Hi Folks,
Let's talk a bit about our pilot chatter, the stuff we usually spill into our Teamspeak Channel when flying on the SAS Gameserver.
For those of you who have never joined us on Teamspeak: Our member Gubi is so kind to operate a Teamspeak Server which we use to talk to each other while we're flying on the SAS Gameserver.
If you fly on the server without using Teamspeak, you're of course as welcome as all others, but you'll miss 90% of the fun
Back to the pilot chatter.
There's nothing to say against the usual chatting which we maintain on the Teamspeak Channel.
As long as there are few members online (let's say less than 5) and there's not much action going on, that's okay.
However there are always situations (and we regulary face them on our sunday sessions) when you have 10 or more people on the Teamspeak channel, the heat of action rushes in and some funny guys start to occupy the channel with useless lengthy chatter.
Why is this so annoying?
It's because the common TeamSpeak channel, quite like the radios used for airborne communication, is a shared media and as long as one guy occupies it, useless or not, the channel is blocked for all others.
See this as an exercise for yourself: Let's learn some pilot phraseology in order to get through such situations better next time.
Let's start with an imaginary talk between two pilots climbing on our server:
John Doe: "Joe, what’s your altitude?"
Joe User: "I am at one thousand three hundred and fourty feet, working my way up to twenty one thousand feet."
John Doe: "Okay, I am at one thousand four hundred and I think I have you in sight, what altitude are you climbing to?"
Joe User: "I am climbing to twenty one thousand feet, I just passed two thousand and I am still climbing."
John Doe: "Okay, I am now passing one thousand eight hundred about to pass two thousand climbing up to twenty one thousand."
And on and on and on and on, get the picture?
Now let’s look at how it should be done.
John Doe: "Joe, say altitude."
Joe User: "One thousand three hundred climbing to two one thousand."
Nothing more needs to be said. John asked a simple question and Joe responded with a clear and concise answer that relayed all necessary information.
Now let’s take a look at the language of flying. First and foremost, you need to learn the phonetic alphabet. No more excuses, take the time to learn it and use it. You can impress your friends and family if you start using it, guaranteed.
Phonetic AlphabetA Alfa (AL-FAH)
B Bravo (BRAH-VOH)
C Charlie (CHAR-LEE)
D Delta (DELL-TAH)
E Echo (ECK-OH)
F Foxtrot (FOKS-TROT)
G Golf (GOLF)
H Hotel (HOH-TEL)
I India (IN-DEE-AH)
J Juliett (JEW-LEE-ETT)
K Kilo (KEY-LOH)
L Lima (LEE-MAH)
M Mike (MIKE)
N November (NO-VEM-BER)
O Oscar (OSS-CAH)
P Papa (PAH-PAH)
Q Quebec (KEH-BECK)
R Romeo (ROW-ME-OH)
S Sierra (SEE-AIR-RAH)
T Tango (TANG-GO)
U Uniform (YOU-NEE-FORM)
V Victor (VIK-TAH)
W Whiskey (WISS-KEY)
X Xray (ECKS-RAY)
Y Yankee (YANG-KEY)
Z Zulu (ZOO-LOO)
1 One (WUN)
2 Two (TOO)
3 Three (TREE)
4 Four (FOW-ER)
5 Five (FIFE)
6 Six (SIX)
7 Seven (SEV-EN)
8 Eight (AIT)
9 Nine (NIN-ER)
0 Zero (ZEE-RO)
If you prefer, you can use the Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet which was a radio alphabet developed in 1941 and was used by all branches of the United States military until the promulgation of the ICAO spelling alphabet (Alfa, Bravo) in 1956, which replaced it:
A Able
B Baker
C Charlie
D Dog
E Easy
F Fox
G George
H How
I Item
J Jig
K King
L Love
M Mike
N Nan
O Oboe
P Peter
Q Queen
R Roger
S Sail/Sugar
T Tare
U Uncle
V Victor
W William
X X-ray
Y Yoke
Z Zebra
0 Zero
1 One
2 Two
3 Three
4 Four
5 Five
6 Six
7 Seven
8 Eight
9 Nine
...and for the perfectionists, if you fly brits up to mid 1942, this is the historical accurate phonetic alphabet to use:
A Ack
B Beer
C Charlie
D Don
E Edward
F Freddie
G George
H Harry
I Ink
J Johnnie
K King
L London
M Monkey
N Nuts
O Orange
P Pip
Q Queen
R Robert
S Sugar
T Toc
U Uncle
V Vic
W William
X X-ray
Y Yorker
Z Zebra
Note however that if you want to make sure that others understand what you're saying, you'll be better off using the contemporary ICAO one (the top of the three above).
Now let’s look at some other terms associated with flying:
Figures (Numbers)
Aviation communications for figures, or numbers, uses hundreds and thousands in round numbers for ceiling heights. Upper wind levels up to 9900 are expressed as follows.
500 - "five hundred"
4500 - "four thousand five hundred"
10,000 - "one zero thousand"
13,500 - "one three thousand five hundred"
V12 - "Victor twelve"
J533 - "J five thirty-three"
10 - "one zero"
122.1 - "one two two point one"
Altitudes and Flight Levels
Up to but not including 18,000 feet MSL, state the separate digits of the thousands, plus the hundreds, if appropriate. For example:
12,000 - "one two thousand"
12,500 - "one two thousand five hundred"
At and above 18,000 feet MSL (FL 180) say the words, "flight level" followed by the separate digits of the flight level. For example:
190 - " flight level one niner zero"
Directions
The three digits of bearing, course, heading or wind direction should always be magnetic. The word "true" must be added when it applies. For example:
(magnetic course) 005 - "zero zero five"
(true course) 050 - "zero five zero true"
(magnetic bearing) 360 - "three six zero"
(magnetic heading) 100 - "one zero zero"
(wind direction) 220 - "two two zero"
Speeds
The separate digits of the speed followed by the word "KNOTS." Controllers may omit the word "KNOTS" when using speed adjustment procedures, e.g., " reduce/increase speed to two five zero" For example:
(speed) 250 - "two five zero knots"
(speed) 190 - "one niner zero knots"
Time
Aviation uses Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), now called Universal Coordinated Time (UTC) or "Zulu," (Z) for all operations.
Aviation also uses the 24-hour clock system in radio communications. The hour is indicated by the first two figures and the minutes by the last two figures of the time description. For example:
0000 - zero zero zero zero
0920 - zero niner two zero
Time may be stated in minutes only (two figures) in radio communications when no misunderstanding is likely to occur. Current time in use at a station is stated in the nearest quarter minute in order that pilots may use this information for time checks. Fractions of a quarter minute less than eight seconds are stated as the preceding quarter minute; fractions of a quarter minute of eight seconds or more are stated as the succeeding quarter minute. For example:
0929:05 - time zero niner two niner
0929:10 - time zero niner two niner and one-quarter
And last but not least here are some pilot slang terms from WW2 for your reference:
| Brevity Code | Meaning |
| Ack-ack | anti-aircraft artillery |
| Angels | a term used in airborne radio communications. One angel was 1000 feet, thus "angels 13" was 13,000 feet of altitude |
| Arse end charlie | rear gunner (R/AG) |
| Bale or bail out | to leave an aircraft by jumping - hoping that some "clot" had packed your 'chute correctly |
| Bags of | a great amount, as in "bags of flak over the target" |
| Balbo | large formation of aircraft |
| Banana-boat | aircraft carrier |
| Bang on | to be right on target. By extension, to be right on the mark about any observation (also "spot on") |
| Bandit | enemy aircraft |
| Beatup | to fly very low over a populated airfield |
| Beehive | very close formation of bombers (hive) with fighter escort (bees) |
| Beer-lever | joystick |
| Belt | to travel at a high speed or to hit target heavily |
| Belt up | be quiet |
| Big-A-Bird | B-24 |
| Blitz time | the time briefed for all aircraft to pass over target |
| Bogey | an air contact whose identity is unknown |
| Boost | the amount of supercharging given to an engine to increase power |
| Brassed off | extremely unhappy. Also "browned off" |
| Burton | "Gone for a Burton" - killed in action - from an old beer commercial for Burton Ale |
| Bus | an aircraft |
| Buy it | see "Burton". As in "Fred almost bought it over Verona last op". Also to "buy the farm" |
| Chop, to get the | see "Burton" |
| Chuffed | extremely unhappy |
| Clot | a person whose intelligence should be questioned |
| Cockup | a situation that has become extremely disorganized (from the term "cocked hat") |
| Cookie | a 4000 H.C. bomb consisting of two light cased cylinders welded together and filled with amitol high explosive. It had the aerodynamic shape of a brick and was used to demolish large structures - also called a blockbuster |
| Coned | when one searchlight, often radar controlled, picked up an aircraft all of the others in the target area would swing onto that aircraft, thus "coning" it - then the flak would be "poured into the cone" |
| Conservatory | cabin of a plane (from the perspex on three sides) |
| Corkscrew | evasive maneuver performed when attacked by night fighter - sharp diving turn to port followed by sharp climbing turn to starboard |
| Cricket | German night fighter plane |
| Deck | the ground |
| Dicey-do | a particularly hair-raising operation |
| Dim view, to take a | to view with skepticism or disapproval |
| Ditch | to perform a landing in the "drink" - usually when one's a/c was unable to fly any more |
| Down the flights | the area on an airfield where the aircraft were serviced between ops |
| Drink | an ocean, river or lake |
| Drome | aerodrome - an airfield |
| Driver, airframe | a pilot. This term was a play on the way that the RAF quartermaster labeled everything, such as "Gloves, Airman, For the use of" |
| Duff | bad or not accurate, as in "duff gen" |
| ETA | estimated time of arrival |
| Finger, to remove one's | to hurry up and/or to pay attention |
| Fishheads | the navy |
| Flak | antiaircraft fire. From the German, "FLugAbwehrKanonen'. In reports "heavy flak" did not refer to the concentration or degree of flak but to the caliber observed. "Heavy flak" referred to anything of 88 mm and up while "light flak" consisted of quick firing 20, 30 or 40 mm. guns. By extension flak came to mean any grief given to you by anyone else |
| Flamer | aircraft shot down in flames |
| Flaming | mild, all purpose expletive |
| Flaming onions | anti aircraft tracer |
| Flannel | to avoid the truth, to try and bluff one's way or to deceive |
| Flap | as in "theres a flap on" - excitement or some especially chaotic event |
| Flare path | a row of lights (either kerosene gooseneck flares, or, on a more permanent base, electric lights) that marked the boundary of the runway for taking off and landing |
| Flight | a bomber squadron was often divided into two Flights - "A" and "B" consisting of 6-8 aircraft and crews and commanded by a Squadron Leader who was the Flight Commander or Leader - "A" Flight aircraft were lettered from A-N and "B" Flight from M-Z |
| Flying Prostitute | B-26 |
| Frozen on the stick | paralyzed with fear |
| George | the automatic pilot |
| Gerry or Jerry | German |
| Gone for six | dead |
| Gone West | dead |
| GP | General Purpose Bomb as in "6 x 250 GP" |
| Green, in the | all engine control gauges operating correctly. A needle which swung into the "red" indicated a malfunction |
| Green, to get the | to receive permission to take off, generally expanded to refer to getting permission for anything. To give an aircraft permission to take off the airfield control officer would signal in Morse code using an Aldis Lamp with a green lens. Usually the Morse code signal was the letter of the aircraft |
| Greens, three | both main "undercart" legs and the tail-wheel down and locked. This was indicated by three lights on the flying panel. Up and locked would be indicated by "three reds" |
| Grief, to come to | to be destroyed or to get into trouble |
| Group | a formation of "Wings" |
| Had It | that is, "I’ve had it", "he's had it", and so on. In some cases it inferred a disastrous ending |
| Halibag | Handley Page Halifax |
| H.C | High Capacity - see "cookie" |
| Hedge-hopping | flying so low that the aircraft appears to hop over the hedges |
| Herc | A Bristol Hercules sleeve valve air cooled radial engine of the type used on the Wellington Mk.X |
| Hop the twig | Canadian term meaning to crash fatally |
| Illuminator | a crew tasked with dropping flares on a night target so that the following aircraft could aim accurately - usual load was 54 parachute flares |
| Jink away | sharp maneuver, sudden evasive action of aircraft |
| Juice | aviation fuel (as in "we are low on juice"). Also "gravy" |
| KIA | Killed in Action |
| Kite | an aircraft |
| Knot | measure of air or ground speed - one nautical mile per hour (1.150 statute miles per hour) |
| Lib | Consolidated B-24 "Liberator" bomber |
| M.C | Medium Capacity Bomb as in "500 lb. MC" |
| M.I.A | Missing in action |
| Old lag | experienced airman |
| Op | operation - an attack on the enemy (USAAF term - "mission") |
| Pack up, to | to break down, as in "My port engine packed up coming out of the target area" |
| Packet, to catch a | to be on the receiving end of offensive fire, as in "I heard Nobby caught a packet over Verona last night" |
| Plaster | to bomb heavily and accurately |
| Pom | Australian term for the British. Also "Pommy" used as in "What a typical Pommy cockup" |
| Port | the left side of an aircraft as seen from pilots seat |
| Prang | to crash an a/c or to hit a target well |
| Press on regardless | unofficial motto of RAF, meant to show "keenness" to fly through adversity to the target - often stupid advice. Many men died "pressing on regardless" of severe icing and "duff" engines and died because of it. Often used in an ironic way to show resignation to keeping on with a task no matter how ridiculous or unpleasant. Also used as an expression to "buck up" those who were depressed about something |
| Pulpit | cockpit of aircraft, also "office" |
| Roddie or rodded bombs | bomb fitted with a rod in the nose so that it would explode above the ground - used in antipersonnel ops |
| Ropey | uncomplimentary adjective "A ropey landing", "A ropey type", "A ropey evening", etc |
| Round | one cartridge of ammunition. Ammunition was measured in number of rounds carried |
| Runup | to test engines for magneto drop before taking off - also the route taken into the target area before the bomb dropping point was reached |
| Run-Away Prop | a propeller out of control and stuck in the high speed setting |
| Salvo | bomb selection which released all bombs at the same time |
| SBC | Small Bomb Container - canister to hold a load of the standard 4 lb. magnesium incendiary bomb - usual load was 6 to 8 SBC's |
| Scramble | mainly a fighter term. To get airborne as quickly as possible |
| Scream downhill | execute a power dive |
| Screamer | bomb that makes a whistling sound as it comes down |
| Scrub | to cancel an op |
| Shakey-do | see "dicey do" |
| Shot down in flames | crossed in love or severely reprimanded |
| Shot up | very drunk |
| Shot to ribbons | totally incapable through drink |
| Show | performance or situation - ("that was a good show over Budapest" or "he put on a bad show") |
| Shufti | to look |
| Six, to hit for a | to score maximum points - to put on a very good show (from cricket) |
| Skipper | the pilot/captain of the aircraft and crew leader |
| Sortie | one aircraft doing one trip to target and back |
| Spam can | a B-24 Liberator |
| Spawny | very lucky |
| Spoof | a diversionary raid or operation |
| Spot on | see "bang on" |
| Squirt | to fire a short burst from machine guns, as in "the rear AG gave him a squirt before we went into the corkscrew" |
| Starboard | the right side of the aircraft as seen from pilot's seat |
| Tail-End Charlie | the last airplane in a bombing formation |
| Ten-tenths | no visibility because of total cloud cover. Also 10/10ths flak - very heavy concentration |
| T.D | time delay fuse setting on bomb which determined when bomb would explode |
| T.I | Target Indicator - colored pyrotechnic devices dropped by Pathfinder Forces to identify targets |
| Tiggerty-boo | all in order |
| Tin fish | torpedo |
| T.O.T | time on target. The time briefed for aircraft to attack target area |
| Tool along | fly aimlessly |
| Touch bottom | to crash |
| Touch down | to land |
| Tracer | a type of machine gun round which glowed as it moved showing the way to the target and allowing for adjustments in sighting |
| Twit | see "clot" |
| Umbrella | parachute |
| Undercart | the undercarriage of an aircraft |
| Vic | aircraft formation in the shape of a V. Usually three aircraft but could be more |
| Waffle/waffling | out of control, losing height; or cruising along unconcernedly and indecisively |
| Weaving | a gentle form of corkscrew. An evasive maneuver to allow gunners maximum view around aircraft |
| Weaving, to get | to get going, hurry up |
| Wimpy | Vickers Armstrong's Wellington Bomber |
| Wing | unit made up of two or sometimes three squadrons |
| Wizard or wizzo | excellent - superlative (eg. a "wizard prang") |
Best regards - Mike
Author
Topic: Radio Communications (Read 1783 times)
