Language in aviation
Did a Google and Bing search on "Official Aeronautic Language" and did not come up with anything other than English EXCEPT for a passenger on an Air France flight who was told they could not sit in an exit row unless fluent in French as FRENCH was the official language of aviation.
After 40 years flying for airlines (35 on international routes) would have to support a common language in aviation. I admire those who have made the effort (a very LARGE effort) to become fluent in English so as to pursue their passion for aviation. For those of us who were fortunate to have English as their mother tongue, it took a large burden off our shoulders and our transition to professional pilots much simpler. Our only linguistic obligation was to learn and use STANDARD aviation phraseology.
Canada went through the dilemma of muti-lingual communications many years ago (mid 70s I believe) when they changed their air regulation to permit both French and English to be spoken in Quebec. This generated a large controversy in the aviation community, but politics demanded that the change be adopted. It should be noted that there has not been a language related aviation incident (as far as I know) in Quebec airspace.
Personally, I believe that there is a degradation to safety when one is unable to understand local or enroute communications. This, unfortunately, is the reality of our environment at this time. I applaud Spain to taking a stand on the issue and would support this initiative in other countries. As a unilingual pilot, however, it appears to be self-serving. This initiative needs international support from the aviation communities in those countries that do NOT have English as their primary language.
France has played a big part in the history of aviation. Still think the Bleriot was one of the most avant-garde designs of the time. French was recognised as the "civilised" language many years ago and the common language of European diplomats. A battle or two brought English to the dominant global position is has today. English is currently the official language of aviation and as such, should be promoted as the common language in environments where international aviators operate.