Forced to speak French to land my plane.
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- You might think that English is the common language of aviation, but in fact there are quite a number of places where you can't land unless you speak the local dialect. See me use some terrible Franglais to land at a remote airfield in France.
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I have a US PPL and fly in France. The landing and takeoff phrases are pretty easy BUT.. I had difficulty understanding other pilots position reports in our busy local area...that made me nervous about flying in France. So I take a French pilot friend flying with me.. he does the radio calls. wish i was better.....the local French flying club encouraged members to learn English, as ATC in France speak English. they find that hard.
Yes Simon, that is an issue. I think once you know the 'key' phrases, you can build the picture in the circuit/pattern, but I would be very careful at an airfield with parachuting/gliding etc, as there'd be language used that you probably wouldn't know if you weren't French.
"English words pronounced with a French accent"... Those English words may actually be French words pronounced with an English accent.
Remember 1066 ? 😄
Actually, all the words spoken in circuits are indeed French words (base, finale)
@@guillaumeperron6240 OTOH these words have acquired new meanings in the context of aviation phraseology and would be difficult to parse by your average French person. It's all right. British and French have played linguistic ping pong for centuries now. It seems rather silly to bicker about words ownership.
🤣
Sad that English is not accepted for basic comms on non controlled fields. And I’m French.
Non c’est parfaitement normal !
@@alainfournol6786 Absolument! C'est la France et le plupart de pilotes en France sont français! C'est pareil en Angleterre ou les pilotes français doivent parler anglais.
What is sad is that international French airports accept both languages. In the circuit, you cannot have a clear situation awareness.
On small uncontrolled airport, you cannot ask ULM/students/local pilots to lean English only to stay local.
@@battz99 Partout dans le monde, l’anglais aéronautique est accepté… On ne va pas mettre l’espéranto comme langue aéronautique !
Mais je suis d’accord que sur les terrains non contrôlés, ce soit "FR uniquement".
French pilots, especially those training and building hours for professional licences, often speak in English with ATC just for the practice, despite not having any language endorsement. I have never heard of any pilot being given a hard time in France for speaking French. That in itself would be counter intuitive!
12:35 "Nautiques" for miles Jon. Currently I'm studying for FCL.055 Français as I live in France and my aeroclub are unhappy about me flying when there's not a FISO in the tower however the DGAC exam is notoriously difficult. For safety's sake I am not sure the cheat sheet is sufficient except it does warn French pilots that there's a mad foreigner out there. One big problem is the way the French really dont adhere to ICAO phraseology in particular numbers which for a non french speaker is very difficult.
Thanks Stephen. I was wondering what miles was.
Bonjour Stephen, excellente remarque, très utile 👏 Bon weekend, à bientôt,
@@TheFlyingReporter actually - mile is "mille" pronounced "mill" but you do need to precise which type of mile you're using hence why most French people will just say "dix nautiques" to mean "dix milles nautiques".
Besides the not mandatory ADS-B in/out (but this is a looooong topic), this language madness is my biggest pain in general aviation. I live in Belgium, where there are 3 official languages (Dutch, French, and German), none of which are my native languages (Hungarian), and I have a Level 6 FCL.055 in English on my licence (and English is the language I use at work and at home most of the time, mixed with Dutch). Now in Belgium - which is historically a very multilingual country - all aerodromes operate on English, while typically the local language is allowed as a second option. Still, most pilots communicate in English, as we are sure that will be understood by everyone. Even though it is nobody's mother tongue. In The Netherlands, English is the primary language at every airfield, and while here and there you hear a Dutch sentence on Flight information frequencies, I have never heard that in the circuit, but always English.
During my PPL training we often flew to an uncontrolled French airfield for circuit/touch-and-go training, because it had no landing fee (and my base is a Class D international airfield, so not often could I get a slot there), and I was shocked when my instructor first told me, that I will have to make calls in French. So like everybody, I made a cheat-sheet, and used that, and of course I learned those basic phrases very quickly. But I find it ridiculous that for aviation, where you can cross borders very quickly, and where every controlled airspace will accept English, there can be these local fields, which are allowed to put French (or German) only on their charts... But this is not only a French problem. In Germany I encountered many fields where while English is allowed, the local pilots will 90% of the time speak German. So that was a bit of a shock on my first visit to such a field, because my situational awareness was seriously lower as I had no idea what the German pilots were saying. For my next flight to Germany, I had studied tha German phrases and had a cheat-sheet is German too, and things went much better, I could understand 95% of what the pilots were saying in German. In that sense Germany is better, pilots seem to stick more to phraseology, while the French seem to tell their life's story in every call to make any foreigner's lie more difficult.
Even with English not being my mother tongue, I think English should be at least accepted everywhere, and I am glad to see in a thread below that legally there is no requirement to have another language certificate if you have your English FCL.055, as I also got - albeit a friendly - reminder under one of my videos where I flew to a German only airport, that I could get trouble doing that. I was pretty sure that cannot be the case, but now I know what to refer to next time somebody brings this up.
Now imagine a French pilot flying to the UK and making a video titled "forced to speak English to land my plane"
Well done, Jon. French pilots appreciate it when visiting foreigners make the effort to use the language. Uncontrolled airfields are French-only but quite a few UK pilots drop into the circuit with all their calls in English. Many, if not most, French private pilots are not proficient in English. At my field, I sometimes translate in the air to explain what UK pilots have just announced.
Thanks Charles. I think that theory follows in all interactions in France. I try (sometimes rather hopelessly) to open all all my conversations in French when in France. They usually reply in English, seeing that it is going to be a struggle, but it is courteous.
@@TheFlyingReporter Thanks. Yes, French pilots are making an effort these days to pass the EASA VFR English endorsement, called FCL-055. James Emery's Lingaero is doing a good job.
Is this not in breach of ICAO things?
Can we now dump the Brussels Convention?
Nope - not a breach. It's the same in parts of Eastern Canada; mostly French or French only... and this is where ICAO is based.
Actually there are SIX ICAO languages... English is just one of them... But any country can override it to allow their language to be used too - most countries do exactly that!
So, you understand now what feeling rest of world speaking English in flight
Love thd video jon, im an English pilot living in France and yes disgracefully i struggle with speaking french, however i can fly the circuit in french ok and French ATC is excellent for speaking in English and so helpful! ..word of advice to visiting English pilots,,yes uou can us a crib sheet to tell your intentions...but please be very care to try and understand the tome of a message if you don't understand a reply in french.....an airfield near me does a lot of glider towing and they tow the wrong way around or near the circuit at times.... coming face to face with another ULM / plane towing a glider gives rise to a whole new language!!!!! Just becare full guys! Nice to see our friend james featured aswell!
BTW, it is fine, and everybody would be able to understand what you say/where you are! And, after the first message, you can shorten your callsign (G-IV) as usual. Congratulations. It is time now to learn a bit more :)
So nice to see James out there helping a British man learn French radio after he's helped sooo many French pilots to learn English radio!
I see a concerning amount of head down time in the video. Be safe out there.
I fly a lot in Eastern Canada (East Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick) and all ATC is in either French or English depending on how the pilot initiates. With most non-controlled / non-MF airports is this area being French only.
That circuit entry... wild!
Just caught the beginning but do you have French proficiency on your license? It doesn’t matter how good your French is you can get into trouble if your licence is checked after landing. I have a Swiss friend who is fluent in French but only has German and English proficiency on his pilots license and got into trouble landing at a French only airport when he was spot checked after landing.
Came here to ask the same question. I used to fly into German speaking airfields and despite having a conversational level of German would only make calls in English as that was a limitation of my FRTOL.
CAA won't issue language endorsements as far as I know as English is the ICAO language. The rule is below, reading the sentence proficiency in English or the language spoken suffices:
FCL.055 Language proficiency
(a) General. Aeroplane, helicopter, powered-lift and airship pilots required to use the radio telephone shall not exercise the privileges of their licences and ratings unless they have a language proficiency endorsement on their licence in either English or the language used for radio communications involved in the flight. The endorsement shall indicate the language, the proficiency level and the validity date.
lingaero.com/flying-in-france-fr-only-and-issues-surrounding-the-use-of-french-for-radio-communications-2/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2NaeuhuwjjGi9DcK253PL064UehUYmmSvj_s5T0IifhfyldOcLUXR4yHo_aem_0ldkIfdBIbXOq-lJpjvufQ
@@ghoflyer there’s 6 official ICAO languages, Russian, French, Spanish, Chinese and Arabic in addition to the universal English. There’s a number of local derogations allowing local language e.g. German for non-commercial, non-IFR.
I know a number of individuals with foreign language endorsements on their 3rd country ICAO licences but I’m not sure whether the CAA would transfer these in the event of SOLI transfer.
@@TheFlyingReporter As the website is not an official government website, I have a friend who was fined by the French authorities for speaking French on the radio without a French proficiency and I would question what the value of language proficiency on your license is if it is not to authorise you to be able to speak that language on the radio I am doubtful as to the validity of the information on that website. Also France is not unique as the article suggests. Many countries in Europe and North America allow local languages to be used at small airports where it is specified.
Very très intéressant! happy to see you took it from the funny side. I'm french and have the FCL-055 English(level 5) and 950 at TOEIC, I love English, fact is I'm better with American English than true Uk English, and speaking rather than understanding is always the hardest part because we don't practice as much we should. In any controlled airfield in France if you speak in English they have to answer in English, and we French pilots should be able to understand at least to have a better situation awarness and get the most of it : registration, position, altitude and speed, intentions...But with uncontrolled airfield most of the time it is mendatory to speak French. I know it can be hard, but would any airfield in UK allow any other language than English ?
I think it's important we keep our language in aviation, even if the international language is English. I'm sad when I see videos of 2 french pilots in an airliner cockpit landing in a French airport and speaking almost 80% in English...
And don't forget that about 70% of English comes from French words...and that Richard "The Lionheart" spoke barely a word of English...
Keep the good job going, love your channel ! Btw I have to cross it (the channel) in flight and exercise my poor English to go to a nice UK airlfield😂🛩🤞🍻
Thank you Jon for this great video, and thanks for interviewing the best specialist for this subject - James Emery, Lingaero's CEO. The more you practice, the safer you are. I wouldn't dare to give you a score out of ten, but I got your radio communications in French. Keep up the good work 👍
Thank you.
My understanding based on "Arrêté du 24 juillet 1991 relatif aux conditions d'utilisation des aéronefs civils en aviation générale...updated July 2024) is that French pilots can fly VFR without needing English language skills but an aircraft wishing to fly IFR must have an English language qualified pilot onboard even if he is not the pilot in command.
I feel you !! currently working on my English communicatins exam FCL055 !!
I understand that French people my be unable or shy to speak English, but I can't imagine pilots in France being totaly unable to understand English. Why not speak English slowly, when they realize that you don't understand their responses in French, they will probably get out of your way. Why pretending you speak French, while you will be probably umable to understand their responses?
Tres Bon Bon Jon
Merci Beaucoup.
i have been flying throughout France for ovwer 40 years and never had a problem on the contrary I have found most ATC's to be very helpful and understanding , try flying in Spain and using English.
Fair play Jon. That was good to watch. I did GCSE French at school and honestly I don't remember a thing, so I'd likely end up flying the wrong pattern or something!
As a french pilot, this was perfect ! Thanks for sharing 👍
Next Germany :)
You know my friend James!😂🫡👍
Mate you get a 10 easy
Hello Jon, I am French and you were just perfect
Merci Beaucoup!
Interesting video. I really enjoy watching pilots fly in other countries. Maybe someday I can fly in Europe. For now, I will stick to flying on the west side of the Atlantic. Greetings from a Turbo Arrow III owner, pilot and CFI based in 1T7 (Kestrel Airpark) in central Texas, USA.😁
Thanks for watching and following from the US. And a TA3 owner too - yay!..
good vid ! But i'm wondering how this is even legal, isn't it required to have the FCL0.55 qualification for the language you're using ?? Why does it exist then ? If anyone got the answer.........
This is answered in a detailed comment thread below.
Why does Bertie sit in the back? Does he prefer it?
He does Matthew. Being a teenager, he's not too keen at constantly being on camera. He doesn't mind the odd shot of him in the back, which I check with him before releasing the video.
@@TheFlyingReporter Yes - it's fascinating the way the concept of consent has evolved in the last few decades - and quite rightly so. I do hope he gets the chance for *some* (private) stick time though!
Hello, I'm a Brit living and flying in France. I don't want to be too harsh but your efforts were a good try but I'm afraid rather inadequate! You need to say where you are and what your intentions are and then report position in the normal way so I suggest that when approaching an aerodrome with 'AA FR seulement' you don't just advise when you'll be 'verticale' but also say what you'll then be doing. So you'll be 'verticale en 5 minutes' or 'verticale 25' (overhead at 25 past the hour) for runway 25 for a full stop (complet) or a touch and go (touché). It's also important to say that you'll be flying a left hand (main gauche) or right hand (main droite) circuit. So 'Golf Alpha Whisky Papa Whisky approche vos installations du nord (approaching your airfield from the north) à deux mille pieds (at 2000 feet), destination vos installations (destination your airfield ie I'm not overflying, I'm going to be landing), verticale en cinq minutes (overhead in 5 minutes) pour intégrer vent arrière 25 main gauche (to join downwind left hand for runway 25) pour un complet (for a full stop). It's not difficult if you follow the logical sequence. It also helps to practice a bit of phonetic pronunciation. P (pay) A (ah) etc.. Otherwise you'll find that the French are very warm and forgiving but there is always the odd jobsworth, same as anywhere. Bons vols en France!
The purpose of this ultra-simplified phraseology is to reduce the amount of things to remember, while letting other traffic you are joining the circuit.
Yes, you could say something like : "Nous ferons une verticale terrain à 2,500 suivie d'une intégration en début de vent-arrière gauche pour un complet à l'issue".....BUT.....
How many average "schoolboy French" speakers are going to be able to pronounce a mouthful like that?
Also, French visual approach charts show the direction of the circuit, so no real need to say it on the radio, unless you are flying the opposite side of the runway for some reason.
Better to focus on very key, core terms and make sure they are intelligible.
@@LingaeroFCL055 I disagree. If you want to come and fly in France you need to achieve a minimum level of safety just as you do in the UK and the level of French shown in this video is inadequate in my opinion. If you can't be bothered to spend an evening or so mugging up on some procedures I'd say don't come and certainly don't try to join a circuit in which I'm flying with this level of language skill. My 'minimum level' is evidently somewhat higher than your 'ultra-simplified' and I have a suspicion from my experience that French pilots in the same pattern would probably agree with me. But then again I'm not running a business whereas you are. And suggesting that all you need do is use English terms with a French accent is not only laughable, it's insulting.
The intentions were not known until overhead and I had seen the windsock. Once overhead I declared my intention to join downwind. I followed the published circuit pattern so no need to say direction of the circuit. Thanks for watching.
@@TheFlyingReporter Sorry, that's not the way it works in France. The reason is that 'avions' (GA type light aircraft) and 'ULMs' (ultralights/microlights) frequently use opposite circuit directions and/or circuit heights. Check the chart for Saumur (circuit heights different) and Figeac Livernon (different directions). You can't just come blundering in putting everyone else at risk. Surely you of all people must know that flying safety is a serious business. The other thing is that many airfields, especially smaller ones, have a preferred runway. However, if there's little or no wind local pilots may not be using it (eg the take off start point happens to be closer to the apron) and if you come blundering in without knowing what they are calling in the circuit and not letting them know what you're doing you could well end up with a Cessna coming at you when you're on final. And BTW the term 'final' is often not used (rarely used?) in France. Instead pilots call 'dernier virage' (final turn) when turning from base onto final. A little knowledge as seemingly proposed by this video is a dangerous thing - for other pilots as well as yourself. Sorry, we wouldn't like it if French pilots were blundering around our circuits in the UK and the same applies the other way round.
Very interesting, language barriers can be difficult without trying to fly too ! 👏
To be honest, once you've been flying a while, it's a bit like riding a bike!
Do you have ICAO level 4 or higher for French? If not you just posted a video of how you are in breach of regulations, EASA as well as ICAO, and using a cheat sheet to “safely” get on the ground.
Do please cite the legislation you say I have breached. There is a thread in the comments dealing with this already.
French people still dream about French language being the common language of educated Europeans in XiX century, the smiliar way as Brits dream about their lost Empire, to the extent of leaving the EU and wondering why they cant roam freely across it.
We don’t need the EU🇬🇧
How is your CRI going? Would love to hear more about that, and if you think it's worth getting.
Good question - I'm due for my renewal (after 3 years) in November and have just booked the training for that. I don't do too much if it now to be honest. I do enjoy doing it now - didn't at first, felt quite nervous taking that responsibility. Need to do more of it really.
I had to take an exam to acquire my French radiotelephony privileges so I’m pretty sure you shouldn’t just be rocking up reading off a cheat sheet, not least because it’s highly probable that you won’t be able to understand anyone else in the circuit.
Even with good French it can still be incredibly hard in a noisy cockpit to decipher what French natives are announcing on their radio. It’s hard enough in English sometimes.
I would never usually criticise someone for trying but under these circumstances I think it's dangerous and irresponsible - your accent needs work to say the least. Imagine you were flying in to a British airfield and someone with rudimentary English was a potential collision risk...