Communication in Civil Aviation: Linguistic Analysis for Educational Purposes.

Abstract

Effective communication is a basic human requirement and in the aviation environment an essential pre-requisite to safety. English is the designated language of communication between air traffic controllers and pilots of international flights. Deviations from the usage of standard phraseology and lack of language proficiency had been identified as one of the causal factors in safety occurrences. The research focuses on radiotelephony communication (RTF) between pilots and air traffic controllers in the international controlled airspace as well as face-to-face communication between pilots in the cockpit and between pilots and aerodrome staff. Linguistic analysis of radiotelephony allowed us to prove its discursive nature based on procedural, interactive, and real-time attributes. The RTF discourse is defined as a closed, narrowprofessional, institutional and dynamic type. This discourse is intentional and focused on safe operation of flight; conventional, limited by a set of stereotyped phrases enshrined in regulatory documents and obligatory for radiotelephony participants’ use, by strict regulation of radiotelephony procedures at all stages of flight. Main speech functions realized in RTF discourse are informative and regulatory. Analysis of linguistic and psycholinguistic features of RTF discourse, nature and causes of RTF communication failures, and psychophysiological features of pilot in-flight activity (information overloading, high tempo of work due to time limits, work in stressful conditions) allowed to determine types of exercises for ab initio students to meet language requirements of safe, clear and effective communication in Civil Aviation.