How well versed are PIA pilots in English?

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PakN'US
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How well versed are PIA pilots in English?

Post by PakN'US »

Someone in a different forum mentioned that English should not be an issue when it comes to Pakistan Pilots. Here is a sobering reminder that how pivotal it is to speak and understand English if you are in a cockpit these days.


http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/09/06/news/crash.php


:idea:
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kamalla
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Post by kamalla »

This is a rather tragic story. As the article points out, the situation was further hindered by the fact that both pilots were of different nationalities and although both could speak English, they did so with their own distinct accents and may have had trouble understanding each other.

I don't think thats an issue with PIA atleast as most pilots (if not all!) are Pakistani nationals (as far as I know) and they can communicate in Urdu whilst in the cockpit. With respect to your question in the topic..... although I've heared only a handful of PIA pilots on ATC chatter in YYZ, I've always found their English skills to be over-par. Some have stronger accents then others, but what they say is always comprehendable! So, to answer the question.... I would say quite well versed indeed!
Adnaan786
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Post by Adnaan786 »

That's really interesting PakN'US. Real tragic story. It's hard to blame any one in particular, it's a long chain of events.... quite sad.
GrandSlam
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Post by GrandSlam »

English Is def. not an issue when it comes to PIA's Pilots....Nearly All of them are fluent in English....The interview during the selection is also taken in English...
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AirBlue
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Post by AirBlue »

i would agree with kamalla......the PIA B777 pilots speak very clearly .... much better than those of AF, Olumpics and some other europian carriers......worse i would say are the LOT pilots...
PK777
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Post by PK777 »

Yes, i agree with Airblue, the PIA captains I have witnessed in-flight have always spoken in clear concise English when welcoming passengers on board and telling passengers about the duration and schedule of the flight.
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AirBlue
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Post by AirBlue »

and i think this should happen as it creates a friendly enviornment......people feel they are cared and they know where they are.....like kids get to put that in thier scrap books or when they reach back home they right some piece of writing on thier trip.....like i remember...my father always used to ask me a trip report kinda essay when we used to come back from our journeys.........i stopped writing essays but made a daily diary....even then if he wanted an essay id take out the summary of the trip diary...i enjoyed it and i knew which country we fly over and how long our flight was and all......even though the maps help but its fun u know
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Aer Pakistan
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Post by Aer Pakistan »

hi after reading comments of PAKNUS i love to write few things about this , so far i am working with PIA crew for last ten year and never had any problem with them with english even most of them had training in usa and have good command in english or american english . so

second PIA standard is quit good in this regards.
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kamalla
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Post by kamalla »

AirBlue wrote:i would agree with kamalla......the PIA B777 pilots speak very clearly .... much better than those of AF, Olumpics and some other europian carriers......worse i would say are the LOT pilots...
European pilots do indeed have some of the stronger accents..... Lufthansa pilots commonly have a stronger accent then others. Haven't heard LOT pilots yet, but will try to hear them next time they're in.
Amaad Lone
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Post by Amaad Lone »

My last flight on PIA (Karachi-Lahore) was aboard a 747-300, and the captain of the flight was Captain Ghazi.

During the flight he came on the PA system, and spoke in perfect Urdu and English.

What I fail to understand is how such petty issues are so popular with the general public, yet the they choose to ignore the main issues concerning the airline.
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F.K
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Post by F.K »

shazad asif has no paralell, in this or any other airline..johny has retired. the rest are all substandard college spun fscs whove picked up a few words from here and there and memorized the inflight monologue as a front to come across as articulate. salim akhtar whose a grammarian has his distinctive style that again singles him out from the rest..
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smarties
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Post by smarties »

F.K- why are you so negative about everything? I bet PIA pilots have better english than you.
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GrandSlam
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Post by GrandSlam »

F.K why dont u open up an English Language Learning Centre and teach all the Pilots of PIA how to Speak English,This will earn u some money as well :P,Why is this Nation so obsessed wid English,Wat has flying got to do wid English(I know its the Offical Aviation Language)???
Bahrain_flyer
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Post by Bahrain_flyer »

I agree with u guys smarties and Ramiz we dont have to be real perfect in it coz while flying its nothing like a mandatory interview going on wid the controllers or something. So Mr. F.K wht do u think abt russain pilots in that case in think they USSR produces alot of ace pilots do they speak english :shock:

well mr F.k try jo riding a russain plane once in ur life well I have rode once on a TU-154 so let me put it this way that they had one person designated just for the R.T.

And both capt n F/o were hell of a pilot so nicely they were handling the plane.

So dont push this issue into flying its doesnt matter that much....
Up in the air is where I fly I like 2 soar way up high ;)
Gulistan
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Post by Gulistan »

If any one wants to check out the quality or other wise of PAK pilots, there used to be recorded ATC on Jamie Nasir's website and it might still be there. From the conversation's i heard there English was more than enough for the job, perhaps might not satisfy the purveyors of the Queens English like FK but it got the job done with no misunderstadnings along the way.