There’s a YouTube video clip by ATC Audio making the rounds with a surprising title: She states Both Pilots INOPERATIVE. Actual ATC Sound The video declares to have actual ATC audio of Faucet Air Portugal flight faucet 484 H, an arranged guest trip from Lisbon, Portugal to Nice, France. The audio covers an air travel miscommunication which brought about much consternation among Great controllers. Especially, the pilot is reporting that the toilets are defective however the French controller recognizes her to be claiming the pilots are faulty.
There is no tip of when this occurred, no day or even a year is stated. Every various other write-up which mentions the incident is utilizing this video clip as its reference.
It’s an enjoyable video yet … is this really legit? I have my questions and I will inform you why.
The earliest version of the audio appears to be this set: Pilots or Commodes? A real Example of Aeronautics Miscommunication published on Instagram on the 2 nd of July. The poster creates:
A flight run by Air Portugal taking a trip from Lisbon (Portugal) to Great (France) spoken to Marseille ACC with an ask for a straight transmitting and to maintain broadband up until reaching FL 100 … Every commode aboard had stopped operating– and naturally, guests aspired to land as soon as possible.
French ATC misheard the transmission as “the pilots are unusable.”
This brought about numerous stressful mins filled with confusion and increasing worry– until it was cleared up and everybody could take a breath a sigh of alleviation. The issue was ironed out, and the trip proceeded without more difficulty.
This has a tone of a lesson in clear communication, including headings like WHY DID THIS HAPPEN and HOW COULD IT HAVE BEEN CLEANED UP FASTER? It wraps up that this “amusing situation” is a significant tip that reliable interaction has to do with clearness, shared assumptions and using the appropriate context.
So, why am I dubious?
First of all, there is the combination of radio telephone calls and interior call among controllers and ATC managers. These call are interior and just readily available to ATC. The call consist of the sound of a phone ringing and after that frantic conversation about what is occurring on the airplane. I can’t think about a circumstances where internal ATC call have actually ever before leaked. But of course, the exchange on the radio isn’t anywhere near as funny without the telephone call explaining the complication and rising the situation into a full-blown emergency. My point is that the telephone call do not make sense from a sourcing perspective, yet are additionally necessary, as they make the situation genuinely amusing. The exchange on the radio alone doesn’t make it clear how deep the misunderstanding goes.
After that there’s the fact that the French ATC transmissions exist in all. French privacy and data protection laws are extremely stringent. The French Code Pénal Article 226 – 1 and 226 – 2 states that the unsanctioned use and interference with radio frequencies and communications is prohibited with interception, taping and broadcasting carrying a charge of approximately one year of imprisonment and a EUR 45, 000 fine. If the target is a person in public authority, which an ATC controller is probably thought about to be, then the fine is boosted to as much as two years jail time and a EUR 60, 000 fine. This is just for recording and rebroadcasting ATC.
Edit: This actually resembles the more suitable statute , many thanks James! I can’t find much information on the legal situation besides individuals being really clear that they are not mosting likely to run the risk of sharing ATC communications due to the present scenario.
Remark écouter les avions parler à la radio?
Est-ce légal? Oui! Vous avez parfaitement le droit d’écouter la bande aéro! Mais attention, il est TOTALEMENT INTERDIT d’émettre! Veillez donc, si vous achetez une radio, à ce qu’elle ne possède pas de fonction Exhaust. Avant de voir les méthodes d’écoute, un peu d’aspect strategy peut s’ avérer utile si vous êtes motivés. Autrement, vous pouvez descendre directement à la partie des méthodes d’écoute!
Be that as it may, it would certainly be a separate offense for dripping the phone recordings, presuming they were lawfully videotaped in the first place. I can locate no other instance of French ATC and call being leaked and transmitted like this.
Further, the YouTube video around the very same date mentions ATCLive as the source for the interactions. No other source is ever provided. However ATCLive would not have recordings of phone calls for any flight control procedure, as they are inner just. And ATCLive does not cover the online feed from any type of French airport terminals. In October 2022, the LiveATC.net website creator published to their online forums on the subject:
We are involved in a disagreement with the air travel authority in France. All feeds are offline till that disagreement is resolved. We have sent a reaction to the authority and they appear to be rejecting to respond. The basis for their claim is likewise doubtful and doesn’t seem to have solid lawful footing whatsoever.
And in July 2023
It actually has no basis in law as a person who transmits over open airwaves without encryption has no reasonable assumption of privacy. They are alleging that air web traffic controllers can be personally recognized by the truth that they just provide guidelines to pilots over the air (willingly, because they chose their task). It is a ludicrous assertion.
Currently again, there’s no day offered on the video, but it just seems not likely that this audio was languishing on LiveATC.net archives for years before being uncovered by somebody with a YouTube network.
To wrap up: we have no information, we have no source, we have inner telephone call blended in with the radio call, and we have no ways of corroboration. You can see why I doubt.
Lastly, although I yield this is a weak factor, it seems very clear that the Tap Air Portugal pilot’s use of “bathroom” seems more and more like “pilot” as the video takes place. I can not aid however assume that any type of skilled flight team would certainly proclaim more plainly, not make the scenario even worse by going down the o totally. Better, the woman is plainly aware of the misunderstanding early: “No sir, we have the auto-pilot functioning properly. Our problem is with the commodes … no matter any longer. We are not proclaiming anything. We simply require to get here immediately.” And yet, with skilled English and good radio abilities, she does not change to the distinct official term, lavatory, or at the very least WC (which she uses at the end of the recording, so she knows the term). She could likewise have actually simply defined T-O-I-L-E-T, which must have been instinctive upon not being comprehended.
Yet naturally, if she had used another word to clarify, the issue would certainly have been resolved … and there would certainly have been no need for the amusing phone calls trying to exercise what to do.
I know everyone likes to tease the French but I locate the whole series all really questionable, especially the frantic call that the airplane is intending to land without any pilots on board: “The fireman are out, everybody understands. Which’s it.”
No person in the remarks seems to be examining the accuracy of either video clip, so possibly I am just very seasoned. The conversation all seems to be about whether ATC is at mistake for rising to an emergency situation for such an easy concern, or the mistake of the pilot, for not utilizing the correct terms and not disambiguating.
So is it real? Who is responsible? Let me recognize in the comments what you think.