Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Launches Aviation English Training

Daytona Beach, Fla., June 5, 2007 – The Worldwide Campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has teamed up with Aviation English Services (AES), a New Zealand based company, to provide the industry with aviation English training solutions to address the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) new requirements, which identify English as the official, recognized language of aviation.

In response to international concern over the role of language as a causal factor in a number of high-profile accidents, ICAO has developed a set of English language proficiency standards and recommended practices for pilots and air traffic controllers operating internationally. ICAO's 189 contracting states are required to ensure compliance for licensing of their pilots and controllers by March 2008 in order to continue to operate internationally.

The new aviation English program is an integrated educational approach that combines web-based self-paced instruction, classroom seminars, learning aids, and progress testing. The web-based modules are closely integrated with classroom-based intensive speaking seminars for efficient and effective language learning. Blended learning is especially appropriate for pilot and controller training because it maximizes the learning that takes place out of the classroom, thereby minimizing the impact of training on personnel schedules.

The credibility of Aviation English Services rests on the unparalleled expertise of its team of operational and aviation English specialists. The team includes some of the world's most experienced experts in the development of aviation English training and testing programs, experts instrumental in the creation of the ICAO language proficiency standards.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world's largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, offers more than 30 degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Engineering. The university educates more than 34,000 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs at residential campuses in Prescott, Ariz., and Daytona Beach, Fla., Worldwide at more than 130 centers in the United States, Canada, Europe, and the Middle East, and through online learning.