Hellooo everyone!
I'm currently an IB student who is currently studying in Hong Kong that needs to write an extended essay around 4000 words. I chose to write my ee in English B. At the moment, I have to get an extended essay research topic and question. Since I'm interested in aviation, therefore I would want to write my ee related to aviation.
Does anyone have any suggestions with what topic and questions I should go with?
I'm thinking to have my research topic as: "Using English as a second language in aviation"
and my research question as: "How pilots from different countries communicate with the ATC in China"
I would like other suggestions in the research question since my question is kind of hard to search with since I DO NOT know any pilots or anyone who works relating to this topic. It would be really nice if any pilots or anyone else who is willing to help me with my essay (I really need reliable resources). I also thought of writing the miscommunication between the ATC and pilots in the regional airlines in China.
For your information, there are 3 categories to choose from:
Category 1 � Language
Category 2 � Culture and society (a or b)
(a: essays of a sociocultural nature with an impact on the language
b: essays of a general cultural nature based on speci c cultural artifacts)
Category 3 � Literature

I APPRECIATE ALL YOUR HELP!!!!
THANKS!!! xx

ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) requires all communication between pilots and air traffic control in countries that have agreed to ICAO standards to be in English. That includes most countries that have a developed aviation system, including China.

For you, I would focus on the safety aspect related to language barriers (see the Avianca 52 accident for an example).

Some good sources you might start in:

-www.icao.int

-The US National Transportation Safety Board

-Various countries' aviation regulating bodies (like the FAA in the US)

-US NASA: they do a lot more than space travel. They operate a voluntary Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) where pilots report safety concerns. These reports are published anonymously online. You might hunt around there. The downside is that it is a US system and the vast majority already speaks English.

The general rule is that if communication in the local language is not possible, English must be available on both sides. E.g. a Russian pilot flying in China can speak in English to ATC.

That doesn't require that all air comms be in English. Local-to-local can be in the local language, and for non-local pilots, that presents a bit of loss of situational awareness pilots usually pick up by "eavesdropping" or monitoring comms to/from other planes.

You may find Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers" a good starting point also. There is an entire chapter not just on the language but the cultural aspects that can contribute to miscommunication, focusing on Korean Air (Avianca 052 and Korean Air Flight 801 as a case study). It's a short, interesting read and will give you some suggestions for references.

Moderator Note: This thread was started in 2017 and not likely to still be relevant. It will be closed for posting. Thank you.