ASL617

Assessment Services Revision 3 12/14

GPO Box 286
Canberra ACT 2601
AUSTRALIA
Phone +61 2 6262 8820
Fax +61 2 6262 8830
Internet www.aslexam.com
E-Mail: [email protected]

AVIATION LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY FAQs

Why do I need an Aviation Language Proficiency Qualification?

Following a number of international aviation accidents and incidents, where human factors -
including language proficiency - were contributory factors, the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) introduced measures designed to increase the safety of international air
travellers.

Effective from 5 March 2008, ICAO confirmed English as the language for standard use in
international aviation communication and introduced standards of compliance requiring all
international pilots, flight navigators, Air Traffic Control personnel and aeronautical station
operators to have an Aviation Language Proficiency (ALP) Qualification.

The ALP tests provided by ASL

ASL provides a stand-alone testing service to meet the ICAO requirements for aviation
language testing. This service was developed by ASPEQ (parent company to ASL) and is fully
compliant with the Manual on the Implementation of the ICAO Language Proficiency
Requirements - Doc 9835-AN/453.

The ASL aviation language testing system has been designed with question banks to cover pilot
and air traffic controllers. Two tests are currently available that meet the ICAO standard (6
levels):
 Level 6 Proficiency Demonstration (L6PD). This is a semi-direct 10 minute test taken
over the telephone and is provided for candidates at the top level of aviation language
proficiency.
 Formal Language Evaluation (FLE) - This test is conducted over the telephone and
contains both direct (10minutes) and semi-direct interviews (approximately 7minutes)
conducted for candidates requiring testing at levels 1-6.
o Semi-direct: the exam is delivered over the telephone by connection with ASL’s
Chatterbox computer platform. Questions and prompts are delivered over the
phone using a recorded human voice.
o Direct: Questions are delivered in a live interview conducted over the telephone.

Are there pre-requisites before I can take an ALP test?

 Refer to the CASA website

http://www.casa.gov.au/scripts/nc.dll?WCMS:STANDARD::pc=PC_90115
What is tested by the ALP tests?

The tests are designed to fairly assess candidates proficiency in the English language in an
aviation context. ICAO has established categories for testing candidate’s language proficiency
skills as follows:

 Pronunciation – Manner of speaking, stress, rhythm and intonation. Influence of dialect

or first language on ability to be understood.
 Structure – Basic and grammatical structures and sentence patterns.
 Vocabulary – Vocabulary range and accuracy
 Fluency – Ability to speak at length. Ability to vary speech for effect.
 Comprehension – Ability to understand spoken language
 Interactions – Interaction with another speaker/listener

Proficiencies are measured for each skill on the following scale:

Level 6 Expert Qualification valid for life

Level 5 Extended Qualification valid for 6 years
Level 4 Operational Qualification valid for 3 years
Level 3 Pre-Operational No qualification issued
Level 2 Elementary No qualification issued
Level 1 Pre-elementary No qualification issued

Note that: A candidate’s lowest rating for any of the categories is the rating applied as the
overall test result.

Should I take a L6PD or a FLE test?

The FLE test is more comprehensive than the L6PD demonstration and assesses candidates
over the full range of proficiencies from level 1 to level 6. This test contains both direct and
semi-direct elements and will take approximately 30 minutes to complete. The cost to take a
FLE test is greater than that of a L6PD test; however the range of possible outcomes is also
greater. A FLE Demonstration can be found here:
http://media.aspeqexams.com/Demo FLE - Final Cut.mp3

The L6PD test is a shortened version of the FLE and is designed to confirm level 6 capabilities
only. The only outcomes for this test are ‘achieved level 6’ or ‘not determined’. Therefore only
those candidates believing that they have this level of proficiency should undertake this test. An
L6PD test can be taken only once and a ‘not determined’ result will then require the candidate to
undertake the full FLE process.

What if I need to have an urgent assessment?

If you wish to sit an Aviation Language exam urgently or on a date other than those recorded on
the timetable please contact ASL and we may be able to arrange a date that suits you.
Our ability to arrange a special sitting will be subject to supervisor and venue availability.

How are the ASL ALP tests conducted?

Candidates are required to report in person to an ASL examination centre (session as pre-
booked by the candidate) and examinations are conducted one at a time in a supervised
environment. ASL provides the exams by semi-direct method using a recorded human voice. In
addition the FLE exam contains a direct element as a one-to-one interview conducted by an
Interviewer. Both the direct and semi-direct test elements are conducted over a telephone
connection.

The exam Supervisor will connect you via telephone link to ASL’s computer based platform
which randomly selects the prompts and questions from the Question Bank and records your
responses to those prompts.

After the completion of the test, expert raters will access the recorded responses and assess
them according to the ICAO specified criteria.

Separate versions of the tests are provided for pilots and ATC personnel. Select the following
links to access a detailed description for each of the exam process.

FLE
 FLE Test description for Pilots
 FLE Test description for ATC personnel

L6PD
 L6PD Test description for Pilots
 L6PD Test description for ATC personnel

When will my results be available?

Ratings are undertaken by raters independently at the conclusion of the test.

The raters will listen to the recordings produced from the exam and apply their rating.

Once completed, the results are published to the ASL website.

Normally ratings are concluded within 3 - 5 days, however results are frequently available within
a lesser timeframe.

Candidates are able to access their results by logging on to www.aslexam.com and accessing
their personal results page by clicking on ‘My Account’ then ‘My Results’.

Candidates need to print out their results and email them into CASA at [email protected] to be
uploaded to their licence.

Can I retake the test if I fail?

The L6PD demonstration can only be taken once. Candidates who fail the L6PD would then be
required to pursue the FLE exam process.

Candidates who fail the FLE can re-sit this exam. Candidates may sit the FLE exam up to three
times in a three month period. If three attempts are failed in a 3 month period the candidate will
be required to undertake a three month stand down before being permitted to attempt the exam
again. This will allow a period of re-training.

Can I appeal my results?

Yes, you can appeal the results of a test.

A review may be requested up to 1 month after completion of the ALP exam. Candidates can
apply for this online or via email or post.

On receipt of payment of the associated review fee ASL will assign a third (independent) senior
rater to conduct a review of the assessment. The fee for a review is $99.

If the review results in a change to the initial result this will be confirmed in the Tasman website
by an update of the previous result.
The final outcome, whether changed or not, will be confirmed by letter to the candidate with the
outcome of the review and result notification (this will also include the rater’s comments).

A refund of the review fee is only to be made if the changes are due to negligence or gross error
by ASL or the raters. A change in result/rating is not, by itself, sufficient grounds for a refund.

Candidates are advised that if lodging a review the exam should not be retaken before the
outcome of the appeal is known. This is because the result of the most recent test taken is the
result that will be applied as the candidate’s final result. Therefore if a further sitting is taken and
results in a Fail before the outcome of an appeal is known - even if the appeal results in a Pass
the Fail result of the later sitting will still apply as it is the result of the most recent test taken.

Why do I have to sit this test that seems very easy and does not seem to address
any specific aviation competencies?

CASA in compliance with international agreements must ensure that all pilots have adequate
English skills. A trained linguistic expert can easily determine a native English speaker from
people with English as a second language with a relatively small sample of speech segments.
While apparently trivial to most native English speakers it is not so for everyone.