[Webb]

It's pet peeve time.

I just got back from a round trip from MS to AL. I probably had a dozen controllers there and back. I heard every one of them loud and clear (Memphis, Pensicola, Mobile, Jackson, Houston) except one male out of Houston.

On the way down,the controller had almost no audio, made the comment that he had tried to call us multiple times. I had another pilot with me and neither of us heard him.

On the way back, we had a very pleasant lady out of Houston with enough audio that we had to turn down the volume.

Every other controller was chipper and loud. The guy out of Houston sounded young and was very soft spoken and we never missed any other calls.

We do our best but it's tough to follow what you can't hear. Am I wrong to be a bit "bent" with the smart*** sound of his tone when he said he tried to call us a bunch of times? Oh, and center was average on busy.

 

[wv4i]

Sign of the times

I'd recommend a deep breath and continue in a civil manner. If a controller or pilot has low/poor audio, need to tell them regardless of response, or they never know. If possible, monitor guard on a second radio. In South FL, we have a lot of new controllers, a lot of pilots fm other countries, students to ATP, lots of wx avoidance related chatter, and then throw in operational errors, things that could have been done better, by both controllers and pilots.

The main objective is to be safe, not hit anybody or anything, and of course avoid post flight correspondence with the FAA or NTSB.

 

[Webb]

We did tell

I'd recommend a deep breath and continue in a civil manner. If a controller or pilot has low/poor audio, need to tell them regardless of response, or they never know. If possible, monitor guard on a second radio. In South FL, we have a lot of new controllers, a lot of pilots fm other countries, students to ATP, lots of wx avoidance related chatter, and then throw in operational errors, things that could have been done better, by both controllers and pilots.

The main objective is to be safe, not hit anybody or anything, and of course avoid post flight correspondence with the FAA or NTSB.

In all fairness to him, I know he was frustrated with us. Communication from him was professional, just you could hear it in the "tone". I am also thankful that I didn't get one of those "call this number when you get on the ground".

I did appologize for not responding and told him that I was having difficulty hearing him. After all was done, my co-pilot and I looked at each other after neither of us heard multiple calls. We didn't have any more problems from him or other controllers. It may have been just a radio dead spot. He may have turned up his audio, who knows.

Everybody misses a call every once in a while but multiple misses were a new one for me.

Lesson learned - Let the controller know they are hard to understand before they let you know that you are not responding.

This probably belongs on the safety thread.

 

[groucho]

I had a controller get all-out fussy with me on the radio when I couldn't hear calls from him as I approached the Phoenix. After calmly letting him know that I couldn't hear him & asking him if he had another transmitter closer to me, he switched transmitting antennas & I was able to hear him easily. An airliner in my area then responded to the controller that he could also hear him L&C...apology from the controller for getting snotty.

If your radios are fine & you're at an altitude where you should have good reception, ask the controller if there's anything on their end that could be messing up the comm between you (like a closer transmitter). 9 times out of 10, it's the radio they have selected.

 

[osxuser]

This happens a LOT when talking to center/approach in the tween altitudes. They just aren't using the right transmitter, it has nothing to do with them being soft-spoken or anything. What I do if I start hearing just one side of every conversation (The readback from other pilots) is: I key up and ask the controller if he has another transmitter to work from. I usually break the squelch on the radio first to ensure that I can hear SOMETHING of his response. Seems to work most every time.

 

[Bob Axsom]

Don't Worry About What You Can't Control

I used to maintain communication and navigation systems for air traffic control in the Air Force and I can assure you that a lot of things can be going on with the controller's systems that he is totally unaware of. You did what you should do in reporting the lack of reception. Never let the communication content drive you to respond in a bad way regardless of where the breakdown fault lies. If the controller should go out of control to where your safety of flight is threatened then you can declare an emergency and take control of your situation and fly the flight plan to completion in accordance with FAA procedures for lost communication in IFR flight. If it is not an IFR flight I would continue the flight as required to achieve a safe completion. When the "I have a number for you to call when you are ready to copy" transmission is received just go through the process and explain exactly what you heard and did in your most civil manner to honestly resolve the situation. If there is a continuing issue request the tapes from the affected agencies in writing under the Freedom of Information act in a traceable manner. You have to pay the cost (not very expensive) and you must do it before the recordings are deleted (as I recall from my incident the recycle period was 30 days). I don't even remember what I was accused of in one of my daily commutes home from work in Los Angeles when I got the dreaded "I have a number ..." call from SNA ground controller but it was serious and I wasn't about to let the situation go without recorded communications in my possession. Nothing came of it but I still have the tapes.

Bob Axsom