Why don't voice radio communications use FM?

"Mxsmanic" wrote in message
...
Emily writes:

Really? Can you cite some statistics? I'd be very interested in
reading them.

Just look through accident and incident reports. Radio communication
is one of the weak links in the aviation safety chain.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

I read NTSB reports every day for years. I cannot remember communications
being anything more than down in the noise level as far as an accident cause
and it certainly is not a leading cause of accidents.

"Emily" wrote in message
. ..
Mxsmanic wrote:
Emily writes:

Really? Can you cite some statistics? I'd be very interested in
reading them.

Just look through accident and incident reports. Radio communication
is one of the weak links in the aviation safety chain.

Has it ever been listed as a probable cause by the NTSB?

I have read thousands of NTSB reports and cannot remember one. Could be a
little CRS in there but not much.

Emily wrote:

The tower told the KLM aircraft to stand by at the same time the Pan
Am aircraft transmitted, which resulted in a blocking of both
transmissions. There were many other steps in the accident chain, but
Tenerife was most certainly not caused by a pilot hearing what he
wanted to hear.

Then why did the aircraft start its takeoff roll, if the pilot didn't hear
what he wanted to? The tower only issued the ATC clearance, and the KLM
captain seems to have taken that as permission to take off. What else is
that but hearing what he wanted to?

Mxsmanic,

I have my doubts about fly-by-wire systems or glass cockpits,
which seem to be increasingly designed for the convenience of
programmers who grew up with Windows rather than for the convenience
of pilots.


Sorry, but that's just plain BS.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

Emily writes:

They were misunderstood a) because people were stepping on other people
and b) because the KLM crew had heavy Dutch accents.

The reasons why they were misunderstood have never been ascertained,
and there are several possibilities. It's not even clear how much was
understood or misunderstood, since a number of the people involved are
dead. The common point to all the possible scenarios is misunderstood
radio communication.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Emily writes:

Actually, in the Tenerife accident, the only radio problem was caused by
simultaneous radio transmissions by aircraft, NOT a pilot hearing want
he wanted to hear.

There were several problems. The Pan Am crew was not sure of which
exit to take from the runway. Neither was the KLM, IIRC. The KLM
didn't understand the ATC clearance, and the tower didn't understand
the KLM acknowledgement. Pam Am said it was on the runway several
times but this was misunderstood as well. There were many
misunderstandings, most of them related to radio communication.

The tower told the KLM aircraft to stand by at the
same time the Pan Am aircraft transmitted, which resulted in a blocking
of both transmissions.

Not entirely true. Part of it was audible.

There were many other steps in the accident
chain, but Tenerife was most certainly not caused by a pilot hearing
what he wanted to hear.

That has never been determined. The most likely cause is that a pilot
heard what he wanted to hear, or he deliberately and negligently
ignored instructions. Other pilots may also have heard what they
wanted to hear.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Dave Stadt writes:

Nope, it was quite a ways down the line. Morse code via spark gap
transmitters was one of the first.

All early audio used AM.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Stefan writes:

Yeah. One pilot talks on AM and the other listens to FM. Great idea.
Adds a lot of clarity to the communication.

It adds more than you would have with both pilots using AM.

However, you're not supposed to listen to other pilots; you're
supposed to listen to controllers. All conversations are air-ground,
not air-air.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Dave Stadt writes:

Why screw around with FM. It is old technology, not much beter than AM,
and there are much better technologies that would cure the communication
problems and lack of frequency availibility.

Such as?

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Thomas Borchert writes:

Sorry, but that's just plain BS.

Famous last words.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.