62
votes
Why does the ICAO alphabet use "Charlie" for C?
Hard C sounds too much like K. Ch (Charlie) will not be confused with K (Kilo). And soft C sounds too much like S (Sierra).
- 8,795
45
votes
What is typical ATC procedure when a non-pilot calls from a commercial flight for help?
There is absolutely nothing "typical" about such a situation, which is also why - as is the case for most abnormal situations and emergencies - there are no detailed and specific standard ...
- 37k
32
votes
Accepted
Why does the ICAO alphabet use "Charlie" for C?
ICAO is a phonetic alphabet, so it's all about sounds. English language doesn't have a distinct sound for singular letter "C". You're proposing "Carl", but it's pronounced kɑɹl̩ - with K. Other option ...
- 1,412
24
votes
Why does the ICAO alphabet use "Charlie" for C?
For the same reason we use niner for nine. The phonetic alphabet took a lot into consideration when they were choosing words including how words are pronounced with different accents. "Charlie" like ...
- 102k
21
votes
What is the exact meaning of "manoeuvring" when said by ATC in reference to traffic?
I haven't been able to find a precise definition in either the CAA or the FAA's materials. However, as I understand it, traffic that's "maneuvering" is traffic that's not going anywhere in ...
- 12.8k
17
votes
What organisation owns intersection names?
The allocation of waypoint names is actually handled by each country's individual aviation authority. This means that there are actually duplicates in different countries or regions. The ICAO has made ...
- 12.8k
13
votes
What organisation owns intersection names?
As already said in HiddenWindshield's answer, the five letter intersection codes do not have to be unique worldwide. I thought it might be interesting to see how many times these codes are actually ...
- 58.3k
13
votes
Accepted
Are airport codes with digits valid or pseudo ICAO codes?
No, those are not ICAO codes. ICAO airport identifiers consist of four letters, full stop. But that does not mean that any code which is other-than-four-letters is "invalid" or "...
- 17k
13
votes
Accepted
Are ICAO airport codes starting with X-ray valid?
In short:
There are no ICAO locations beginning with X, as evidenced by the official list in Doc 7910.
ICAO location indicators are used to route messages between stations of the aeronautical fixed ...
- 80.9k
11
votes
Accepted
Is there a definition of light/medium/heavy aircraft?
Section 4.9.1.1 of ICAO PANS-ATM-Doc 4444 Air Traffic Management defines LIGHT, MEDIUM & HEAVY aircraft for the purpose of wake separation:
4.9.1 Wake turbulence categories of aircraft
4.9.1.1 ...
- 3,569
11
votes
Accepted
Can one country really ban another from using its airspace?
Yes they can.
There was an attempt to allow one to pass over a country freely with the Freedoms of the Air however this is not a blanket thing and not everyone partakes.
....As of the summer of ...
- 102k
10
votes
Is it possible to fly an EASA registered airplane with an ICAO license?
The ICAO doesn't issue licenses, so there's no such thing as an ICAO license. You have a license issues by the Argentine aviation authorities is ICAO compliant, which means it is recognized ...
- 54.4k
9
votes
What methodology did ICAO use to create the overall code nomenclature for airports?
There is no one, easy answer for where each region (or country) got their one- or two-letter designation. Many of them evolved over time. When the ICAO (as an organizational body) was formed out of ...
- 2,869
8
votes
Where can I find old (historical) FIR map?
This is a photo from the 1954-1955 Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department Annual Report
Maybe too late to post, but I just want to share it on the internet as a record.
- 81
8
votes
Why can't we choose our own call sign?
Let's clear a few things up. Scheduled flights generally use the airline prefix followed by the flight number as their callsign. So the callsign of United Airlines flight number 345 will be "...
- 4,510
7
votes
May an emergency aircraft land on a closed runway?
Faced with bad weather, some icing, and an aircraft with a collapsed gear on the runway, I landed on the taxiway.
The matter was complicated in that ATC was unaware of the runway closure. This was ...
- 17.8k
7
votes
Which agency issues private pilot certificates?
Here in the USA the FAA is the agency that issues all levels of Pilots Certificates. However the certificate is not simply applied for, it requires training and the passage of a written, oral, and ...
- 102k
7
votes
Why can't we choose our own call sign?
As DJClayworth touched on, your proposal would create too many words to make them standard. Standard phraseology is much easier to learn and also much easier to understand over the radio since you ...
- 73.8k
6
votes
Do the ICAO and IATA codes for an airport ever change?
Yes it does happen.
A city can build a new airport, in which case it will usually get a new ICAO code, but will get the original IATA (city) code. For example, Oslo changed from Fornebu to Gardemoen -...
- 4,624
6
votes
Where can I find a free list of ICAO and IATA airport identifiers?
It depends on whether it should be reliable enough to be used operationally. If yes, I don’t know one and would to the best of my knowledge advise spending some sort of money. If no, maybe openflights....
- 4,827
6
votes
What is the difference between ICAO and non-ICAO flight address?
The use of the non-ICAO flight address field is described in the very same document, on table 2-11, page 53 of the PDF:
AA field holds another kind of address for the transmitting
ADS-B ...
- 12.7k
6
votes
How do humanitarian flights arrange special permissions to fly when ATC isn't available?
In the U.S. at least, HADR doesn't launch aircraft until a crisis aka disaster has been identified, even if at launch they don't yet know if the problem is lack of potable water or civil unrest over ...
- 12.9k
6
votes
How do humanitarian flights arrange special permissions to fly when ATC isn't available?
I flew to Libya under humanitarian support in 2013 when there was a civil war going. We flew with the technician to operate cargo doors and one cabin crew to support us. We were carrying a cargo of ...
- 445
6
votes
Which organisation deals with Aviation Law - IATA or ICAO?
ICAO does deals with law, although not directly.
The Convention on International Civil Aviation and its 19 Annexes form the basis of International Air Law. Although the Convention text itself is not ...
- 84.5k
6
votes
Is flying direct to a navaid considered a leg with track guidance?
I see that if a specific course is not required, the aircraft will turn direct to the navaid on any course which is suitable with its performance. But the aircraft always have track guidance regarding ...
- 27.3k
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