Reading back altimeter settings?

John Harper wrote:

Paul Tomblin wrote:

Does anybody have a good handle on when ATC wants you to read back
altimeter settings? On a single IFR flight on Tuesday, I encountered
several controllers who I'd check in with, and they'd give me an
altimeter
setting, and that would be it, and 2 (both in Canada, BTW) whom when I
didn't read back the altimeter setting gave it to me again.


In the US I've never read back an altimeter, I've rarely heard anyone
else do it, and I've never heard anyone questioned for it.

In the UK it is mandatory and they will prompt you if you don't read
it back. I guess Canada operates to the same procedures as the UK.

US radio practice is actually quite a bit different from the
international norm, as you quickly discover when you try to fly
somewhere else!

John

That's interesting, either flying flight following or IFR I read back
altimeter readings and I generally hear most everybody do that.

Ross

On Thu, 7 Apr 2005 14:24:31 +0000 (UTC),
(Paul Tomblin) wrote:

Does anybody have a good handle on when ATC wants you to read back
altimeter settings? On a single IFR flight on Tuesday, I encountered
several controllers who I'd check in with, and they'd give me an altimeter
setting, and that would be it, and 2 (both in Canada, BTW) whom when I
didn't read back the altimeter setting gave it to me again.

I automatically read back the altimeter setting when ever given,
whether IFR or VFR. Any time I've forgotten to include it in the read
back they have given it to me again.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com

Peter R. wrote:

John wrote:


In the US I've never read back an altimeter, I've rarely heard anyone


else do it, and I've never heard anyone questioned for it.


No offense, John, (seriously) but do you currently fly so many hours in
so many parts of the US that you can make that broad of a statement?

I can certainly make that statement with absolute authority. Read it
again, carefully. I speak only about my own experience. I don't claim
to speak for what goes on in the rest of the US, or for the 99.99% of
the time I don't spend flying. For all I know there's some weird
conspiracy that everyone reads back altimeter settings religiously
unless I happen to be on the frequency. But it still doesn't affect
the validity of what I wrote.

John


I only fly about 5-7 hours per week, but in the busy Northeast US
airspace I *always* hear pilots, both GA and airline, read back
altimeter settings. Additionally, I have heard quite a few exchanges
where a controller has corrected an incorrect altimeter setting
readback.

Personally, I always read back any number given to me by ATC if for no
other reason than to aid my own memory.

So maybe there really is a geographic aspect to this. It's
true that my instructor taught me to minimize chit chat, and
I do. But really, honestly, in Northern CA where I do most of
my flying I rarely hear them read back, and never do it myself,
and it never seems to cause a problem. Or maybe I just filter
it out when other people do it, I don't know.

(Things that used to drive my instructor mad:

"identing" - "they can see it on the screen, you don't need to tell them"
"taxiing into position" - "how else are you going to do it"
etc.....)

John


I automatically read back the altimeter setting when ever given,
whether IFR or VFR. Any time I've forgotten to include it in the read
back they have given it to me again.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com

"Michael 182" wrote:
In the US I've never read back an altimeter, I've rarely heard anyone
else do it, and I've never heard anyone questioned for it.

Really - I hear about 9 of 10 altimeters read back every time I fly.

Ditto.

--
Dan
C172RG at BFM

Paul Tomblin wrote:

Does anybody have a good handle on when ATC wants you to read back
altimeter settings? On a single IFR flight on Tuesday, I encountered
several controllers who I'd check in with, and they'd give me an altimeter
setting, and that would be it, and 2 (both in Canada, BTW) whom when I
didn't read back the altimeter setting gave it to me again.


I always read it back.

Matt

Paul kgyy wrote:

They want to know that you hear them. Sometimes I've just replied
"roger, 27D" but it's not much more of a deal to say "2994, 27D" which
I guess is what I will do from now on.


And you can drop the 2 to be even shorter. I generally just give the
last three digits as the first is obvious from the last three ... at
least at any altitude I'll ever fly at! :-)


Matt

John Harper wrote:

Paul Tomblin wrote:

Does anybody have a good handle on when ATC wants you to read back
altimeter settings? On a single IFR flight on Tuesday, I encountered
several controllers who I'd check in with, and they'd give me an
altimeter
setting, and that would be it, and 2 (both in Canada, BTW) whom when I
didn't read back the altimeter setting gave it to me again.


In the US I've never read back an altimeter, I've rarely heard anyone
else do it, and I've never heard anyone questioned for it.

Interesting as I've experienced just the opposite flying in the
northeast. I'd say almost all of the time they are read back.

Matt

John Harper wrote:

Peter R. wrote:

John wrote:


In the US I've never read back an altimeter, I've rarely heard anyone



else do it, and I've never heard anyone questioned for it.



No offense, John, (seriously) but do you currently fly so many hours in
so many parts of the US that you can make that broad of a statement?


I can certainly make that statement with absolute authority. Read it
again, carefully. I speak only about my own experience. I don't claim
to speak for what goes on in the rest of the US, or for the 99.99% of
the time I don't spend flying. For all I know there's some weird
conspiracy that everyone reads back altimeter settings religiously
unless I happen to be on the frequency. But it still doesn't affect
the validity of what I wrote.

It does question the effectiveness of your hearing aids though. :-)


Matt

Dan Luke Apr 7, 3:26 pm show options

Newsgroups: rec.aviation.piloting
From: "Dan Luke" - Find messages by this
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Date: Thu, 7 Apr 2005 17:26:16 -0500
Local: Thurs, Apr 7 2005 3:26 pm
Subject: Reading back altimeter settings?
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"Michael 182" wrote:
In the US I've never read back an altimeter, I've rarely heard
anyone
else do it, and I've never heard anyone questioned for it.

Really - I hear about 9 of 10 altimeters read back every time I fly.



Ditto.

************************************

Well, of course. The proper procedure is to read back the altimeter
setting. VFR or IFR.