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Friday 14 August 2026 · 2249Z EGLL · KJFK · OMDB · VHHH Member log in →

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STUDY DASHBOARD

Your review schedule, across every deck

See every vocabulary deck you're studying in one place — with spaced-repetition reviews scheduled for exactly when each word is about to fade, and a one-click round covering everything due today. A free account includes the free decks; paid membership unlocks all of them.

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Speaking and listening — practice streams

These skills are trained in our activity streams — every post is a complete practice session with audio, a recorder and a model to compare against.

Role-playsTwo-way ATC scenarios: hear the controller, respond in the gap, compare with the model pilot.Open → Standard phraseologyRoutine calls with the complete, correct read-back drilled until it is automatic.Open → Operational EnglishOff-radio communication: NITS briefs, passenger PAs and company calls.Open → Picture descriptionsDescribe an aviation scene aloud (or in writing), then compare with a sample answer.Open → Listening libraryNarrations and dictations built from real aviation events.Open →

Guides: real-life commonly used ATC phraseology.

Vocabulary — flashcard decks and spaced review

Your flashcard decks live here once you have an account. Log in or use the buttons above to join free.

Guides: downloadable vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation material.

Grammar — review rounds and the Grammar Check
GRAMMAR REVIEW

Short grammar workouts, built from our aviation lessons

Quick review rounds on the structures the ICAO test listens for — with feedback that explains why each answer is right, not just whether. Try three below.

  1. Reporting an announcement made last November about flight cuts: Officials said the reductions ___ ten percent by the middle of the month.

    • would reach
    • will reach
    • were reaching
    Check your answer

    would reach — The expectation is reported from a past viewpoint, so 'will' shifts back to 'would' — even though the idea itself was about the future.

    Reporting a future idea from a past viewpoint: will → would (or was/were going to).

  2. My brother is ___ first officer at a cargo airline.

    • a
    • — (no article)
    • the
    Check your answer

    a — In English, jobs and professions always take a/an: 'She is a pilot', 'He is an engineer'.

    Professions take a/an in English: 'I am a pilot', never 'I am pilot'.

  3. ___ the GE9X engine issue, Boeing confirmed the 777X's first flight was still targeted for April.

    • Despite
    • Although
    • However
    Check your answer

    Despite — 'The GE9X engine issue' is a noun phrase, and 'despite' is a preposition — it takes exactly that: a noun phrase or gerund.

    although + clause (subject + verb); despite + noun phrase / gerund. Look at what follows the blank.

Plus unlocks the full bank by topic plus the Grammar Check that finds your focus area. Pro will target it automatically from your own speaking assessments.

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Guides: grammar and structure articles · ICAO level 4 structure checklist · verb tenses.

Writing — practice tasks with a self-check method
WRITING PRACTICE

Real pilot writing, with a method that works alone

Writing is not on the ICAO test — but reports, emails and briefs are part of the job, and writing is the quickest way to notice your own English. Each task gives you a plan, a self-edit checklist, and one good version to compare with. Try one below on paper.

Imagine you are standing at the terminal window, looking at an aircraft on the stand during a normal turnaround, about 40 minutes before departure.

Describe the scene in writing for a reader who cannot see it — move from a general overview, to the details, to what you think will happen next.

  1. Overview: one sentence — what kind of scene is this?
  2. Details: the aircraft, the vehicles and the people, from big to small.
  3. Speculation: what has probably just happened, and what will happen next?

Useful language: in the foreground / in the background · on the stand · next to / under / around · it looks as if… · probably · in a few minutes

Aim for about 70–100 words. Write freely first — don't stop to correct.

Finished? Check your draft first
  • Did you move overview → details → speculation, in that order?
  • Does it describe what a reader could actually see, from big to small?
  • Are your guesses hedged (it looks as if…, probably), not stated as facts?
  • Did you link sentences (and, but, because) instead of writing a list?
  • Full sentences, capitals, full stops?
Then compare with one good version

This is a busy but normal scene at an airport stand during a turnaround. In the centre there is a medium-sized passenger jet with its doors open. A fuel truck is parked under the wing, and a belt loader is moving bags into the forward hold. Two ground crew in yellow vests are standing near the nose, talking. In the background, another aircraft is taxiing towards the runway. It looks as if boarding has not started yet, because the air bridge is still empty. In a few minutes the fuel truck will probably leave, and the passengers will start to board.

The description works because of its order: one overview sentence, then details from big to small, then clearly hedged guesses (it looks as if…, probably) — never stated as facts.

Now rewrite your draft once — good writers always improve a first attempt.

Plus unlocks the full task bank — occurrence reports, company emails, written briefs and more — with your drafts saved for redrafting. Pro will add personal feedback on what you actually wrote.

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Guides: how to describe an aviation picture · the writing correction code.