What is ELT

1

APATS 2007 Asian Aerospace Implementation of the
ICAO English Language Proficiency Requirements
for Aeroplane and Helicopter Pilots in Hong Kong,
China
by Claudia Wan Senior Safety Officer
(Operations) Civil Aviation Department Hong
Kong 3 - 5 September 2007

2
Contents

• Part I ICAO Requirements
• Part II Implementation Strategies
• Part III Implementation Progress

3
Part I ICAO Requirements

4
ICAO Language Proficiency Provisions and
Guidelines

• Provisions in
• Annex 1 Personnel Licensing
• Annex 6 Operations of Aircraft
• Annex 10 Aeronautical Telecommunications
• Guidelines in Doc 9835 - Manual on the
  Implementation of ICAO Language Proficiency
  Requirements

5
Annex 1 Proficiency Requirements

• As of 5 March 2008
• Aeroplane and Helicopter pilots
• Speak and Understand English language
• at or above Operational Level (Level 4) language
  proficiency in accordance with the ICAO Language
  Proficiency Rating Scale
• The language proficiency requirements are
  applicable to the use of both phraseologies and
  plain language
• The language proficiency requirements apply
  equally to both native and non-native speakers.

6
ICAO Language Proficiency Rating Scale

• Level 1 Pre-elementary
• Level 2 Elementary
• Level 3 Pre-operational
• Level 4 Operational Level the minimum
  required proficiency level for radiotelephony
  communication
• Level 5 Extended
• Level 6 - Expert

7
Annex 1 Recurrent Testing Requirements

• For those who demonstrate proficiency below the
  Expert Level (Level 6) shall be formally
  evaluated at intervals as follows
• Operational Level 4 once every 3 years
• Extended Level 5 once every 6 years

8
ICAO Annex 6

• States that
• Aircraft operators must ensure that their flight
  crew members have the ability to speak and
  understand the language used for communications
  as specified in Annex 1.

9
ICAO Annex 10

• (Para. 5.1.1.1)
• ICAO phraseologies shall be used whenever
  possible.
• Only when standardised phraseology cannot serve
  an intended transmission, plain language shall be
  used.

10
Part II - Implementation Strategies

11
Prior to 5 March 2008,

• CAD will continue to use the licensing procedures
  currently in place to assess English language
  proficiency of aeroplane and helicopter pilots
• By issue of the Flight Radiotelephony Operators
  (Restricted) Licence through written and
  practical communication tests, or through licence
  conversion

12
From 5 March 2008 onwards,

• All aeroplane and helicopter pilots holding or
  applying for a HK pilots licence shall have been
  tested as having demonstrated English language
  proficiency at a minimum of Operational Level
  (Level 4).
• Compliance will be evidenced by an endorsement in
  the HK pilots licence as follows

13
Endorsement on Licence Required From 5 March
2008

• The holder of this licence has demonstrated
  English language proficiency at Expert Level
  (Level 6) / Extended Level (Level 5) /
  Operational Level (Level 4) on (date)
  in accordance with the Language Proficiency
  Rating Scale specified in Annex 1 to the
  Convention on International Civil Aviation.
• Recurrent testing is not required / due on
  (date) .

14
Responsibility of Hong Kong Aircraft Operators

• Annex 6 stipulates aircraft operators
  responsibility in the oversight of personnel
  language proficiency.
• To comply with this requirement, all Hong Kong
  aircraft operators are required to establish an
  English Language Proficiency Assessment Programme
  (ELPAP) acceptable to Civil Aviation Department
  (CAD).

15

• Hong Kong Aircraft Operators include
• Holders of Hong Kong Air Operators Certificate,
• Government Flying Service,
• Private operators, and
• Hong Kong Aviation Club

16

• To establish the English Language Proficiency
  Assessment Programme, an operator may choose to
• develop their own language testing service or
• contract an external language testing service
  provider

17

• Either way
• Operators are required to submit a proposal for
  ELPAP to CAD for acceptance.
• The ELPAP must be accepted by CAD before
  assessment of pilot candidates may commence.

18
CAD Acceptance of the ELPAP is based on Annex 1
requirements and the guidelines in ICAO Doc 9835

• Evaluation tools or tests (test developers, test
  contents and methodologies)
• Qualifications and experience of personnel
  involved
• Training provided to personnel involved
• Recurrent testing procedures
• Remedial training
• Test administration
• Trial testing procedures
• Test data security and confidentiality
• Appeal system
• Related administrative and operational procedures

19
Language Proficiency Tests(Doc 9835)

• Expert Speaker Evaluation tool for identifying
  Level 6 only
• For example, the Benchmark Assessment used in
  the ELPAP of Cathay Pacific Airways
• Specialised language test for evaluating
  proficiency Level 1 through Level 6
• For example, the RELTA assessment developed by
  RMIT used in the ELPAP of Hong Kong Airlines

20
Evaluation of Expert Level Personnel(Doc 9835
para. 5.3)

• As language proficiency at both ends of a
  proficiency scale is relatively easy to discern,
  the person responsible for assessing Expert Level
  (Level 6) need not be a language specialist.
• However, assessors/raters for Expert
  proficiency must be familiar with the ICAO
  Language Proficiency Requirements and must be
  able to recognise when there is a need to refer
  the candidate to specialised language testing.
• For those who do not demonstrate Expert
  proficiency, a specialised evaluation/test is
  required.

21
Specialised Language Testing (Doc 9835)

• Qualifications/experiences of test developers
  (applied linguists operational experts)
• Proficiency tests of actual speaking and
  listening ability required
• Testing not only phraseologies but also the use
  of plain English in an aviation operational
  context
• Tests must evaluate proficiency according to the
  criteria established in the ICAO Language
  Proficiency Requirements and Rating Scale
• Tests must be reliable, valid, practical and fair
• Delivery and administration of language
  proficiency tests may be by computers
• Best practice in language proficiency testing
  calls for at least two trained and calibrated
  raters, at least one of whom is a language
  teacher

22
Part III Implementation Progress

• All holders of AOC, Government Flying Service and
  private operators in Hong Kong have been granted
  CAD Acceptance for their English Language
  Proficiency Assessment Programmes
• DCA 530 form as an application for the issue of
  Language Proficiency Endorsement in Hong Kong
  Pilot Licence
• CAD Acceptance valid for three years
• CAD will conduct interim audits to monitor
  compliance

23
Thank You