5 Simple Student Pilot Radio Mistakes (And How To Fix Them)

The good news? Every single student pilot radio mistake is 100% avoidable, and once you know them, you’ll never make them again.

Here are the most common student pilot radio mistakes we hear, with the real examples (slightly anonymized), and the simple fix.

Common Student Pilot Radio Mistakes:

1. The “Novel” Initial Call (Talking Way Too Much)

Bad Example: “Uhh Tower this is Cessna 123AB I’m a student pilot on my first solo and I’m at the north ramp with information Delta and my instructor said to call you when I’m ready to taxi and I think I’m ready now for a south departure if that’s okay…”

Good Example: “Tower, Cessna 123AB at north ramp, ready to taxi with Delta.”

Fix: Your first sentence should never be longer than 10–12 words. Who you’re calling, who you are, where you are, what you want. That’s it.

2. Stepping on Other Aircraft (The Dreaded Double Transmission)

Happens when a student doesn’t have good situational awareness of whats happening on frequency.

Fix: Listen for the 1-second silence after the controller finishes, then key the mic. If you hear the “beep-beep” of a stuck mic or double call, wait 5 extra seconds. Chapter 4, Section 2 of the Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) is a good source of information on proper radio etiquette and techniques.

3. Saying “Roger” When a Readback Is Required

Controller: “Cessna 567GH, hold short runway 9.”

Pilot: “Roger.”

The controller will definitely reiterate the instruction to you until you read it back. Hold-short instructions require a full readback with your call sign.

Fix: Always read back all hold-short instructions verbatim.

4. Forgetting Your Call Sign at the End

Pilot: “Turning left base runway 27.”

We have three aircraft in the pattern. Who just said that?

Fix: End every transmission with your call sign (or the shortened version after established).

5. Panicking When We Say “Stand By”

“Stand by” means exactly that — wait 10–30 seconds. It does NOT mean you did anything wrong. Sometimes there’s a lot going on in the tower or radar room like coordinating with other agencies or controllers that you do not hear broadcasted over the frequency. There could also be a situation that needs to be sorted out with another aircraft that takes priority at the time.

What students do: Immediately key up again: “Did you copy?” That just makes it worse.

Fix: Relax. We’ll get back to you.

Once you have a good grasp on the most common student pilot radio mistakes be sure to Checkout some phraseology for your first solo flight:
How to Talk to Air Traffic Control on Your First Solo – Exact Phraseology From a 20+ Year Controller

Ready for flight following? This 15-second script works every time:
Flight Following Made Easy: The 15-Second Phraseology That Always Works