INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

 Tell me some about your job.

 Please describe your daily routine.

 Tell me what your duties are as an ATC.

 Tell me what you do when you are working.

 When did you start your career in aviation?

 How long did you train to do your job?

 What aspect of your job do you enjoy most?

 As an ATC, what would you consider to be the most critical emergency in flight?

 When is a situation an emergency situation?

 What factors are important in an emergency for a successful evacuation of

passengers?

 How do human factors help you be a better Controller?

 How does technology make your life easier?

 What kind of problems does it cause?

 What do you wish you could change about your job?

 What is threatening the aviation industry nowadays?

SCENARIOS
EXERCISE: YOU ARE WORKING AND A PILOT REPORTS ONE OF THESE
SITUATIONS. GIVE A 2 MINUTE SPEECH ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS IN ANY OF
THESE SCENARIOS.

(Use the prompt card as guide)

1. Unable to extend / lower landing gear on approach. No indication of green lights in the
cockpit on final.
2. Blind transmission due to radio failure.
3. Radio failure after take-off.
4. Smoke / Fire in the cockpit 5 minutes after take off / in cruise.
5. After take-off you are informed of debris on the runway.
6. Bird strike after take off / one engine shut off /
7. RWY is wet, the airplane is coming heavy and low on fuel on approach.
8. In cruise, cabin crew reports smoke in lavatories.
9. The aircraft is at the gate and there is a fire coming from the GPU.
10. In flight, there is an unknown / suspicious / BW object in lavatories.
11. In cruise, windshield cracked.
12. Hydraulic failure on approach / in cruise flight.
13. Total loss of instruments in IMC / Pilot is lost.
14. Short on fuel, airport congested.
15. Mechanical problems on final, you can not make the runway.
16. Seriously ill passenger in cruise flight.
17. Unruly passenger causes security problem after take off.
18. Unauthorized cockpit intrusion in cruise.
19. Depressurization at FL250 over the sea
20. Code 7500 on the radar screen
21. Bogota Center Calls About a missing plane which last position was over RENOS.
22. Anonymous call informing about a crash
23. Fuel leak in cruise
24. Hard over after take-off (instrument failure and digital panel failure)
25. Pilot incapacitacion (loss consciousness)
26. Change from VMC to IMC when landing (VFR Single engine)
27. Unable to extend flaps on approach
28. Short final an aircraft report FOD in sight (Debris)
29. Runway incursion on short final (another plane, a vehicle, an animal…)
30. Flames observed coming from aircraft engine on the holding point / after departure.

SCENARIOS SPEECH EXAMPLES:

NOTE: Using plain English and paraphrasing when possible will help
you with these scenarios. If you speak at a normal pace, each situation
should take about 2 minutes)

1. Blind transmission due to radio failure.

Ok…when a pilot makes a blind call / transmission, and he indicates that he is

not receiving any radio traffic in his frequency, I have to try to establish communication with
the pilot thru different options.

First, I will acknowledge the call… saying, for example, “American 123, Bogota, transmitting
on (frequency) I read you loud and clear, how do you read me?

If the pilot does not respond to my call, then I could try…and call the pilot on the emergency
frequency 121.5 and advise him that I can hear him calling but he is not responding on the
other frequency. If this does not work, then I can try asking other airplanes in his area to call
him and wait for a response.

If this does not work either, then I can assume that the pilot has a receiver not working.
In that case, I can call his company and inform them about the situation and maybe they
can send him a message thru a computer system.

On the other hand, when a pilot loses radio contact with air traffic controllers and he cannot
establish communications with anybody, they have to follow a standard procedure.

They should reset the code in the transponder to 7600. This will tell us that he has lost
communications and he may proceed with his flight according to his flight plan…

Some pilots, when possible, in a case like this, will try to find VMC (visual flight conditions)
and proceed to land at the nearest airport. However, it is possible for the pilot to continue his
flight according to his flight plan.

2. Smoke / Fire in the cockpit or passengers’ cabin in cruise.

Ok…When a pilot reports that he has smoke or fire in the airplane… we have a serious
situation. There is no question about it! To me this is one of the most critical emergencies in
flight.

When this happens, I can expect the pilot to declare an emergency and I must be ready to
assist.

This is a case when the pilots will plan to make an emergency descent and request to land at
the nearest suitable airport. Here, I have to advise all aircraft in my frequency that we have an
emergency in progress and ask them to maintain radio silence if possible.

My first priority is to clear the way for the emergency and to give them vectors (directions) to
the nearest airport. Also, I have to call the alternate airport, the new destination airport, and
advise them about the situation, because the controllers in that area will have to be ready and
organize their traffic to clear the way for the emergency.

In addition to that, they have to activate all the emergency services and prepare for an
emergency evacuation.

Meanwhile, I need to ask the pilot to tell me the number of persons (passengers + crew
members) on board and also the amount of fuel. This will help the emergency services to
prepare their equipment for the emergency landing….Usually, in cases like this, after landing,
the pilots stop the airplane on the runway and immediately activate the escape slides for the
passengers to get off the airplane quickly, I mean, fast…because a fire can cause an
explosion and this could kill a lot of people…

3. In flight, there is an unknown / suspicious / BW object in lavatory / toilet

Ok…When a pilot reports that they have found a suspicious object or a package in the
airplane, I can expect the pilot to request special assistance and also, maybe priority to
proceed to an airport and land as soon as possible.

This is not a very nice feeling, I mean, this is very scary, when you think that you might have a
bomb that could explode any time. I don’t think… that the pilots would take any chances to try
to touch or move the package, because they do not know what it is.

So, the best thing to do is to land as soon as possible, evacuate the airplane and let the
experts deal (take control)with the problem. The only thing that I can do is…for example, I will
ask the pilot if he wants to declare an emergency. If the pilot says no, then I can ask the pilot
for his intentions. If he says that he wants to land at the nearest airport, I will proceed to give
him vectors to the closest airport and give him priority for landing. Also, I must inform the
authorities about the situation, because they have to prepare and be ready to respond (they
have to investigate and maybe, remove the package from the airplane)after the airplane lands.

In this case, we cannot let the airplane proceed to the terminal after it lands because this
would put other people in danger. So, we have to instruct the pilot to park the airplane far
away from other people and property on the ground or, to stop and keep the airplane on the
runway. Normally, we ask the pilot for his intentions, but in this case, we coordinate with the
pilot for the best option.

Also, we should have the fire trucks ready, and passenger buses ready to evacuate the
airplane as soon as possible and take the passengers and crew to a different location at the
airport…

4. In cruise, windshield cracked.

Ok…when a pilot reports that his airplane has serious damage in flight, such as…cracked
windshield or windscreen, I can expect that the pilot will request special handling
(assistance), because, this type of damage could turn out (become) to be a very serious
emergency if you do not take the necessary steps to avoid the windshield from breaking up
completely… and then you could have something we call an explosive decompression.

You see, when a pilot is flying at high altitudes, for example, above 14,000 feet and you
experience an explosive decompression, you must start an immediate emergency descent
before the oxygen supply runs out (is used up) because, if you don’t do this, the passengers
could pass out, in other words, the passengers (and the crew members) could lose
consciousness due to lack of oxygen.

So…, the first thing I would do, is to ask the pilot for his intentions, if he says that he needs to
land as soon as possible, I can tell him where the nearest suitable airport is and then let the
pilot tell me if that would be ok. If the pilot says that he wants to divert to that airport then I
proceed to give him vectors and instructions to start a descent immediately.

Meanwhile, my assistant controller could start coordinating with other sectors to assure that
there is no conflict with other traffic and give priority to this airplane. Once the pilot reaches
an altitude below 14,000 we can start to relax a little, because at low altitudes the danger of a
decompression is eliminated and the only thing remaining to do… is to take the airplane down
to a safe landing.

There was a time, many years ago…when a commercial jet had a serious problem with the
windshield, and that flight had an explosive decompression because the windshield broke off
and the pilot was sucked out of the cockpit. He was very lucky because his leg got caught in
his seatbelt and this kept the pilot hanging on to the airplane. The co-pilot was able to land
safely and the captain survived this incident.

5. Hydraulic failure in cruise flight.

Ok…when a pilot reports a hydraulic system failure I can assume that we have an emergency.
This is a very serious problem for the pilot and the pilot will probably declare an emergency.
In some cases, the flight control surfaces…in other words, some parts of the airplane which
allow (permit) the pilots to make turns or to climb and descend, quit or stop working
completely.

When that happens, the pilot is in a situation where he does not have full control and is
difficult or impossible to fly the airplane safely. In this case, I have to clear the area where the
pilot is flying and give the pilot more airspace to maneuver the airplane.

That means, that we have to plan for the pilot to start a descent reducing power and also to
make very wide (big) turns…because the pilot can only make turns using asymmetrical thrust
with his engines in other words, using different power settings for each engine and this
requires good planning to align the airplane with the runway.

Meanwhile, my assistant controller can begin to coordinate with the controllers at the
destination airport, maybe not the original destination but a different airport, and inform them
of the situation. The controllers at that airport will have to alert the emergency services
because it is possible that this airplane will not be able to stop in time because the hydraulic
brakes will not be working and also the flaps and speed brakes will not be working either, so
you can expect that the airplane will probably overshoot the runway after touchdown.

Commercial jets are normally flying with a lot of passengers, fuel and cargo and this make the
airplanes heavy, so when they are approaching for landing they will be flying faster than
normal (because the flaps cannot be used) and the landing will be very hard and fast.

This type of emergency is very complicated for us (the air traffic controllers) because we have
to stop all the normal operations in our airspace and at the landing airport. Normally, if the
other traffic landing at the same airport is not able to hold or wait over different fixes away
from the emergency, we have to reorganize the traffic and send them to alternate airports.

6. Seriously ill passenger in cruise flight.

Ok…when a pilot reports that he has a seriously ill or very sick passenger, I can expect that
the pilot will request to return to the airport or maybe to land somewhere along his route. We
do not consider this an emergency, unless the pilot declares an emergency, it depends.
Sometimes, the pilot reports that they have a doctor or doctors on board and they can give
medical attention to the passenger until landing…this cases need priority but not necessarily
emergency status.

Now, if the pilot reports that the passenger… for example, is having a heart attack and they
don’t have a doctor on board, then, in that case the pilot could declare a medical emergency
and request a landing at the nearest suitable airport. When I say suitable, I mean an airport
where the airplane can land safely and where the passenger can receive appropriate medical
attention.

This situation is very common, it happens very often, especially when people with medical
problems forget to check with their doctors before they travel by plane.
Also, sometimes we have cases when a woman is pregnant and they go into labour in other
words, they start to have the baby in the airplane, in flight.

When the pilot declares the emergency, we have to give them priority and give assistance for
a fast and safe landing. We also coordinate with the emergency services; we inform the
doctors at the airport or at a local hospital in advance, so they can be ready to treat the
passenger, normally another controller or my supervisor would do this.

It is always a good idea to ask the pilot for details and the condition of the passenger.
Sometimes, we have to communicate with the doctor and the pilot at the same time, to pass
information (relay information) from the doctor to the pilot and vice versa.

Five years ago, a lady was flying to London and she had a baby on board. I was the controller
assisting and coordinating everything for the pilot. After the airplane landed safely, the
woman decided that she would to name the baby after me…why? Because that woman was
my girlfriend and it was my baby…., now I have to work on weekends and holidays too. I am
only kidding!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
PEOPLE AND COMMUNICATION

What types of people are good controllers?

Why would someone find it difficult to be a controller?

WHEATHER AND GEOGRAPHY

What types of weather conditions are dangerous in aviation?...why?

How do expanding cities around airfields create extra dangers?
Which climates are best for aviation?

AERODROMES

What are the reasons for runway incursions?

AVIATION GROWTH

How would you describe a budget airline?

How do you think budget airlines reduce their operating costs?

HEALTH

There are health regulations for pilots and ATC. Why is this important?

TECHNOLOGY

How will technology change aviation communications in the future?

How do you think communication by computer compares to human communications?

EMERGENCY

When is a situation an emergency situation?

How do you think aviation safety will improve in the future?

DANGERS

What are the biggest dangers in aviation today?

TIME AND SCHEDULES

Why are cargo flights often scheduled at night?

What are the differences between cargo flight and passenger flight operations?

PERSONNEL

Which is more important in aviation – teamwork or individual work?

What do you think are the best ways to improve language skills?

AIRPORTS

What are the advantages of aviation growth?

Some people believe aviation should not grow due to concerns about the environment.
What do you think?
 VOCABULARY
MENTIONED IN QUESTIONS AND RECORDING PLEASE FAMILIARIZE
YOURSELF WITH IT

 SCUFFLE  LOST CABIN PRESSURE

 UNRULY PASSENGER (decompression / loss of
 VIOLENT pressurization)
 FIGHTING  CIRCUIT BREAKERS
 STRUGGLING  TRIPPED (breaker) pop
 RESTRAINING ….restringir  BIRD STRIKE
restraint  FLOCK OF BIRDS
 OVERDUE  FOREIGN OBJECT
 OVERWEIGHT  WATER INGESTION
 LOADING  ENGINE FLAME OUT
 UNLOADING  EXHAUST NUZZLE
 FLIGHT CREW MEMBER  WINDSHIELD
 CABIN CREW MEMBER  WINDSHEAR
 COCKPIT  A BIT ODD
 FLIGHT DECK  GET THE FIRE TRUCKS OUT
 PASSENGER CABIN  SPLIT FLAPS INDICATION
 (I / We) WON’T HAVE BRAKES ON  RUDDER
TOUCHDOWN  AILERON
 (I / We) WILL NEED LONGEST  ELEVATOR
RUNWAY POSSIBLE  CONTROL SURFACE
 SHORTEST  CAN’T CONTROL AIRCRAFT
 WIDEST ATTITUDE
 STILL RUNNING  CAN’T MAINTAIN LEVEL FLIGHT
 NOT READY YET  INSTRUMENTS BLACK OUT
 MID AIR COLLISION  ECAM (1 and 2)
 LEFT / RIGHT WING TIP WAS TORN  LIGHTS WENT OUT
OFF  LANDING GEAR = UNDERCARRIAGE
 TORN (TO TEAR) APART  NOSE GEAR
 MAINTAIN A SAFE DISTANCE APART  MAIN GEAR
 HEARD NOISES  LANDING GEAR STUCK HALF WAY
 RANDOM CHECK (out / down / up)
 CARRYING OUT (inspections)  BELLY LANDING
 STOP-OVER TIME  STORM
 AFT CARGO (hold)  LIGHTNING
 LIVESTOCK  LIGHTING
 FORWARD  DIVING DESCENT
 TOWARDS  SPIRALING DOWN
 SHARP TURN  SPIRAL TURN
 STEEP TURN  SERIOUSLY ILL PASSENGER
 SCREAM  STROKE
 YELL  HEART ATTACK
 SHOUT  ASTHMATIC
 DUSK  DIABETIC
 DAWN  SHOCK
 SUNSET  TREMBLING
 SUNRISE  JERKING
 HESITATE  PASSED OUT
 DESPITE  UNCONSCIOUS
 ADVICE  COLLAPSED
 LEAK  FAINTED
 LEAKING  MED LINK
 FUEL TANK  PARK SIDE BY SIDE
 TOO CLOSE / TOO NEAR  PIPER 28 HAS LOW WING MOUNT
 NEAR MISS = AIRPROX  CESSNA 172 HAS HIGH WING
 MID-AIR COLLISION MOUNT
 LOST THRUST (engines)  VERTICAL STABILIZER
 LOW HYDRAULIC PRESSURE  T-TAIL
 OVERSHOOT / OVERSHOT (WENT  WORRYING
TOO FAR)  TO MANAGE A SITUATION
 SUGGEST  MANAGED
 THUNDERSTORM RAPIDLY  RELIABLE
APPROACHING  VISUAL REFERENCE
 REACHING HOLDING POINT  LANDING PHASE
 BRAKES  CLIMBING PHASE
 OVERHEATING  LANDING AWAY FROM THE
 WHEEL WELL AIRFIELD
 WARNING LIGHT  CLIMATES
 TANDEM SITTING  FLIGHT ROUTES
 TRICYCLE GEAR  TRAFFIC HAS GROWN
 CONVENTIONAL GEAR / TAIL  FLIGHT PATHS
DRAGGER  FLIGHT PLANNING
 AIRWORTHY CONDITION  RUNWAY INCURSIONS
 INFORM  RUNWAY EXCURSIONS
 REPORT  AVOID
 ADVISE  LAYOUT OF AIRPORT (AERODROME
 TOLD LAYOUT)
 SAID TO  BUDGET AIRLINE
 ACKNOWLEDGE  FUEL CONSUMPTION
 RECEIVED THE INFORMATION  ENDURANCE
 CAN YOU PLEASE RELAY MY  HEALTH REGULATIONS
INSTRUCTIONS TO…..  NOISE ABATEMENT REGULATIONS
 READ BACK  PRIORITY FOR LANDING
 REPLIED  TO BE AT RISK
 ANSWERED  RISKY
 SAID BACK TO...  BIGGER
 DETOUR  BIGGEST
 DEVIATE  ELECTRICAL POWER IS LOST
 DIVERT  ELECTRICAL FAILURE
 DESTINATION  DEPRESSURIZATION
 ALTERNATE AIRPORT  LOSS OF CABIN PRESSURE
 WEATHER BRIEFING  RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
 PREFLIGHT INSPECTION OF THE  IT IS SAFE
AIRCRAFT  SAFER
 WALK AROUND 360  SAFETY
 BREAK FLUID  TRAING TO DEAL WITH DANGERS
 AIRWORTHY CONDITION  AFRAID OF FLYING
 DENT  SCARED OF FLYING
 COWLING  REPLACING
 SIGNS OF DAMAGE  MISSING PASSENGER
 PROPELLER  MISSING BAGGAGE
 NICKS  MISSING LUGGAGE
 CRACKS  I MISS FLYING
 SCRATCH  SECURITY FEAR
 ABLE (Possible)  SOLVE THE PROBLEM
 UNABLE (not possible)  SORT OUT THE PROBLEM
 COLLEGUES  SCHEDULED AT NIGHT
 TEAM WORK  HEAVY SCHEDULE
 IMPROVED  WINDSHEAR
 BUSY  DAMAGE
 HEALTH  SMOKE IS FILLING THE AIRCRAFT
 HEALTHY  I AM FEELING BAD
 COCKPIT  CLEARLY
 FLIGHT DECK  SUFFERING FROM NAUSEA
 SCHEDULE  THE LANDING GEAR SUFFERED
 TYPES OF PEOPLE SOME DAMAGE
 MAIN CAUSES  ENGINE FAILURE
 COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN  ENGINE OUT
 STRESSFUL  ENGINE IS BREAKING DOWN
 WORRY  THE TRUCK BROKE DOWN
 WORRIED  THE TUG BROKE DOWN
 LANDING BRAKES ARE NOT  THUNDERSTORM APPROACHING
WORKING  FIGHT BETWEEN PASSENGERS
 UNSERVICEABLE  RESTRAIN
 DUMP  STRUGGLE
 DUMPING FUEL  STRUGGLING TO RESTRAIN THE
 JETTISON FUEL INTRUDER
 INTRUDER IN THE CABIN  STAND BY
 CABIN INTRUSION  HOLD ON A MINUTE
 UNLAWFUL INTERFERANCE  HANG ON FOR A SECOND
 HIJACKED THE PLANE  ON COLLISION COURSE
 UNKNOWN ORIGIN  ON COURSE FOR A COLLISION
 UNKNOWN DESTINATION  DOCTOR ON BOARD
 A BAG HAS FALLEN ON A  SNOW
PASSENGER’S HEAD  DITCHED IN A SNOW BANK
 A PASSENGER HAS FALLEN OFF  WE HAVE SUNK IN THE SNOW
THE STAIRS  DIVERSION
 CONCUSSION  DIVERTING ALL TRAFFIC
 INJURY  DIVERTING TO ALTERNATE
 INJURED  BUILD UP AHEAD
 WE SLID OFF THE RUNWAY  DIVERTING DUE TO BUILD UP
 ESCAPE SLIDES  DIVERTING TO AVOID BUILD UP
 EMERGENCY SLIDES AHEAD
 EVACUTE  HYDRAULIC PRESSURE
 WINDSCREEN  FLIGHT CREW
 WINDSHIELD  CABIN CREW
 SMASHED  FOOD POISONING
 UNABLE TO LAND YET  FIRE EXTINGUISHER
 ABLE  EXTINGUISH THE FIRE
 TRAFFIC BENEATH YOU  OXYGEN MASK
 PULL UP  PUT ON THE MASK
 FIGTHER PLANE  PUT YOUR MASK ON
 FOLLOW ME  FORCED LEFT TURN
 FOLLOW ME TRUCK  FUEL CONSUMPTION SYSTEM
 SYSTEM FAILURE FAILURE
 FLOCK OF BIRDS  YOU HAVE BROKEN FLIGHT RULES
 BIRDS HAVE STRUCK THE ENGINES  YOU’VE VIOLATED RESTRICTED
 BIRD STRIKE AIRSPACE
 THE PILOTS ARE ON STRIKE  APPROACHING A NO-FLY ZONE
 BELOW  ABLE TO CONTINUE
 VOLCANIC ERUPTION  A VOLCANO HAS ERUPTED
 VOLCANIC ASH  THE EMERGENCY IS OVER
 PLUMES OF ASH  CONFIRM THE LENGTH OF DELAY
 ENGINE 2 HAS CUT OFF  ENGINE START UP
 ABOVE YOU  START UP QUICKLY
 OVERHEAD  LIVESTOCK
 SICK PASSENGER  CARGO HOLD
 ILL PASENGER  PUSH BACK
 SICKNESS  SLOT TIME
 ILLNESS  YOU ARE LATE
 AIR SICK  FLAT
 SEA SICK  FLAT TIRE
 FIRE WARNING CHIME  TIRE BURST
 FIRE WARNING LIGHT  BLOWN TIRE
 IT’S GONE NOW  EXTREME CROSSWIND
 IT STOPPED  SEVERE TURBULENCE
 CABIN PRESSURE IS RISING  MILD TURBULENCE
 OIL PRESSURE IS FALLING  MILD CHOP
 RESTROOM  CHOPPY
 WC  BREATHING DIFFICULTIES
 TOILET  OUT OF BREATH
 LAVATORY  HEART ATTACK
 AIRCRAFT ATTITUDE  HEART FAILURE
 PERSONAL ATTITUDE  PASSED OUT
 UNCONSCIOUS
 TO MUCH CLOUD OVERHEAD
 CLOUDY
 FUEL LEAK
 SEVERE FUEL LEAK
 LIGHT FUEL LEAK
 SWARM OF BEES
 ABORT TAKE-OFF
 ABORT LANDING
 BULK LANDING
 CARRYING OUT YOUR
INSTRUCTIONS
 CARRYING OUT EMERGENCY
CHECKLIST
 CARRYING OUT MOUTH TO MOUTH
RESUSCITATION
 CARRYING OUT CPR
 ENGINES ARE OVERHEATING
 STANDING WATER
 PUDDLES OF WATER
 THRESHOLD
 FLODDED
 LIGHTLY WET
 DAMP
 A PASSENGER COLLAPSED