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After more than twenty years flying to Spain, I am still annoyed by the fact that the local pilots don't speak English with ATC. What is it with that? I regard it as lack of professionalism when dealing with airline pilots. The same goes for French pilots.
I welcome sensible arguments for not using English as "work" language - if there are any?
I welcome sensible arguments for not using English as "work" language - if there are any?
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"I welcome sensible arguments for not using English as "work" language - if there are any?"
More than sensible arguments for that (there are none in my view) I'd like to know the point itself you are trying to rise here. This has been an issue for some time already, and it is clear that educating a whole generation of Spanish citizen that were not offered a proper foreign language training in their youth is going to take more than a "regulatory change" so, either you accept it and move along or you just don't fly to Spain and France, but looking for arguments at this point of the game has no purpose other than eliciting a reaction or, as some pommies like to say, "stirring the pot".
More than sensible arguments for that (there are none in my view) I'd like to know the point itself you are trying to rise here. This has been an issue for some time already, and it is clear that educating a whole generation of Spanish citizen that were not offered a proper foreign language training in their youth is going to take more than a "regulatory change" so, either you accept it and move along or you just don't fly to Spain and France, but looking for arguments at this point of the game has no purpose other than eliciting a reaction or, as some pommies like to say, "stirring the pot".
In a fairly recent setting in a british company in Spain with foreigners and locals arguing the same subject,
a british friend of mine gave food for thought:
imagine the germans had won the war and german had become the world number one aviation language,
would you imagine the british not speak english in their own airspace?
Neither brit, nor spaniard or german, I felt he had a point.
Not meant to stir the pot,
jr
a british friend of mine gave food for thought:
imagine the germans had won the war and german had become the world number one aviation language,
would you imagine the british not speak english in their own airspace?
Neither brit, nor spaniard or german, I felt he had a point.
Not meant to stir the pot,
jr
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I think it’s also a question of safety. Speaking the same language (here it should be english) helps all pilots to have a better picture of what is going on around them. Sticking to your own national language doesn‘t help anybody, au contraire, it is rude and sounds arrogant.
Flying helicopters I don‘t get around that much in Europe but my experience is:
Scandinavia: they all speak English automatically and thus sound very friendly
Benelux: same here
France: they simply don‘t want to speak English though they could. Everytime I fly to France I make bad experience. They simply ignore you on the radio and for sure you get parked at the end of the world. Maybe it’s because of our history.
Czech Republic: same as Scandinavia
Poland
rofessional and strict, sometimes hard to understand
Flying helicopters I don‘t get around that much in Europe but my experience is:
Scandinavia: they all speak English automatically and thus sound very friendly
Benelux: same here
France: they simply don‘t want to speak English though they could. Everytime I fly to France I make bad experience. They simply ignore you on the radio and for sure you get parked at the end of the world. Maybe it’s because of our history.
Czech Republic: same as Scandinavia
Poland
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I'm Spanish myself and I do feel it'd be safer and easier for everyone to stick to English at least whenever there are other international traffic in the frequency.
Even many of us, after flying abroad, find it hard now to use Spanish on the radio... pretty weird.
I guess eventually more crews will use English at least at busy international airports.
It may take a major incident or two to expedite the change.
Even many of us, after flying abroad, find it hard now to use Spanish on the radio... pretty weird.
I guess eventually more crews will use English at least at busy international airports.
It may take a major incident or two to expedite the change.
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I´m also a Spanish native speaker and I agree with sticking to English whenever there is non-spanish speaking traffic around. It gives more situational awareness. I spent time abroad and since I started in aviation I did everything in English. Because of that, I have the same issues when using Spanish on the radio. I find it difficult.
Not making a big generalisation, still there are some Captains based on pride insisting on using Spanish because "in Spain, we speak Espaņol". On the first stages of Line training flying I was forced to use Spanish on the radio and being shout at because either I was mumbling, getting stuck, saying too much, or switching to English.
There was even a law about to be passed for using English on major aiports, but the Spanish Pilot Union strongly went against that.
Not making a big generalisation, still there are some Captains based on pride insisting on using Spanish because "in Spain, we speak Espaņol". On the first stages of Line training flying I was forced to use Spanish on the radio and being shout at because either I was mumbling, getting stuck, saying too much, or switching to English.
There was even a law about to be passed for using English on major aiports, but the Spanish Pilot Union strongly went against that.
