The FRTOL Written Exam

01What the Written Exam Is

The UK Flight Radiotelephony Operator's Licence (FRTOL) has two parts: a written theory exam and a practical test. The written part is the Communications paper, subject 090 in the PPL and LAPL theory syllabus.

If you're training for a PPL or LAPL, Communications is one of your nine theory subjects, alongside Air Law, Meteorology, Navigation and the rest. Pass it once and it counts for both your pilot's licence and your FRTOL. You don't sit a separate RT theory paper.

According to the CAA, the exam can be run by an approved Ground Examiner at your ATO or DTO (in practice, your flying school), or by an approved FRTOL examiner. It must be completed before the practical test, and you take proof of your pass with you on the day. Our guide to what happens in the FRTOL practical test covers the second half.

The written exam checks that you know the rules and the standard phrases. The practical test checks that you can use them in real time. Learn the theory well and the practical is far less daunting, because you'll already know what the controller expects to hear.

02Format and Pass Mark

It's a short multiple-choice paper, with four options per question and one correct answer. The pass mark is the same as for every other UK PPL theory subject.

• Questions and time allowed. We haven't found a current official CAA figure for the number of questions or the time limit on the Communications paper, so we won't guess. Ask your flying school, which will know the current paper.
• Validity. The CAA says that if you take Communications with your PPL, LAPL or NPPL theory, all those exams must be passed within 18 months, and the Communications pass is then valid for 24 months after your final theory exam.
• Where it's sat. Usually at your flying school, under exam conditions, with a Ground Examiner.

03What's on the Syllabus

The paper is built on CAP 413, the UK Radiotelephony Manual. Edition 24 applies from 1 July 2026. These are the topics that come up most.

Definitions and Standard Words

Know exactly what each standard word means. Roger only means you've received the last transmission. Wilco means you understand and will comply. Standby means wait and you'll be called; it is neither approval nor refusal. Negative means no, permission not granted, or that's not correct. Say again asks for a repeat, and Unable means you can't comply, normally followed by a reason. Know the Q codes too: QNH, QFE, QDM, QDR and QTE. Our CAP 413 phraseology guide lists the standard words in full.

Categories of Message and Their Priority

1. Distress messages
2. Urgency messagesIncluding messages with the medical transports signal.
3. Communications relating to direction finding
4. Flight safety messages
5. Meteorological messages
6. Flight regularity messages

UN Charter messages and priority government messages come next, followed by service communications and other aeronautical communications. These rarely come up for private pilots.

Transmitting Technique

Listen before you transmit, keep the microphone at a steady distance, press the switch fully before speaking and release it only when you've finished. Speak at an even rate, no more than about 100 words a minute, with a slight pause before and after numbers. Avoid "er" and unnecessary chat.

Callsigns and Abbreviation

Once two-way contact is established, and if there's no risk of confusion, the ground station may shorten a callsign: G-ABCD becomes G-CD. You may only shorten your own callsign after the ground station has done so first.

Read-Backs

CAP 413 lists the messages you must read back in full: taxi instructions, levels, headings, speeds, route clearances, approach clearances, the runway in use, runway clearances (enter, land, take off, backtrack, cross, hold short), squawks and other transponder instructions, altimeter settings (with units when below 1000 hPa), VDF information, frequency changes, the type of service and transition levels. Everything else can be acknowledged more briefly. Our guide shows which instructions you must read back, with an example of a wrong read-back being corrected.

Air Traffic Services in the UK

Service definitions live in CAP 774. You'll find a summary of the four UK flight information services in our main guide.

Distress and Urgency

Distress (MAYDAY) means you're threatened by serious or imminent danger and need immediate assistance. Urgency (PAN PAN) concerns the safety of the aircraft, someone on board or someone in sight, but doesn't need immediate help. Learn the order of the emergency message by heart, the "STUDENT" prefix for solo students, how silence is imposed ("stop transmitting, MAYDAY"), and how it ends ("distress traffic ended"). If you're not talking to anyone, call London Centre on 121.5 MHz. See how to make a Mayday or Pan call.

Radio Failure and Squawks

If you can't make contact, check the basics first: the right frequency, the station is open, you're within range, the volume is up, the headset is plugged in. Then try another suitable frequency or another aircraft. If that fails, transmit your message twice, prefixed "TRANSMITTING BLIND". If you think only your receiver has failed, use "TRANSMITTING BLIND DUE TO RECEIVER FAILURE" and send your reports twice at the expected times or positions. A VFR pilot with a radio failure squawks 7600, stays in visual conditions and lands at the nearest suitable aerodrome, then tells the relevant air traffic unit.

VDF, QDM and QTE

A VHF direction-finding station measures the bearing of your transmission. QDM is the magnetic heading to steer, assuming no wind, to reach the station. QDR is your magnetic bearing from the station. QTE is your true bearing from the station. Bearings are classed by accuracy: Class A within ±2°, B within ±5°, C within ±10°, and D anything worse than C.

Frequencies and Range

VHF travels in roughly straight lines, so range depends on height and on hills between you and the station. A common rule of thumb is a range in nautical miles of about 1.23 times the square root of your height in feet. Frequencies are protected only within set limits: for an international aerodrome, 25 NM up to 4,000 ft for Tower and 10,000 ft for Approach. Say all six figures of a frequency, unless the last two are both zero, when the first four will do.

Numbers, Letters and Time

Expect questions on how numbers, levels, headings and frequencies are spoken, plus the phonetic alphabet. Our page on the aviation phonetic alphabet and radio numbers covers it in full. Times are given in UTC, normally just the minutes past the hour.

Weather, ATIS and VOLMET

ATIS is a recorded aerodrome information broadcast, identified by a letter you quote on first contact. VOLMET broadcasts weather reports for a group of aerodromes, with the details published in the UK AIP. Know the order of a VOLMET report: aerodrome, wind, visibility, RVR if any, weather, cloud, temperature, dewpoint, QNH and trend.

Aerodrome and Airspace Phraseology

Expect questions on radio checks and the readability scale (1 is unreadable, 5 is perfectly readable), joining and departure calls, ATZ and MATZ procedures, controlled-airspace clearances, and the difference between ATC, AFIS ("Information") and air/ground ("Radio") stations. SAFETYCOM calls, for example, are made only within 10 NM of the aerodrome and below 2,000 ft above aerodrome elevation (or not more than 1,000 ft above circuit height, where one is published).

04How to Revise

• Learn the lists word for word. Message priority, the read-back list, the emergency message order and the VDF classes are pure recall. Write them out from memory until you can do it without missing anything.
• Read CAP 413 itself. Revision books are useful, but the exam is built on CAP 413. Chapters 2 (general radiotelephony), 4 (aerodrome), 6 (approach) and 8 (emergencies) matter most for VFR pilots.
• Watch the wording. Several options often look right. Words like "only", "must" and "always" matter, and so does the difference between magnetic and true, or "from" and "to" the station.
• Say it out loud. Phraseology sticks far better when you say it. To practise RT calls in the FRTOL app, talk to an AI controller that checks your read-backs, which helps the written exam and the practical test at the same time.
• Take it early. Many instructors suggest sitting Communications before your first solo cross-country, so the phraseology is second nature by the time you need it.

0520 Practice Questions

These are our own questions, written to test the same topics. They aren't real CAA exam questions. Read each one, choose your answer, then open "Show answer".

1. Which of these categories of message has the highest priority?

   1. Flight safety messages
   2. Meteorological messages
   3. Communications relating to direction finding
   4. Flight regularity messages
   Show answer

   C. After distress and urgency, direction-finding communications come next, then flight safety, meteorological and flight regularity messages.

2. Your oil pressure is slowly falling. The aircraft is flying normally and you decide to divert, but you don't need immediate help. Which prefix fits best?

   1. MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY
   2. PAN PAN, PAN PAN, PAN PAN
   3. SECURITE, SECURITE, SECURITE
   4. No prefix: just request a diversion
   Show answer

   B. Urgency concerns the safety of the aircraft without needing immediate assistance. Distress is for serious or imminent danger needing immediate help. If it gets worse, you can upgrade to a Mayday.

3. When may the pilot of G-ABCD start using the callsign G-CD?

   1. As soon as two-way contact has been established
   2. Only after the ground station has abbreviated it first
   3. On any frequency where traffic is light
   4. Only after the initial call has been acknowledged
   Show answer

   B. The ground station decides when it's safe to shorten callsigns. A pilot may only abbreviate after the station has done so.

4. Which of these does CAP 413 NOT require you to read back in full?

   1. A QNH
   2. A squawk
   3. A frequency change
   4. The surface wind
   Show answer

   D. Altimeter settings, transponder instructions and frequency changes are all on the read-back list. Surface wind isn't, so it can be acknowledged briefly.

5. ATC passes "QNH niner niner ait hectopascals". How should you read it back?

   1. "QNH niner niner ait, G-CD"
   2. "QNH niner niner ait hectopascals, G-CD"
   3. "Roger QNH, G-CD"
   4. "Niner niner ait millibars set, G-CD"
   Show answer

   B. Altimeter settings are read back in full, and CAP 413 requires the units to be included when the value is below 1000 hectopascals.

6. A station replies to your radio check with "readability 3". What does that mean?

   1. Readable now and then
   2. Readable but with difficulty
   3. Readable
   4. Perfectly readable
   Show answer

   B. On the scale, 1 is unreadable, 2 readable now and then, 3 readable but with difficulty, 4 readable and 5 perfectly readable.

7. What does "Wilco" mean?

   1. I have received your last transmission
   2. I understand your message and will comply with it
   3. Wait and I will call you
   4. Repeat your last transmission
   Show answer

   B. Wilco is short for "will comply". "I have received your last transmission" is Roger, which doesn't promise to do anything.

8. You request to enter controlled airspace and the controller says "Standby". What should you do?

   1. Enter, as your request hasn't been refused
   2. Treat it as a refusal and route around
   3. Remain clear and wait to be called; it's neither approval nor refusal
   4. Repeat the request straight away
   Show answer

   C. Standby means wait and you'll be called. No clearance can be assumed. If the delay gets long, you would normally call again.

9. What is a QDM?

   1. Your true bearing from the station
   2. Your magnetic bearing from the station
   3. The magnetic heading to steer, assuming no wind, to reach the station
   4. The true track to the station
   Show answer

   C. QDM is the magnetic heading to the station in still air. QDR is your magnetic bearing from it, and QTE your true bearing from it.

10. A VDF bearing is given as "Class Bravo". How accurate is it?

    1. Within ±2°
    2. Within ±5°
    3. Within ±10°
    4. Worse than ±10°
    Show answer

    B. Class A is within ±2°, Class B within ±5°, Class C within ±10°, and Class D is less accurate than Class C. Normally nothing better than Class B is available.

11. Which squawk indicates a radio failure?

    1. 7000
    2. 7500
    3. 7600
    4. 7700
    Show answer

    C. 7600 is radio failure. 7700 is emergency, 7500 is hijack or other act of violence, and 7000 is the UK conspicuity code.

12. You can hear nothing, but think your transmitter may still work. What should you do once the usual checks have failed?

    1. Stop transmitting until the radio is fixed
    2. Transmit each message twice, prefixed "TRANSMITTING BLIND DUE TO RECEIVER FAILURE"
    3. Transmit once on 121.5 MHz only
    4. Squawk 7700 and stay silent
    Show answer

    B. With a suspected receiver failure, send your reports twice at the expected times or positions, prefixed with that phrase, on the frequency in use.

13. In a Mayday message, what comes straight after the nature of the emergency?

    1. Your position
    2. Your qualifications
    3. The intention of the person in command
    4. The number of people on board
    Show answer

    C. The order is: prefix, station, callsign, aircraft type, nature of the emergency, intentions, position, level and heading, qualifications, then anything else useful.

14. How should a solo student pilot in G-ABCD start a Mayday call to Borton Tower?

    1. "MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY, Borton Tower, STUDENT G-ABCD…"
    2. "STUDENT, STUDENT, STUDENT, Borton Tower, G-ABCD…"
    3. "MAYDAY, Borton Tower, G-ABCD, student pilot…"
    4. "Borton Tower, G-ABCD, MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY…"
    Show answer

    A. The prefix is said three times, then the station, then the callsign with "STUDENT" in front of it, so the controller knows straight away you're inexperienced.

15. You're not receiving any service when an emergency starts. What should you do with the transponder?

    1. Leave it on your current code
    2. Set 7700, preferably before making the call
    3. Set 7600 to warn ATC
    4. Switch it to standby to reduce workload
    Show answer

    B. Setting 7700, with Mode C if fitted, alerts radar controllers straight away. If you're already receiving a service, you may keep your assigned code.

16. Another aircraft keeps interfering with your distress traffic. What may you transmit?

    1. "All stations, silence, silence"
    2. "(callsign), stop transmitting, MAYDAY"
    3. "(callsign), clear the frequency, emergency"
    4. Nothing: only ATC may impose silence
    Show answer

    B. The aircraft in distress, or the station in control, may impose silence on everyone or on one station using "stop transmitting" followed by MAYDAY.

17. You're genuinely unsure of your position. What does CAP 413 recommend?

    1. Ask for a training fix on 121.5 MHz
    2. Say so and ask for a position fix, or make a PAN call
    3. Squawk 7600
    4. Climb and wait for ATC to call you
    Show answer

    B. A training fix is only for practice when you already know where you are. If you're actually lost, say so, or make a PAN call, so you get the right priority.

18. Under a Traffic Service, who is responsible for avoiding other aircraft?

    1. The controller
    2. The controller, but only for traffic shown on radar
    3. The pilot
    4. Shared equally between pilot and controller
    Show answer

    C. Under a Traffic Service the controller passes radar-derived traffic information, but collision avoidance stays with you. Only Deconfliction and Procedural Services provide deconfliction, and both are for IFR flights only.

19. How should you say the frequency 121.500?

    1. "One two one decimal fife"
    2. "One two one point fife zero zero"
    3. "One twenty-one decimal fife"
    4. "One two one fife"
    Show answer

    A. Frequencies are said digit by digit with "decimal". Normally all six figures are used, but when the last two are both zero, the first four are enough.

20. What is the maximum rate of speech CAP 413 recommends?

    1. 60 words per minute
    2. 80 words per minute
    3. 100 words per minute
    4. 120 words per minute
    Show answer

    C. Keep an even rate of no more than 100 words per minute, and a little slower when the listener will be writing things down.

06FAQ

For the official links, including CAP 413 and the CAA's FRTOL page, see the official CAA sources for the FRTOL.