In article
,
a wrote:

It would be amusing to have MX copy a real clearance, wouldn't it?
Maybe not from JFK but a smaller airport. Want to bet there would be
several "say again's", followed by the delivery guy saying something
like "read my lips".

I'm sure it would be amusing. However, it would also probably be amusing
to make me do it, too. Excluding some training I did at a towered
airport many years ago, and which is now all forgotten, I think I've
talked to ATC exactly once in my flying career. As a glider pilot, there
just isn't any call for it. My radio experience would probably help
somewhat, but we're not exactly copying clearances on the local CTAF!

Of course in rebuttal MX would say something either about the quality
of the radio, or of the guy giving the clearance. FWIW, I do wonder if
bad audio quality is required in aviation radios?

My guess is that it's just limited by the technology. Air-band radios
use AM with not a whole lot of power output, and I imagine that's
limiting. If we could start from scratch with a nice modern digital
protocol I imagine it would be a lot better. But as with many things,
legacy rules. It doesn't help any that the aircraft radio market is
miniscule, so we don't get to benefit from economies of scale the way,
say, the cell phone market does.

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon