How to Use Radio Communications when Flying an Airplane

Part of the Video Series How to Fly an Airplane

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Learn about radio communications in this free how to fly video.

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How to Use Radio Communications when Flying an Airplane
Hi. I'm Dave Pressy with St. Charles Flying Service on behalf of Expert Village. Pilots use radio communication to maintain contact with one another and with air traffic control facilities. Regardless of the flight situation proper procedures and protocol must be followed to ensure the safety of all pilots in the system. All radio calls have five basic elements referred to as the five w's. Where, who, what when and where. Here's an example using all five elements. Municipal traffic November 1234 Alfa is holding short of runway 27 moving into position for departure to the west Municipal traffic. The first where refers to the facility or airport the pilot is contacting. Municipal traffic. This avoids any confusion as to where the aircraft is located. The who refers to the aircrafts N number, it's identification. 1234 Alfa. The what and when indicate the action to be performed. Moving into position for departure to the west. The second where is used for clarity. In case any other pilot may have missed the first part of the transmission and might mistake the call as coming from another airport. This would compromise safety. Radio communication is also used to contact air traffic control facilities to obtain clearances, open and close flight plans, receive weather information and various other information. Radio frequencies are found in FAA publications and on navigation charts and should be noted before the flight and before approaching airports.

About the Expert

Expert: Dave Pressy has been a flight instructor in the St. Louis Area for over four years, and a pilot for more than seven years. He has accumulated nearly 1200 hours of flight time. Read More