Towered · Class D
KPAO Palo Alto
Palo Alto, CA
METAR KPAO 231847Z 32010KT 10SM FEW021 BKN030 18/13 A3008
- Wind
- 320° at 10kt
- Altimeter
- 30.09
- Runway in use
- 31
- Tower
- 118.6
- Ground
- 125.0
- NorCal Approach
- 121.3
AI radio training for US student pilots
Sound confident before you press the transmit button.
A controller that answers what you actually said, at your own airport, with today’s weather, and a grade against the AIM after every call.
Any of the 4,717 public-use airports in the FAA data. Opens Virtual ATC; free to start.
Or take the free radio check →
Graded against AIM 4-2 & P/CG · 4,717 US public-use airports · Live METARs and traffic
Graded call · Exercise A121.9Boeing Ground · KBFI
You · N123AB
Boeing Ground, Skyhawk one two three alpha bravo, north ramp with information Alpha, request taxi for a VFR departure to the north.
Boeing Ground
Skyhawk one two three alpha bravo, Boeing Ground, runway one four right, taxi via alpha, hold short runway one four left.
You · N123AB
Runway one four right, taxi via alpha, hold short one four left, Skyhawk three alpha bravo.
90/100Minor issues
- Not correct: Callsign use. The student abbreviated the callsign without ATC doing so first.
- Correct: Initial call format. The initial call was structured correctly with all required elements.
- Correct: Message structure / order. The message was structured in the correct order.
- Correct: Service request & readback. The service request and readback were clear and accurate.
Incorrect callsign abbreviation
Use the full callsign 'one two three alpha bravo' until ATC abbreviates it first.
Model answer
Boeing Ground, Cessna one two three alpha bravo, north ramp with information Alpha, request taxi for a VFR departure.
Graded against the AIM
Everything you need to master the radio
Learn it, practice it live, and prove it. All in one place.
- Graded exercises, VFR and IFR14 exercises · 70 prompts
Initial contact, readbacks, reports, emergencies, airspace, the pattern, non-standard situations, radar services, controlled airspace, arrivals, non-towered airports and numbers, plus IFR clearances, holds, approaches and the missed.
- Scenarios and cross-country journeys10 scenarios · 9 journeys
From the pattern to a Class B transit, and real routes between real airports with the hand-offs along the way.
- Checkride-style radio check1 full-flight check
A VFR flight from the ramp to the tie-down with every call graded and a report of what an examiner would notice.
- Communications quiz56 questions
Multiple choice, by topic, with the AIM or Pilot/Controller Glossary paragraph for every answer.
- Study library and course19 cards · 26 lessons
Written from the AIM with paragraph references, from the alphabet to a full flight. Free with an account.
- Virtual ATC at your airport4,717 airports
Ground, Tower, Approach or the CTAF with today's METAR and the real ADS-B traffic nearby, where available — flown under your own tail number, which every exercise uses.
How it works
- 1
Pick your airport
Type it in. Any public-use US airport, with its real frequencies.
- 2
Make the call
Push to talk. Say it the way you would in the airplane.
- 3
The controller answers
To what you actually said, not a script, and moves the situation on.
- 4
Read the grade
Verdict, score, each fault with its correction, and the AIM paragraph.
What makes TowerTalk different
Your airplane, your tail number
Set your tail number and airplane once and every exercise, scenario, cross-country and the checkride-style radio check use them — so you practice the call you will actually make.
Real airports, real frequencies
4,717 public-use US airports, with their frequencies from the FAA's own airport data.
Real weather
Today's METAR, the altimeter setting in it, and the runway most into the wind — the same numbers you would read back on the day.
Real traffic on the frequency
The aircraft actually near the field right now, from ADS-B, with their real call signs — and when the pattern is empty, simulated traffic so the frequency is never silent.
Graded against the AIM
Not a script and not a checklist. Every call is marked on phraseology, order, completeness and the mandatory readbacks, with the AIM or Pilot/Controller Glossary paragraph quoted.
You speak — it listens
Push to talk and say it out loud. The controller answers what you actually said, including when it was wrong, and the situation moves on from there.
Your airport, today’s weather
Three of the 4,717 airports, with the METAR the controller is using right now. The altimeter you read back is today’s.
Towered · Class D
KHPN Westchester County
White Plains, NY
METAR KHPN 231856Z 29008KT 10SM CLR 15/M01 A3034 RMK AO2 SLP274 T01501006
- Wind
- 290° at 8kt
- Altimeter
- 30.36
- Runway in use
- 29
- Tower
- 118.575
- Ground
- 121.825
- New York Approach
- 120.8
Non-towered · Class G
KHAF Half Moon Bay
Half Moon Bay, CA
METAR KHAF 231915Z AUTO 32012KT 8SM CLR 18/14 A3009 RMK AO2
- Wind
- 320° at 12kt
- Altimeter
- 30.09
- Runway in use
- 30
- CTAF
- 122.8
- NorCal Approach
- 135.1
Why it grades the way it does
Every call is assessed against the FAA Aeronautical Information Manual and the Pilot/Controller Glossary, strictly and as an examiner would: phraseology, completeness, order, the mandatory readbacks and the right facility. Each point of feedback carries the paragraph it comes from, so you and your instructor can check it.
| Call | What is checked | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Taxi readback | Taxi readback: runway assignment and hold-short instruction | AIM 4-3-18 a 9 |
| Answering a traffic advisory | Answering a traffic advisory | P/CG: TRAFFIC IN SIGHT; NEGATIVE CONTACT |
| Distress call | Distress call: MAYDAY three times, fuel in minutes, people on board, 7700 | AIM 6-3-1 c; 6-3-2 a 2, a 3; P/CG: FUEL REMAINING |
Guides to FAA radio phraseology
All 30 guides- Do you need a radio license to fly a plane in the US?Not for flights inside the US.
- Scared to talk on the radio? Every student pilot isRadio anxiety is a normal part of flight training.
- First solo radio calls, from the ramp to the tie-downEvery call of a first solo in the pattern, in order, at a towered airport and a non-towered one: ATIS, Ground, Tower, each leg, the option, the go-around and back to Ground..
- Your first radio call as a student pilotThe shape of the first call to Ground or Tower, how your identification works, saying 'student pilot', and the readbacks the controller is listening for..
- FAA radio phraseology basicsLetters and numbers, altitudes and frequencies, the altimeter setting, ATIS and 'have numbers', and which facility you are talking to..
- CTAF radio calls at non-towered airportsSelf-announcing from ten miles out to clear of the runway, the airport name first and last, UNICOM, and the phrase the AIM says never to use..
- How to request VFR flight followingThe request to Approach or Center, the squawk and 'radar contact', answering a traffic call, and how the service ends..
- Line up and wait, cleared for takeoff, cleared to landWhat each tower clearance authorizes, what must be read back with the runway, and the calls from the hold line to 'contact Ground'..
- Class B clearance and Class C, D radio calls'Cleared into the Class Bravo' before you enter, two-way communication for Class C and D, and what Special VFR needs..
- Squawk codes: 1200, 7500, 7600, 7700The VFR code, the three emergency codes, when to ident, and how to change codes without setting off an alarm..
What it costs
One payment to get you through the checkride, or a plan for staying current afterwards. Free to start, no card needed.
- FreeFree
No card. Find out where you stand before you spend anything.
- Final ApproachBest value$69.99
Everything for your checkride for 90 days — one payment, no subscription. Train hard, pass, done.
- Monthly$20.99/mo
Certificate in hand? Keep your radio work sharp, month to month.
Make your first call somewhere it doesn’t matter
Free to start. Hear how a real facility answers, and find out what to fix before a real controller does.
Graded against AIM 4-2 & P/CG · 4,717 US public-use airports · Live METARs and traffic
Any of the 4,717 public-use airports in the FAA data. Opens Virtual ATC; free to start.
TowerTalk is a training aid, written in our own words from the FAA Aeronautical Information Manual (Change 3, 7/9/26), the Pilot/Controller Glossary and Order JO 7110.65, with paragraph references. It is not approved or endorsed by the FAA and does not replace those documents, your instructor or your examiner. Frequencies, weather and traffic are for training, not operational use. TowerTalk is a UK company; prices are shown in US dollars.