Aviation has traditionally used English as its primary language. Each country was responsible for establishing its own aviation English standard for a long time. These norms differed from country to country, often resulting in misunderstandings and contributing to many incidents and accidents.
To improve the safety of aviation globally, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) developed an international standard for language proficiency requirements.
ICAO requires that all pilots, air traffic controllers and aeronautical station operators involved in international operations must be able to speak and understand English to a level 4 proficiency of ICAO’s language proficiency rating scale.
ICAO’s language proficiency rating scale for aviation english:
Level 1 – Pre-Elementary
Level 2 – Elementary
Level 3 – Pre-Operational
Level 4 – Operational
Level 5 – Extended
Level 6 – Expert
The six language proficiency skills assessed in ICAO aviation English Test:
Vocabulary
Structure
Pronunciation
Fluency
Comprehension
Interactions
ICAO has developed the following “Holistic Descriptors”
Proficient speakers shall:
a. communicate effectively in voice-only (telephone/radiotelephone) and in face-to-face situations;
b. communicate on common, concrete and work-related topics with accuracy and clarity;
c. use appropriate communicative strategies to exchange messages and to recognize and resolve misunderstandings (e.g. to check, confirm, or clarify information) in a general or work-related context;
d. handle successfully and with relative ease the linguistic challenges presented by a complication or unexpected turn of events that occurs within the context of a routine work situation or communicative task with which they are otherwise familiar; and
e. use a dialect or accent which is intelligible to the aeronautical community.
Level 6 – Expert
Vocabulary
Vocabulary range and accuracy are sufficient to communicate effectively on a wide variety of familiar and unfamiliar topics. Vocabulary is idiomatic, nuanced, and sensitive to register.
Structure
Both basic and complex grammatical structures and sentence patterns are consistently well controlled.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm, and intonation, though possibly influenced by the first language or regional variation, almost never interfere with ease of understanding.
Fluency
Able to speak at length with a natural, effortless flow. Varies speech flow for stylistic effect, e.g. to emphasize a point. Uses appropriate discourse markers and connectors spontaneously.
Comprehension
Comprehension is consistently accurate in nearly all contexts and includes comprehension of linguistic and cultural subtleties.
Interaction
Interacts with ease in nearly all situations. Is sensitive to verbal and non-verbal cues, and responds to them appropriately.
Level 5 – Extended
Vocabulary
Vocabulary range and accuracy are sufficient to communicate effectively on common, concrete, and work related topics. Paraphrases consistently and successfully. Vocabulary is sometimes idiomatic.
Structure
Basic grammatical structures and sentence patterns are consistently well controlled. Complex structures are attempted but with errors which sometimes interfere with meaning.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm, and intonation, though influenced by the first language or regional variation, rarely interfere with ease of understanding.
Fluency
Able to speak at length with relative ease on familiar topics, but may not vary speech flow as a stylistic device. Can make use of appropriate discourse markers or connectors.
Comprehension
Comprehension is accurate on common, concrete, and work related topics and mostly accurate when the speaker is confronted with a linguistic or situational complication or an unexpected turn of events. Is able to comprehend a range of speech varieties (dialect and/or accent) or registers.
Interaction
Responses are immediate, appropriate, and informative. Manages the speaker/listener relationship effectively.
Level 4 – Operational
Vocabulary
Vocabulary range and accuracy are usually sufficient to communicate effectively on common, concrete, and work related topics. Can often paraphrase successfully when lacking vocabulary in unusual or unexpected circumstances.
Structure
Basic grammatical structures and sentence patterns are used creatively and are usually well controlled. Errors may occur, particularly in unusual or unexpected circumstances, but rarely interfere with meaning.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm, and intonation are influenced by the first language or regional variation but only sometimes interfere with ease of understanding.
Fluency
Produces stretches of language at an appropriate tempo. There may be occasional loss of fluency on transition from rehearsed or formulaic speech to spontaneous interaction, but this does not prevent effective communication. Can make limited use of discourse markers or connectors. Fillers are not distracting.
Comprehension
Comprehension is mostly accurate on common, concrete, and work related topics when the accent or variety used is sufficiently intelligible for an international community of users. When the speaker is confronted with a linguistic or situational complication or an unexpected turn of events, comprehension may be slower or require clarification strategies.
Interaction
Responses are usually immediate, appropriate, and informative. Initiates and maintains exchanges even when dealing with an unexpected turn of events. Deals adequately with apparent misunderstandings by checking, confirming, or clarifying.
All pilots, air traffic controllers and aeronautical station operators involved in international operations must be able to speak and understand English to a level 4.
Level 3 – Pre-Operational
Vocabulary
Vocabulary range and accuracy are often sufficient to communicate on common, concrete, or work related topics but range is limited and the word choice often inappropriate. Is often unable to paraphrase successfully when lacking vocabulary.
Structure
Basic grammatical structures and sentence patterns associated with predictable situations are not always well controlled. Errors frequently interfere with meaning.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm, and intonation are influenced by the first language or regional variation but only sometimes interfere with ease of understanding.
Fluency
Produces stretches of language, but phrasing and pausing are often inappropriate. Hesitations or slowness in language.
Comprehension
Comprehension is often accurate on common, concrete and work-related topics when the accent or variety used is sufficiently intelligible for an international community of users. May fail to understand a linguistic or situational complication or an unexpected turn of events.
Interaction
Responses are sometimes immediate, appropriate, and informative. Can initiate and maintain exchanges with reasonable ease on familiar topics and in predictable situations. Generally inadequate when dealing with an unexpected turn of events.
Level 2 – Elementary
Vocabulary
Limited vocabulary range consisting only of isolated words and memorized phrases.
Structure
Shows only limited control of a few simple memorized grammatical structures and sentence patterns.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm, and intonation are heavily influenced by the first language or regional variation and usually interfere with ease of understanding.
Fluency
Can produce very short, isolated, memorized utterances with frequent pausing and a distracting use of fillers to search for expressions and to articulate less familiar words.
Comprehension
Comprehension is limited to isolated, memorized phrases when they are carefully and slowly articulated.
Interaction
Response time is slow, and often inappropriate. Interaction is limited to simple routine exchanges.
Level 1 – Pre-Elementary
Vocabulary
Performs at a level below the Elementary level.
Structure
Performs at a level below the Elementary level.
Pronunciation
Performs at a level below the Elementary level.
Fluency
Performs at a level below the Elementary level.
Comprehension
Performs at a level below the Elementary level.
Interaction
Performs at a level below the Elementary level.
Source: ICAO Doc 9835, ICAO Rating Scale and holistic descriptors