English for Air Traffic Controllers

Introduction

English for Air Traffic Controllers is an online course, consisting of 56 units of English, and providing approximately 60 hours of study for students.

Course aims

To give students at Intermediate, CEFR B1/Upper Intermediate B2 level practice in general and business-oriented language required for business contexts at this level, specifically tailored towards the specialisation of air traffic control. The course blends grammatical structures necessary for this level, with vocabulary, reading, listening, writing, speaking, and pronunciation.

Граматика

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

  • Use present and past tenses correctly
  • Use the appropriate conditional forms to talk about situations and consequences
  • Use the present perfect to describe a link between past and present events
  • Use going to and will to talk about future predictions and intentions
  • Use the passive form correctly
  • Distinguish and be able to correctly describe countable and uncountable nouns

Речник

By the end of the course students will have learnt approximately 120 expressions used in air traffic control.

Skills

By the end of the course students will have had exposure to and practice in reading and hearing formal and informal English from a variety of accents and air traffic control contexts.

Unit summary

Module 1

  • Граматика: Present tenses
  • Речник: Key aviation and ATC terms
  • Четене: A brief history of aviation and air traffic control
  • Слушане: An overview of the roles and responsibilities of air traffic controllers
  • Писане: My journey to Air Traffic Control
  • Говорене: Discussing experiences and motivations for working in ATC
  • Pronunciation: Anxious and Chess + connected speech

Module 2

  • Граматика: Past tenses
  • Речник: Basic ATC terminology and concepts
  • Четене: Understanding the structure and organization of ATC
  • Слушане: Controllers and pilots communicating in routine situations
  • Писане: Crafting clear, concise, and informative ATC messages
  • Говорене: Practicing standard ATC phraseology
  • Pronunciation: Beats and Beach + connected speech

Module 3

  • Граматика: Going to and Will
  • Речник: Weather-related terms and phenomena
  • Четене: The importance of weather in aviation and ATC
  • Слушане: Weather briefings and updates
  • Писане: Interpreting TAFs
  • Говорене: Summarising and reporting weather conditions
  • Pronunciation: Bet and But + connected speech

Module 4

  • Граматика: Present perfect
  • Речник: Airspace classifications and navigation concepts
  • Четене: The structure and management of airspace
  • Слушане: Providing navigation instructions to pilots
  • Писане: Documenting and reporting route deviations and incidents
  • Говорене: Confirming and clarifying route information
  • Pronunciation: Bud and Bird + connected speech

Module 5

  • Граматика: Countable and uncountable nouns
  • Речник: Emergency situations and procedures
  • Четене: Case studies of past aviation incidents and accidents
  • Слушане: Managing in-flight emergencies and coordinating assistance
  • Писане: Writing incident reports and debriefing statements
  • Говорене: Providing clear instructions and reassurance during emergencies
  • Pronunciation: Cart and Cut + connected speech

Module 6

  • Граматика: First conditional
  • Речник: Key ICAO terminology and concepts
  • Четене: Understanding ICAO regulations and their impact on ATC
  • Слушане: Controllers and pilots adhering to ICAO standards
  • Писане: Reflecting on the role of ICAO in personal ATC experiences
  • Говорене: Discussing the importance of international standards in aviation
  • Pronunciation: Day and Ray + connected speech

Module 7

  • Граматика: Passive
  • Речник: Human factors and their impact on ATC performance
  • Четене: The importance of managing stress and fatigue in ATC
  • Слушане: Controllers discussing challenges and coping strategies
  • Писане: Developing a personal plan for addressing human factors
  • Говорене: Sharing personal experiences related to human factors
  • Pronunciation: Guess and Yes + connected speech

Module 8

  • Граматика: Second conditional
  • Речник: Career-related terms and concepts
  • Четене: Advancement opportunities and skills development in ATC
  • Слушане: Controllers discussing their career paths and future goals
  • Писане: Drafting a professional development plan for career advancement
  • Говорене: Setting personal goals and identifying areas for growth
  • Pronunciation: Hope and Hop + connected speech

Follow-up

Students completing the English for Air Traffic Controllers course should feel confident in tackling any upper intermediate course, including our Upper Intermediate Business Power course.