Effective Radio Use R adio not only gives you useful flight tips during cross country flights and competitions but is essential for pick-ups.
Sometimes though, chatter is so distracting that the radio becomes a nuisance and volume has to be turned down to enable concentration on flying. Are you getting the full benefits of radio or contributing to making radio difficult? Poor radio users find their flying buddies can disappear to another channel or switch off completely. Wouldn’t you rather they were still there to tell you where they find lift or to relay your landing position if you can’t contact your driver? By following some basic tips, radio is less hassle and becomes a valuable asset to enhance your flying and keep you, other pilots and your driver safe and sane.
Use the Right Radio Check which type of radios other pilots that you fly with use, it’s no good having a great radio if you can’t talk to anyone. There are 3 main types commonly in use; UHF radios have become cheaper and more sophisticated in recent times. Many are now fine quality, but some are just toys. The old CB VHF 26 MHz not long ago had every channel in use by annoying idiots or Asian fishing boats which made practical use impossible. These people have probably graduated to internet social media now. UHF has become widely used in Australia and NZ. Also referred to as PCS (Personal Communication System) these radios offer 40 channels. No license is required and in NZ the band has not become overcrowded as in Australia. You can legally get anyone to use a radio on these frequencies for retrieves. 2 metre (Ham) radios are now compact and usually give the best performance but the licence has a complex exam with little about how to actually use it. In the past there were some who spent all their time tracking down illegal users of their frequencies. This is rare in NZ now but Ham Nazis still frequent Australian HG and PG comps where overseas Ham radio users often turn up. Licensed 2m users get the benefits of using repeaters to speak to people well out of usual range and can even talk to cellphones. Some 2m radios can be modified to work on other frequencies as well, but these radios
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can be complicated. Many HG pilots use these, as a while back the CB frequencies were unusable. Ham radio is used extensively in Europe and in the USA. The USHPA even has allocated frequencies. Airband radios used to be big, expensive and not perform well, but compact, better quality models are now available. You can use Airband to fly in Mandatory Broadcast Zones and ask Airport Control for permission to use controlled airspace. Airband is already a requirement at some flying sites. Another benefit is that you could use it to call aircraft overhead if you need emergency help. At present airband radios are not so widespread in HG and PG but the NZHGPA has organised airband licencing. Airband has a more practical exam and is worth doing. You can use your NZHGPA PIN number as a call sign. There is even a frequency allocated for us to use. Procedures for airband use are on the NZHGPA website. Another option is the compact triband radios. With minor modification they cover many frequencies well, with the exception of transmission on airband. They are often waterproof, a big advantage when it rains or somebody’s camelback soaks everything in the car boot. They are complicated but are very robust. There are Chinese radios which you can buy for less than the price of a headset for the established brands. I’ve heard reports of them failing with no support, but some pilots swear by them and have few problems. If buying one, you can afford to get an extra as backup. If buying from NZ sources you may pay a little more but are protected by the Sale of Goods Act. Choose a reputable model, or one others use and recommend. If you need to spend few extra dollars for quality it can make the difference between being understood or not. You need it to not let you down when you need help or are a long way from civilisation. Whatever the radio, get one that transmits at 5 watts, a lesser powered radio will not have the same clarity or range. A low powered radio will be drowned out by other users transmissions.
Controls You probably won’t want to lift the radio to your helmeted head to use it so a helmet speaker with a wired PTT (push to talk) or a speaker-mic should be used. Some radios even have bluetooth for a finger switch PTT.
We get a lot of wind noise so the microphone must have foam over it. Without foam, wind noise distorts speech, making you hard or impossible to understand. Many full face helmets made for flight have recesses for mic and speaker. Robust cables and a sealed waterproof PTT switch are advised.
Aerials Reception is normally ‘line of sight’ but various aerials can be fitted to your glider or harness to improve reception. Some help, but often they are a lot of hassle for little improvement with less reliability. Bear in mind that any extra connections increase the chance of something failing. I’ve only ever had minor improvements with fancy aerials and often found they failed. I now just use the factory aerial for reliability. Mount the radio so the aerial points vertically. With some radios a more powerful battery can have more effect than an elaborate aerial. Check it has enough distance from other instruments which it may interfere with. A spare extendable aerial can improve your range when on the ground. Many XC pilots carry a spare battery pack also.
Ensure it Works A malfunctioning radio screws up everyone’s communication. Always ensure your battery is fully charged and microphone and transmit switch work correctly before launch. If you’ve had problems, always sort that out before going flying, it’s usually impossible to fix these things on the hill. Before launch, you (Joe) should always do a radio check with your driver (Tom) or fellow pilot. For example you could say; “Joe to Tom, radio check.” Tom replies; “Copy Tom to Joe,” (using the least number of words so you don’t annoy pilots already flying). You reply, ”Copy,” so Tom knows you heard him too. Once your radio is set up correctly, lock the keypad to prevent accidental frequency changes. Many radios have so many options now that an accidental touch on the keypad or knob could disable it. If this happens in flight, one option is to switch it off, then on again rather than try to figure out the right key combination when you should be flying. If you have a remote finger switch PTT (push to talk) , make sure it does not activate while you are launching. Don’t use VOX (voice activation) because you can’t be certain it will operate reliably and it can be
set off by wind noise, your vario or your in-flight muttering, cursing or nose clearing! Very few people ever use VOX twice, it is universally considered a nuisance. Remote PTT finger switches and leads of any kind will, inevitably fail or lock your radio on transmit, ruining communication for everyone until your battery is flat. Learn to care for them but when they do fail, you want the radio within reach so you can disable the offending wiring. Mounting your radio on a shoulder strap means you can still use it after remote finger switch failure, can plug in a spare aerial, change a battery, and easily reach it if you wind up hanging in a tree. Radios are complex instruments that endure knocks and extremes of temperature as well as mysterious radio interference and idiots jamming a channel so they are never 100% reliable. As you can never fully rely on radio, always brief your driver and have a call-in phone number arranged for when your radio goes on the blink. An EPIRB or satellite messenger like Spot is a sensible addition to your kit.
Talk Properly When you transmit, your first word is often clipped as there is a slight delay before transmission, so train yourself to push the button first, then speak. If your first word is your name; “Joe to Tom”, chances are Tom will recognise your voice and your first word is not a vital to your message. Think before you speak. Keep it short. If you make long transmissions, the end of your message may not be received as your transmit power drops off. Speak normally, shouting over the wind or vario noise just distorts your transmission, making it harder to understand. Remember you are broadcasting to EVERYONE on your channel, most are not interested in what you have to say, so keep it brief. Always think before you speak.
Common language Copy, Roger – Message received and understood. Say Again, Please repeat – Repeat your last message. Over, Out – I’ve finished speaking. Say this at the end of conversation only. Stand by – Message received, but can’t respond right now. Go ahead – I can now respond, go ahead with your message Affirmative/Negative – Yes/No.
Essential Information Only Remember, the radio is not a private phone. It’s annoying to other pilots
