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Communications — DGCA CPL Air Regulations
Chapter 18 of the Air Regulations paper. 61 practice questions in the Avielevate bank, every one with its answer key, filterable into a timed set on this chapter alone.
What this chapter covers
The learning objectives we file Communications questions under, and how many sit behind each. These come straight out of the bank and are regenerated whenever it changes — they are what is there today, not a claim.
| Learning objective | In the bank |
|---|
| __GEN__ General | 61 questions |
Sample Communications questions, answered and explained
Real questions from this chapter, with the answer marked and the reasoning written out — the same explanations you get inside the app.
0119021 · Communications
The time is 9:20 A.M. What is the correct way to transmit this time if there is no chance of confusion over the hour?
- ANine twenty A.M.
- BTwo zero
- CTwenty
Why that is the answer
ICAO RTF phraseology for transmitting time normally requires only the minutes past the hour to be spoken, using individual digits, unless there is a risk of confusion about which hour is meant, in which case the full four-figure time (hours and minutes) is given. Since the question specifies "no chance of confusion over the hour," the applicable rule is the shortened minutes-only form, and for 9:20 that means transmitting only the minutes portion, spoken digit-by-digit as "TWO ZERO," rather than the full time or a civilian-style clock reading. A wording built as "Nine twenty A.M." is wrong on two counts: it includes the hour, which is unnecessary here since the question states there's no risk of confusion, and it uses a civilian A.M./P.M. clock convention that ICAO RTF time phraseology does not use at all, since aviation time is normally expressed in the 24-hour system without AM/PM designators. A wording of "Twenty," while numerically correct in value, fails the phraseology rule requiring each digit to be pronounced individually — the two-digit group must be spoken as "TWO ZERO," not as the single word "twenty," matching the same digit-by-digit convention used for frequencies and transponder codes. Because the correct transmission must be both minutes-only (hour omitted, no confusion risk) and digit-by-digit (not a whole-number word), "Two zero" is the only option satisfying both requirements.
- ICAO RTF time phraseology normally transmits only the minutes past the hour, omitting the hour when there is no risk of confusion — exactly the condition stated in the question.
- A wording including "Nine twenty A.M." is wrong because it includes the unneeded hour and uses a non-ICAO civilian AM/PM convention.
- Numbers in RTF time (and generally) are spoken digit-by-digit, not as whole-number words.
- "Twenty" fails the digit-by-digit rule — it should be split into its two digits.
- "Two zero" correctly applies both rules: minutes-only, and each digit spoken individually.
- Mnemonic — "When the hour's not in doubt, leave it out — just call the minutes, digit by digit."
0119043 · Communications
What is an aircraft that suffers radio communication failure on an IFR flight in IMC assumed to do?
- AExecute a VMC approach at the nearest suitable aerodrome
- BContinue under the current flight plan to the designated navigation aid serving the destination aerodrome
- CDivert to the most suitable aerodrome along the route of flight
Why that is the answer
When an aircraft operating IFR in instrument meteorological conditions suffers a communication failure, the pilot is expected to continue the flight according to the current flight plan to the designated navigation aid or fix serving the destination aerodrome, and from there commence an approach at, or as close as possible to, the expected approach time - or the ETA resulting from the current flight plan if no expected approach time has been received. This predictable, rules-based behaviour is precisely what lets ATC keep the rest of the traffic clear of the affected aircraft's known intended path even though it can no longer be radioed. Executing a VMC approach at the nearest suitable aerodrome only becomes the appropriate action if the aircraft is actually operating in VMC at the time communication is lost; the question specifies IMC, so this option describes the wrong weather condition for the procedure it names. Diverting to the most suitable aerodrome along the route of flight is not the prescribed communication-failure procedure - it substitutes an ad hoc decision made unpredictably by the pilot for the fixed, ATC-anticipated routing that the actual procedure relies on, which would make the aircraft's position far harder for ATC to predict and protect. The whole point of the standardized procedure is predictability: ATC can safely separate other traffic from an aircraft it cannot talk to only because that aircraft's behaviour is expected to follow a known, published rule.
- Communication failure procedure for IFR flight in IMC: continue per the current flight plan to the aid/fix serving the destination.
- From there, commence approach at the expected approach time, or as close as possible to the flight-plan ETA if none was given.
- "VMC approach at nearest aerodrome" only applies if the aircraft is actually in VMC - this question specifies IMC.
- "Divert to the most suitable aerodrome along the route" is an unpredictable ad hoc choice, not the prescribed procedure ATC expects.
- Predictability is the entire point: ATC can protect an aircraft it cannot talk to only if its behaviour follows the known rule.
- Mnemonic — Lost your voice, keep your plan: fly the flight plan to destination's aid, then approach on schedule.
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Frequently asked
How many Communications questions are there for the DGCA CPL Air Regulations paper?
Avielevate's bank carries 61 published Communications questions for Air Regulations, mapped across 1 learning objective. Every one has its answer key, and explanations are being written across the whole bank.
How much of the Air Regulations paper is Communications?
The DGCA does not publish a per-chapter breakdown of its papers, so nobody can honestly tell you — and we will not guess. What we can tell you is what students who have just sat a paper reported meeting, which is measured rather than rumoured: that is the exam recall report inside the app.
What is the best way to revise Communications?
Sit a short timed set on this chapter alone, tag how sure you were of each answer, then drill the two that actually leak marks: the ones you got right while guessing, and the ones you got wrong while confident. Avielevate does that tagging for you and puts anything you got wrong back in front of you on a spaced schedule.
The rest of the Air Regulations paper
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