Standard and Non-Standard Lexicon in Aviation English: A Corpus Linguistic Study

Ramsey S. Ferrer
De La Salle University – Manila
ramsey_ferrer@dlsu.edu.ph
+639-06-4089714

Abstract The English Language has earned a vital role in the field of
Aviation as recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
It has become a prerequisite among pilots and Air Traffic Controllers to
demonstrate a proficiency in standard aviation phraseology for communications
since 2011. However, pilots and ATC have demonstrated failures in using
standard phraseology that has likely contributed to communication errors
(Molesworth & Estival, 2014) has led to flight incidents which occur when
lexicons, having standardized usage, are used in non-standard ways, leading to
ambiguity and thus posing potential errors. Indeed, a pellucid communication
between pilots and ATCs is imperative for a safe and expeditious flight operation.
Following Kachru’s (1985) World Englishes paradigm through a corpus-based
approach (Tiewtrakul & Fletcher, 2010), the present study investigates the lexical
items used in non-standard ways that cause to communication errors in a corpus
of Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) or Quick Access Recorder (QAR) transcripts
with 26,421 words obtained from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines
(CAAP) and from select International Airlines’ accessible transcripts.
Particularly, this study has two main parts: to identify the lexical items that have
standard usage but are employed in non-standard ways; and to report the results of
two surveys conducted for 12 ATCs and 20 pilots from CAAP. This paper adapts
the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Phraseology survey (Said,
2011) in order to assess ATCs and pilots’ knowledge on the use of the lexical
items that are not standardized and to provide implicative views on the practices
that are occurring but are not always standard.

Keywords: Standard, Non-Standard, Lexicon, Aviation English, Corpus

Linguistics