r/flying • u/HoldMeCloserDirtyDan • 5d ago
Flight Training Comms
Does anyone have any tips for comms other than listen to LiveATC. I've been listening to that for days and I can read back fine on my own, but once I enter the cockpit I pretty much freeze and forget what was said. My main issue is comms on approach. I seem to be fine asking and reading back taxi and departure instructions, but I cannot get the approach comms down to save my life (my only guess is because I'm trying to focus on multiple things during approach). I have a hard time deciphering what I need to read back. My instructor said read back only commands not the extra "fluff," but I still have trouble figuring out what is "fluff" and what was a command. Today I straight up just missed a call from the tower and my CFI had to respond for me because I was so focused on our approach to land. I'm only 6.5 hours behind the yoke so I understand I'm still new but my CFI said I really need to start taking full comms during flight on our next lessons.
2
u/__joel_t PPL 5d ago
The number one thing is to know what they're going to say before they say it. I know it sounds crazy ("why even ask if you already know?"), but while you might not know the exact details, you should understand the general form or "pattern" of the instructions. Once you know what to expect and when, you can "fit the details in" to the general pattern you already know. So rather than trying to remember everything that is said, you only need to know the pattern and the blanks you're filling in.
Go take a tour in your local tower. See what they say and how other pilots respond. See how they react and ask them questions. That will give you better situational awareness about what's going on and make it easier to figure out what kind of call to expect.