U.S.-registered aircraft crossing the North Atlantic is hardly new, but smaller jet and turboprop airplanes are making many more crossings than even a decade ago. Because some of these pilots fly primarily in domestic airspace, they might not have experienced some of the intricacies needed to safely operate from countries where English is not the first language.
Citation Departs Controlled Airport Without a Clearance
Key Takeaways:
- A U.S.-registered Cessna Citation CJ2 departing Reykjavík narrowly avoided colliding with a sanding truck after commencing takeoff without clearance.
- The incident was primarily caused by a communication breakdown, as the air traffic controller switched between English and Icelandic, hindering the U.S. pilots' situational awareness of the truck on an intersecting runway.
- The pilots initiated takeoff without a verified clearance, contributing to the near-miss, despite discrepancies in their recall of radio transmissions.
- The event highlights the critical need for U.S. pilots to maintain extra vigilance when operating in countries where English is not the native language, even though English is the ICAO standard for air traffic control.
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