Chinese "On" Standard or "Non" Standard Meaning?
We flew out of Shenzen the other day on the SHL9X SID. We were cleared initially to 1200 Meters. Once airborne the Zhuhai departure controller cleared us to 3300 meters and said either non standard or on standard. This altitude is above the 2700 meter TA. This lead to a lot of confusion in the cockpit as to what was said and what was meant.
I thought he said "on standard" and the other pilot thought he said "non standard". After some debate we were just about to ask for clarification when we were given a new clearance to a much higher altitude and it never became a problem.
I have been asking around other pilots from our company and each seems to have their own meaning. Some think non standard means you should not switch to QNE 1013 hpa. Others said it simply means that the altitude isn't charted.....thus...non standard. Others say it relates to standard East/West directional standard altitudes.
Can anyone that is familiar with Zhuhai departure put this to rest? Do the controllers normally say on standard or non standard or do they use both terms?
Thanks.