Aircrew Not Wearing Headsets
Forget the fact that I've got a crap headset - it does still function.
Does anybody else find it irritating, especially when the sector is busy, to have to make twice or three times the number of RT calls to US crews because they either haven't heard the first call or have confused their callsign?
How many times have you called a US registered flight only to get the reply "Are you calling *****?" or "Was that for ****?" More wasted RT time when you don't need it.
Having sat on the flight deck of a few US flights the reason for this has been seen at first hand - crews don't wear headsets above FL160. Using handmikes, they have to listen out for RT calls from ATC via the cockpit speaker and over all the flight deck noise.
Does US ATC have the same problem???