flying over scandinavia (......) and trust me most of those nationalities would love to...
Well not really. Norwegian R/T does not exist any more, and I can count the times I have given control instructions in Norwegian on the fingers of my left hand. (All to PPL students struggling with the R/T)
Sweden used swedish a lot in the past, but it's use is less prominent today, and pretty much just for PPLs.
I see that some here argue that the UK is a small country, and should not be allowed to set the main aeronautical language.
Maybe we, the international community, should revise the whole thing, but... would you accept, in that case, another language to be the new aeronautical one?
This has nothing to do with accepting this and that. The fact is that in a great deal of countries around the world, English is the second language people learn after the native one. It's about being a bit pragmatic.
The Swedes and the Finns have the right to use national R/T, but because they don't have the pig headed misguided national pride thing going (Any more), they have recognized the safety gains provided with one language R/T. (English)
'My country's language is the best, because I come from a great nation, and anyone that don't like to use my language can just s** off. ' (
)
Now, that could be a brit speaking, but you get the drift.
Is that constructive? Because all the arguments I have seen here for the use of French, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, Russian..... R/T pretty much boils down to that IMHO.