Meridian Air 623 is cruising high above the Alps when a message appears on a screen in the flight deck. Listen to find out what the message says, and what the crew does about it. Before you press play, think for a moment: if one source of electrical power stops working, what would you want the crew to do next? Then listen and check your idea.
- generator (noun) — a machine that produces electrical power for the aircraft. e.g. “the remaining generator was now carrying the whole electrical load.”
- reset (noun) — switching a system off and on again to try to clear a fault. e.g. “they tried one reset, as the checklist allowed.”
- electrical load (noun phrase) — the total amount of electrical power that the aircraft’s systems are using. e.g. “the remaining generator was now carrying the whole electrical load.”
- auxiliary power unit (noun phrase) — a small engine, usually in the tail, that can supply electrical power; often shortened to APU. e.g. “the crew started the auxiliary power unit as a back-up source of power.”
- urgency call (noun phrase) — a radio message, starting with Pan-Pan, that tells controllers a flight has a serious problem but is not in immediate danger. e.g. “the captain then made an urgency call.”
- cleared direct (verb phrase) — given permission to fly straight to a point, instead of following the planned route. e.g. “the controller cleared them direct to the airport.”
- generator control unit (noun phrase) — the small computer that regulates how much power a generator produces. e.g. “engineers later found a faulty generator control unit.”
Check your understanding
First, listen all the way through once without stopping — just get the whole story. Then listen again, pausing or replaying if you need to, and put these six events in the order they happened. Write the numbers 1–6.
- The captain made a Pan-Pan call.
- Engineers replaced a faulty generator control unit.
- A caution message about generator 1 appeared on the screen.
- The aircraft landed at Milan Malpensa.
- The crew started the auxiliary power unit.
- The crew tried one reset of the generator.
- A caution message about generator 1 appeared on the screen.
- The crew tried one reset of the generator.
- The crew started the auxiliary power unit.
- The captain made a Pan-Pan call.
- The aircraft landed at Milan Malpensa.
- Engineers replaced a faulty generator control unit.
Meridian Air 623, an Airbus A320 flying from Zurich to Rome, was cruising at 36,000 feet over the Alps when a caution message appeared on the screen in front of the pilots: “Generator 1 fault.” One of the aircraft’s two main electrical generators had stopped working. The first officer kept flying the aircraft while the captain followed the checklist. They tried one reset, as the checklist allowed, but the generator did not come back.
The remaining generator was now carrying the whole electrical load, so the crew started the auxiliary power unit as a back-up source of power. The captain then made an urgency call: “Pan-Pan, Pan-Pan, Pan-Pan, Milan Control, Meridian Air 623, A320, loss of one generator, request diversion to Milan Malpensa.” The controller cleared them direct to the airport, and the crew landed there without any further problem.
Nobody was hurt, and every other system worked normally throughout. Engineers later found a faulty generator control unit, the small computer that regulates the generator’s output. They replaced it, and the aircraft returned to service the next day.
Listen again and notice how the words run together in phrases like “one of the aircraft’s” and “had stopped working” — natural speech links these into one flowing sound rather than separate words.
Speaking follow-up
Imagine you are the captain of Meridian Air 623. After landing, your airline’s operations team asks you to explain, in your own words, what happened — the caution message, what you did about it, and why you made an urgency call. Record your answer aloud, in 45–60 seconds.
If a word won’t come, describe around it or use a filler and keep talking — staying fluent matters more than the perfect word. Record yourself on a phone voice memo and play it back; there’s no single right answer — aim for a clear, structured response under time pressure. Then record it once more, keeping going for the full time with fewer long pauses, and compare the two takes.
Play back your recording and rate yourself on each ICAO skill. Then re-record, focusing on whichever line you rated lowest.
| Skill | Ask yourself | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | Can a listener understand “generator”, “auxiliary power unit” and “urgency call” clearly, without needing to guess? | Yes / Almost / Not yet |
| Structure | Did you tell it in order — before (normal cruise) → during (the caution message, the reset, the Pan-Pan call) → after (landing, the cause)? | Yes / Almost / Not yet |
| Vocabulary | Did you use at least three of: generator, reset, electrical load, auxiliary power unit, urgency call, generator control unit? | Yes / Almost / Not yet |
| Fluency | Did you keep talking for close to the full 45–60 seconds, without long silent gaps? | Yes / Almost / Not yet |
| Comprehension | If your operations team asked a quick follow-up question, could you answer it based on what you just said? | Yes / Almost / Not yet |
Level: CEFR B2 / ICAO Level 5
If you want to hear an electrical problem handled through live radio calls instead of narration, try Roleplay: Electrical Failure and Diversion to Copenhagen.
