two thousand feet
Visibility
800 m
visibility eight hundred metres
A heading always has three digits. We say "zero niner zero", not "ninety".
11.3 Units of measurement
Aviation does not always use the metric system. Students must know these units.
Quantity
Unit
Symbol
Conversion
Altitude, height
foot (plural: feet)
ft
1 ft = 0.3048 m; 1,000 ft ≈ 305 m
Distance
nautical mile
NM
1 NM = 1.852 km
Speed
knot
kt
1 kt = 1 NM per hour = 1.852 km/h
Runway length, visibility
metre
m
Air pressure
hectopascal
hPa
Temperature
degree Celsius
°C
Speed of fast aircraft
Mach number
M
standard pressure = 1013 hPa
Mach 1 = the speed of sound
Three words describe vertical position:
Height is the vertical distance above the ground.
Altitude is the vertical distance above mean sea level.
Flight level (FL) is altitude in hundreds of feet, measured with the standard pressure setting of 1013 hPa.
FL 350 means 35,000 feet. This is about 10,700 metres.
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12.

Figure 4. Height, altitude and flight level
11.4 Time
All aviation uses one time for the whole world: UTC, Coordinated Universal Time. Pilots also call it Zulu time.
With UTC, a pilot in Tokyo and a controller in London use the same clock.
Aviation uses the 24-hour clock. We write time with four digits and say each digit.
Written
Spoken
0900 UTC
zero niner zero zero
1430 UTC
one four three zero
2005 UTC
two zero zero five
12. Common abbreviations
Aviation documents use hundreds of abbreviations; these 20 appear in almost every lesson of this course.
Abbreviation
Full form
Meaning in simple words
ATC
air traffic control
the service that controls aircraft
ATIS
automatic terminal information
service
a recorded message with airport weather and runway
information
CAA
civil aviation authority
the national aviation regulator
ETA
estimated time of arrival
the time when we expect to arrive
ETD
estimated time of departure
the time when we expect to leave
FL
flight level
altitude in hundreds of feet
FO
first officer
the co-pilot
GA
general aviation
civil flights that are not airline flights
IFR
instrument flight rules
rules for flying with instruments, for example in cloud
VFR
visual flight rules
rules for flying when the pilot can see outside
ILS
instrument landing system
a radio system that guides aircraft to the runway
METAR
meteorological aerodrome report
a regular weather report for an airport
NOTAM
notice to airmen
an urgent notice about changes or dangers
PIC
pilot-in-command
the captain
QNH
(a radio code)
the pressure setting that shows altitude above sea level
RWY
runway
the strip for take-off and landing
TWY
taxiway
the road between the runway and the parking area
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Abbreviation
Full form
Meaning in simple words
SAR
search and rescue
the service that looks for people in danger
SOP
standard operating procedure
the official way to do a task
UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
world time used in aviation
Some abbreviations are spoken as words, for example ICAO, IATA, METAR and NOTAM. Others are spoken
letter by letter, for example ATC, IFR and VFR. On the radio, pilots do not use the spelling alphabet for these
common abbreviations. They say "ILS", not "India Lima Sierra".
13. Glossary
aerodrome (n.) – an area on land or water used
for take-off and landing
domestic (adj.) – inside one country
aircraft (n.) – any machine that can fly (plural:
aircraft)
to hover (v.) – to stay in one place in the air
airline (n.) – a company that carries passengers
or cargo by air
licence (n.) – an official document that allows a
person to work as a pilot, controller or engineer
airspace (n.) – the part of the sky above a
country or area
altitude (n.) – vertical distance above mean sea
level
phraseology (n.) – fixed phrases used in radio
communication
readback (n.) – repeating an instruction to show
that it was understood
cabin (n.) – the part of the aircraft where
passengers sit
runway (n.) – a long strip where aircraft take off
and land
call sign (n.) – the name that an aircraft uses on
the radio
scheduled (adj.) – planned for a fixed time
fleet (n.) – all the aircraft of one airline
to land (v.) – to come down to the ground
cargo (n.) – goods carried by aircraft
separation (n.) – a safe distance between
aircraft
clearance (n.) – permission from air traffic
control
to take off (v.) – to leave the ground and begin
to fly
cockpit (flight deck) (n.) – the place where the
pilots sit
to taxi (v.) – to move on the ground under the
aircraft's own power
crew (n.) – all the people who work on an
aircraft
distress (n.) – a situation of serious danger
urgency (n.) – a situation that is serious but not
immediately dangerous
n. = noun, v. = verb, adj. = adjective
14. Review questions
A. Answer the questions.
1. What is the difference between aircraft and
aeroplane?
8. What do the letters ICAO and IATA mean? What
is the difference between the two organisations?
2. What are the two large groups of aircraft?
9. Why is English used in international aviation?
3. Who made the first powered flight? When and
where?
10. What is the minimum ICAO language level for
international flights?
4. What is the difference between a scheduled
flight and a charter flight?
11. Name the six skills of the ICAO language test.
12. What is the difference between standard
phraseology and plain English?
13. What is the difference between ROGER and
WILCO?
5. Give three examples of general aviation.
6. Who is the pilot-in-command?
7. What does an air traffic controller do?
Aviation Terminology I · Lecture 1. Introduction to Aviation and Aviation English
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14.

14. Why do pilots say niner and not nine?
15. What is UTC? Why does aviation use it?
B. Say these aloud.
8. Time: 1645 UTC
C. True or false?
1. Spell your family name with the ICAO alphabet.
2. Registration: D-EFGH
1. The plural of aircraft is aircrafts.
3. Flight level: FL 240
2. A glider has no engine.
4. Heading: 075°
3. ICAO is an organisation of airlines.
5. Runway: 09R
4. ROGER means "yes".
6. Frequency: 121.5
5. One knot is one nautical mile per hour.
7. Altitude: 7,500 ft
6. FL 100 means 1,000 feet.
Key to B: 2) Delta Echo Foxtrot Golf Hotel; 3) flight level two four zero; 4) heading zero seven five; 5)
runway zero niner right; 6) one two one decimal five; 7) seven thousand five hundred feet; 8) one six four
five. Key to C: 1 false (the plural is aircraft); 2 true; 3 false (ICAO is an organisation of states); 4 false (it
means "I have received your message"); 5 true; 6 false (it means 10,000 feet).
15. Summary
Aviation is all activity with aircraft. An aeroplane is one type of aircraft.
Powered flight began in 1903 with the Wright brothers. The jet age began in the 1950s.
Civil aviation includes commercial air transport and general aviation. Military aviation serves defence.
Pilots, cabin crew, controllers, engineers and ground staff work together for a safe flight.
ICAO is an organisation of states and writes international standards. IATA is an organisation of airlines.
English is the common language of international aviation. The minimum level is ICAO Level 4.
Standard phraseology is used in routine situations. Plain English is used in unusual situations.
The ICAO alphabet and aviation numbers prevent mistakes on the radio.
Aviation uses feet, knots, nautical miles and UTC.
Homework: learn the ICAO alphabet and the digits by heart; write ten sentences with words from the
glossary; prepare for Practical lesson 1.
References
International Civil Aviation Organization. Annex 1 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation:
Personnel Licensing.
International Civil Aviation Organization. Annex 10: Aeronautical Telecommunications, Volume II.
International Civil Aviation Organization. Doc 9432: Manual of Radiotelephony.
International Civil Aviation Organization. Doc 9835: Manual on the Implementation of ICAO Language
Proficiency Requirements.
World Bank. Air transport, passengers carried (ICAO data). data.worldbank.org/indicator/IS.AIR.PSGR
Emery, H., Roberts, A. Aviation English for ICAO Compliance. Macmillan.
Ellis, S., Gerighty, T. English for Aviation for Pilots and Air Traffic Controllers. Oxford University Press.
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