“Communication takes place when one person transmits ideas or feelings to another person or group of people. The effectiveness of the communication is measured by the similarity between the idea transmitted and the idea received.”
That quote comes straight from the FAA’s Aviation Instructor’s Handbook. Some might think that, because of its origins in an aeronautically oriented book, it’s an aviation specific theme. But it’s not.
Clarity and responsiveness of communication is essential to performing well in the airspace system, surely. But it’s also central to our ability to live well and succeed in many other aspects of life.
Let me give you an example. Perhaps you’ve experienced something similar.
Recently, I’ve been nosing around, looking for a used car. There is about to be a bit of musical chairs played around car ownership at my house, with mine going to one of the kids, and hers going to my wife, and I’ll be driving….well, I’m looking for a good used car.
The Internet comes into play here. Since the classified section of the newspaper has shriveled like a dried plum, it’s often more productive to use one of the many advertising options available online. So I did, and it wasn’t long before I found a handful of cars I was potentially interested in. The problem is, how do I find the car physically, in time and space, on the surface of the planet, in order to decide if I want to buy it.
This is a bigger problem than I imagined possible. It can be a frustrating process.
Each ad presented me with the opportunity to text or email the seller, so I did. My typical opening message read like this.
“Good morning. I’m interested in the [type of car] you’re advertising on [name of Internet service]. Do you still have it? Would it be possible to come see it if you do?”
That’s pretty straightforward. The note is short, it expresses interest, acknowledges that the car might be sold already, and makes it clear that I’d like to come see it if it’s still available.
The most common answer I got to this message is: “Yes.”
Okay, it’s brief. I’ll give them that. But it doesn’t really answer the questions asked in a way that allows a prospective buyer to take the next step.
Responding cheerfully, I wrote back saying, “I’d like to come see the car. Where are you located?”
Again, the question is brief but specific.
One seller answered, “Leesburg.” Another replied with, “I’m in Orlando.” Which brings the message from one word up to three, but still leaves me somewhat confused as to where I might go to actually see the car they’re selling.
A third seller expanded the theme a bit further, writing, “I’m near Dino’s Restaurant.”
That’s perfect, because I’m also not far from Dino’s Restaurant. But then, the odds are pretty good you’re not far from Dino’s, either. Go ahead, Google it. It’s a very common name. They’re everywhere.
After sending and receiving more than a dozen messages, it was apparent that communication was taking place. Yet none of that communication was truly meaningful.
I never got an actual address from anyone even though that was exactly what I’d been expecting in response to my original message. A specific question deserves a specific answer.
Ideally, the exchange would be brief and productive. “If your car is still for sale, can I make arrangements to see it?”
“Yes. The car is at 1234 Main Street, Localtown. I’ll be home after 2 p.m. Come by after that.”
That’s effective communication. It’s clear. It’s informative. It moves both the seller and the buyer toward an encounter that could, at least in theory, satisfy both their goals.
This clarity of communication is important in flight, too. Because in flight, clear communication is directly connected to safe flight operations. That’s true for you, and me, and every other pilot, not to mention our passengers.
While flying in the pattern at my home airport a while back, I heard a pilot call out a position report saying, “I’m over the lake.”
This might be worthwhile information in Balmorhea, Texas, where Balmorhea Lake is the only large body of water in the area.
But I was in Winter Haven, Florida, where lakes are abundant. There are 50 of them within the city limits. More than two dozen are visible from the traffic pattern. Reporting “over the lake” in these parts is tantamount to reporting “in the air.”
That’s hardly information worth sharing.
Let’s face it, we’ve all put our foot in our mouth from time to time. We stumble over our words. We misspeak. Sometimes we do things that are just flat out dumb. I know I do.
But if we could put some thought into our communications with each other, if we could seek clarity above brevity — while embracing brevity as a means of avoiding long rambling missives that never quite get to the point — we’d all be better off.
In the air, on the ground, even across the kitchen table, clear communication makes our lives better, safer, and more fulfilling.
I’d hate to think that I’d live long enough to experience the first human crew landing on a distant planet, only to hear mission control call out, “Pilgrim 1, position report,” which elicits a response nearly half an hour later that reads simply, “On Mars.”
How about useing both plane and number and position an intention like so.
White Cessna N152S on base landing runway 21.
ONE OF THE MOST ANNOYING THINGS ABOUT RADIO COMMUNICATIONS IS THE FAST TALKER. THE IDEA IS COMMUNICATIONS, NOT TO SHOW HOW FAST YOU TALK BUT TO GET THE MESSAGE ACROSS IN DETAIL. JUST SAYING..BUT IAM OLD, SO MAYBE THAT IS JUST ME. JUST AN OLD HAS BEEN PILOT.
I have a friend, retired airline, and longtime instructor who calls out “yellow Husky” when operating at rural airports and when flying his plane of the same description. It’s a lot easier to look specifically for a yellow Husky than an arbitrary N-number. I’ve adopted the same practice under similar circumstances. My tail numbers are 2″ tall, no one can see them anyway so i usually call out “tan Cherokee” or “tan low wing”.
If you thing it is difficult trying to buy a car, try buying an airplane. I have been on the hunt and am very frustrated. Everyone expects that you live with in 50 nm and will fly in. If coming from across the country, it takes a bit more coordination.
What ever happened to “Songbird to tower,” spoken twice? Sky King never had a problem with that, other than Paul Mantz’s invariable bounced landing of the 310.
You use registration numbers in your callout for two reasons. One is the same reason you have a license tag on your car. Law enforcement has to have a way to know who you are if you break the law, or need help. Secondly, there could easily be two or three Cherokees or Bonzanzas in the pattern simultaneously. The callsign is what you use to tell them apart.
Exactly. I hear things like “white wing Cessna” and “white and red Cub” all the time, from pilots who read such in a book about “being a bush pilot”. Not helpful, even to experienced mountain pilots. Probably 90% of Cessna’s out there have white wings, and hopefully I’m spotting airplanes far enough out that I’m not picking up color. Concise identification by N number AND accurate position report is all the sender needs to relay, maybe brief intention. Everyone flying VFR needs to be looking out their window.
if you’re spotting planes so far away that you can’t detect color, just how in the heck can you read those three inch N numbers on the side of the plane? That information is totally worthless.
The color of the plane is slightly more helpful but only slightly.
You’re right about one thing. We need to be looking out the window. If someone called their blue and white Skyhawk on base and I only see a red one, at least I know there’s another plane out there.
But calling “Skyhawk 99825 on base” doesn’t add diddly squat other than letting me know there’s a Cessna out there.
Agree 100%. And if a pilot needs clarification, he/she has the N-number to ask for that clarification directly.
A different perspective from a frequent Craigslist/Facebook seller…I only give out my specific address once we’ve agreed upon an availability window for both of us. It doesn’t feel great from a security perspective to say, “Here’s my address, but no one will be home until 5pm, so …”
You’d receive a more specific answer from me if you said, “I have availability between X-Y, on these dates. Would that be an acceptable time to stop by and view Z?”
Can I play?
I’m gonna leave the IFR guys and IFR only call outs alone.
Here is my beef:
Why do we have to use registration numbers when we are at un-towered airports?
I’m going to make this real but get your attention. Let us just say that all of us are recently soloed pilots doing pattern practice. And we are flying at Indy Metro (in this case not the real one, and the runways are 18-36 and 9-27). So the winds slightly favor 27.
Would you rather hear this call:
Starship 1234 10 miles east of Indy Metro for full stop.
Now what is this and how fast does it fly 😉
If you have never heard of a Beech Starship, think of a Long Ez but a twin so it is twice as wide and much faster.
OR would you rather hear this:
Big white delta wing twin, 10 miles from Indy Metro, full stop.
Ok, what are you looking for as you turn cross wind from runway 27?
In both cases you are looking for a twin pusher aircraft with a kinda delta wing that will be larger and faster than what you are flying.
Which call out is more informative to you? So can we get the reg and AIM jockies out into the real world and let them hear these calls so they can see the point behind them?
Imagine being someone who has just moved up to a Cherokee-180 and someone gives a call of CJ 2233 southwest of Wayne 10 miles inbound full stop.
You have no idea that a CJ is a Cessna Jet. So what is it, and how fast is it, and once it lands, with you doing night pax currency, where do you want to land?
You are so very right, Mr. Beckett. We encounter this ( im sorry to say) on a daily basis..I think people just have lazy mouth…thanks for taking the time to train dumb dumb’s..