Radio Communications For a Light Aircraft Flight

Examples of Talk on a Two Way Radio Between a Private Aircraft & ATC

May 31, 2009

Radio communication between pilots and air traffic controllers can sound very odd to the uninitiated! But it is really quite straightforward. Here is a typical example.

This example is of a light Cessna aircraft on a private flight from the pilot’s small home airfield to another small airfield a short distance away, involving half an hour’s flying time.

Radio Communications at the Home Airfield Before Departure

After climbing into his/her aircraft and checking that everything is working, the pilot switches on the radio and puts on his aviation headset. He can now talk to the Air to Ground radio operator, an unqualified person who is likely to be in charge of radio communications at a small airfield.

He will then say: “Anytown Radio, this is G-ABCD, request radio check and airfield information, for a flight to Nexttown”. This tells the radio operator which aircraft is calling, and what he wants. The operator is likely to reply by telling him that radio contact is good (or otherwise) and passing on details of the runway in use and the barometric pressure, which allows the pilot to set his altimeter.

Before departure the pilot will tell the controller he is ready to taxi, then ready to depart. The radio operator will tell him if there are any problems or any other aircraft, but as an unqualified operator at a small ‘uncontrolled’ airfield, he is not allowed to order the pilot to do anything; the pilot is ultimately responsible for his own decisions.

Radio Communications in the Air

When clear of Anytown Airfield, the pilot will call on the radio and say: “G-ABCD is leaving to the west. Request frequency change to Nexttown Radio on 123.45”. The pilot must not leave a radio frequency without passing on this information; it could cause the radio operator to think he had had an accident or radio failure!

The pilot now switches to Nexttown Radio, listens to make sure he is not interrupting a conversation, then say: “Nexttown Radio, this is G-ABCD, inbound to you from Anytown. Current position is overhead Bigtown at 2000 feet. Request joining information”.

The Nexttown radio operator will now tell the pilot which runway is in use, the barometric pressure at Nexttown, and any other important information, such as a particular circuit join, or that they are very busy and the pilot should keep a good lookout for other aircraft.

Radio Communications on Arrival at the Airfield

Unless the pilot has been asked to make contact earlier, he will call Nexttown to tell them he is overhead the airfield, like this: “G-ABCD is overhead and descending deadside”. This means the pilot will descend on the side of the airfield which is not being used by approaching traffic. He will then fly at a safe height to the ‘live’ side of the airfield, making calls such as ‘downwind’ then ‘final’ to let the radio operator and other traffic know where he is. His last call, once safely on the ground, will be to ask where to taxi and park

All this seems very complicated to those who do not fly, and to new pilots. But it is actually quite simple, once one has learned the specific terms which need to be used. If in doubt, the pilot and radio operator simply talk to each other in plain simple English!

The copyright of the article Radio Communications For a Light Aircraft Flight in Aviation is owned by Helen Krasner. Permission to republish Radio Communications For a Light Aircraft Flight in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.