Air-traffic controller-pilot lingua franca 'must be English', even if both are Spanish, says EU rule
Wednesday, September 20, 2017 @ 3:30 PM
A EUROPEAN Union rule that requires English to be the official language between pilots and air-traffic controllers has come into force – and, curiously, even applies where both parties share a native tongue that is not English.
The rule only affects airports with over 50,000 international flights operating per year, meaning Madrid's Adolfo Suárez-Barajas and Barcelona's El Prat will become 'English-only', but many others, such as those in the Canary and Balearic Islands, will still be able to choose the language they wish to speak in.
Aiming to streamline communications for maximum security, pilots and air-traffic controllers having to speak English is not a problem, since being able to do so fluently is a basic requirement of their job.
But pilot unions in Spain SEPLA and USCA say it is 'ludicrous' to require this when both pilot and air-traffic controller are native Spanish-speakers.
Captains on board Iberia, Vueling and AirEuropa – all three being Spanish carriers and typically staffed with natives – will have to talk to the control towers in Barcelona and Madrid, also staffed with natives, in English.
USCA and SEPLA criticise the fact that the move 'has not taken into account' the 'criteria' of the professionals involved, and that using a language which is a foreign tongue to both rather than the native one they share 'is unlikely to bring about any potential air safety improvements'.
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com