Questões de Inglês - Interpretação de texto | Reading comprehension para Concurso

Instruções: As questões de números 53 a 55 referem-se ao texto abaixo.

Cumulonimbus (Cb)

Cumulonimbus is a heavy and dense cloud of considerable vertical extent in the form of a mountain or huge tower, often associated with heavy precipitation, lightning and thunder. The mature Cumulonimbus cloud has a distinctive flat, anvil shaped top.

Flight into a Cb is highly dangerous. The only sensible defence against the hazards associated with a Cb is therefore to avoid flying into one in the first place.

− Planning. Predicting an individual Cb cell is difficult but it is possible to predict the conditions which will trigger formation of a Cb. Forecasters are therefore able to advise flight crews and controllers of the likely timing, location, direction of movement, and height of cells and whether or not they may be embedded. Airport authorities can plan aircraft movements to take into account the disruption to operations caused by storms, and approach controllers can consider how they will manage en-route, departing, and arriving traffic when storms are in the vicinity. Flight crews can alter their routings to avoid forecast Cb activity or decide to carry extra contingency fuel in case they have to re-route in flight to avoid the storms or burn additional fuel because of the potential use of aircraft de/anti-icing systems.

− Awareness. Awareness of the conditions which lead to the formation of a Cb, recognition of a developing and mature Cb, and awareness of the signs which indicate the proximity of a Cb will help controllers and flight crews to plan operations to avoid the associated hazards.

− Weather Radar. In addition to visual recognition, Weather Radar is a particularly valuable aid to avoiding Cb clouds. Airborne weather radar enables the flight crew to identify the areas of the storm cloud which hold the largest water droplets, which indicate the areas with strongest updrafts. The area of the cloud with the most severe turbulence is where the updrafts adjoin the downdrafts; ...[C]... the pilot must avoid flying through the edge of the areas of cloud with the largest water droplets. It should be remembered that a large cloud will absorb a great deal of the radar pulse which may therefore not penetrate all of the way through the storm. This can give a false impression that there are no Cb cells beyond the cell immediately ahead of the aircraft.

− In flight avoidance. In certain circumstances, navigating through a line of Cb cells may be the only option open to a pilot, either because his destination is beyond the line of cells or because he is unable to climb over them. In such circumstances, the aircraft may have to diverge from track by many, perhaps hundreds of miles, in order to find a gap in the wall of Cb clouds. The aircraft captain will need to judge the least hazardous track to follow through a line of cells, something which will absorb the whole crew’s attention. The Weather Radar is invaluable in this situation.

If the Cb cell is situated over the destination aerodrome, then the pilot would be well advised to hold off or divert rather than attempt a landing.

(Adapted from http://skybrary.aero/index.php/Cumulonimbus)

Instruções: As questões de números 50 a 52 referem-se ao texto abaixo.

Crucial part of new US air traffic system in trouble

By JOAN LOWY

WASHINGTON (AP) – An information-sharing program essential to government plans for a new national air traffic control system is about $105 million over budget and has been delayed two years, a government watchdog said Thursday.

The first phase of the Federal Aviation Administration program known as System-Wide Information Management, or SWIM, was supposed to be completed by 2013, but has now been pushed back to 2015, said a report by the Transportation Department's Office of Inspector General.

The FAA is in the midst of switching from an air traffic system based on World War II-era radar technology to one that uses GPS. The transition, which is expected to take more than a decade to complete, was to cost the government as much as $22 billion. The cost to the airline industry to equip their planes to use the new system is likely to be almost as much.

Crucial to that transition is a program to share information, including which airports are experiencing delays, which runways are closed, weather reports, pilot observations, flight plans and security restrictions on where planes can fly.

The idea is to create a one-stop place for FAA employees, the military, other government agencies, airlines and the international aviation community to get real-time information.

(Adapted from http://mb.com.ph/node/323714/crucial-part-new-u)

Instruções: As questões de números 45 a 49 referem-se ao texto abaixo.

Radio Discipline

Communication between pilots and air traffic controllers is a process that is vital for the safe and efficient control of air traffic. Pilots must report their situation, intentions and requests to the controller in a clear and unambiguous way; and the controller must respond by issuing instructions that are equally clear and unambiguous. ...[B]... data link communication has reached an advanced stage of development, verbal communication is likely to remain the prime means of air-ground communication for many years.

t is of course important that radio equipment should be reliable and easy to use, and should be capable of conveying the spoken word clearly and without distortion over long distances. However, the process of communication is equally important and must be successful even in the most difficult conditions.

Of the many factors involved in the process of communication, phraseology is perhaps the most important, because it enables us to communicate quickly and effectively despite differences in language and reduces the opportunity for misunderstanding. Standardised phraseology reduces the risk that a message will be misunderstood and aids the readback/ hear-back process so that any error is quickly detected.

Radio communications (including party-line communications) contribute to building the pilot’s and the controller’s situational awareness. Flight crew and controllers may prevent misunderstandings by providing each other with timely information, for better anticipation.

Good radio discipline is essential to this process. Poor radio discipline is the most common cause of breakdown in the RTF communication process.

Aspects of Radio Discipline

1. Always listen out before transmitting − unless flight crew listen out before making a first call on a new frequency, they may interrupt an exchange between other traffic and ATC.

2. Always use standard phraseology.

3. Follow best practice on message format and content.

4. Ensure the use of a high standard of English language and pronounce as clearly as possible whilst speaking at a sensible pace.

5. Do not communicate with aircraft in the national language when there is a risk of loss of situational awareness for nonlocal pilots.

6. Follow best-practice with regard to speed and timeliness of communication.

7. Always apply the read-back/hear-back procedure. 8. Always request a repeat of a transmission when in any doubt as to the content or meaning of it.

(Adapted from http://www.skybrary.aero/ bookshelf/books/113.pdf)