ICAO English in Arajet's Pilot Selection: What 633 Assessments Reveal

In short: Of 633 Arajet Captain and First Officer applicants assessed by Sky Aviation Club, 503 (79.5%) reached ICAO Level 4 or higher, the minimum for using English on international flights. The criterion that held back the most candidates was comprehension: it was below 4 for 73% of the 130 applicants who did not pass. Pronunciation, by contrast, was rarely the problem.

Since September 2025, Sky Aviation Club has administered the Arajet Knowledge and Situational Awareness English Assessment, the aviation English interview in the airline’s pilot selection process. This article summarizes what the aggregated, anonymized data shows, and what it means for any pilot preparing for an ICAO English assessment.

What is Arajet’s English assessment for pilots?

The Arajet Knowledge and Situational Awareness English Assessment is an aviation English interview for Captain and First Officer applicants. It determines whether a candidate has the language proficiency Arajet’s selection process requires. Sky Aviation Club conducts and rates the interview using the CBTA competency matrix and the descriptors in ICAO Doc 9835.

The process started on September 15, 2025. This analysis covers the 633 assessments with a result, with interviews dated from December 10, 2025 to October 30, 2026. All data is aggregated: nothing that could identify a candidate is published.

How is the ICAO level calculated?

The ICAO language proficiency scale runs from 1 to 6. The assessor rates six criteria separately (pronunciation, structure, vocabulary, fluency, comprehension, and interactions), and the overall level is the lowest of the six, not the average. A single criterion at 3 puts the applicant at Level 3, even if the other five are at 5.

If you are preparing for an ICAO assessment, see our ICAO language proficiency course.

How many applicants reached ICAO Level 4?

The tallest column is Level 4: 256 applicants passed right at the minimum. Among those who did not pass, almost all (127 of 130) landed at Level 3: they handle routine exchanges but do not yet respond confidently to the unexpected. Almost no one scored Level 1 or 2.

The takeaway is clear: the group has an acceptable English foundation. The remaining work is not teaching from scratch. It is moving many applicants from 3 to 4, and consolidating those at 4 so they do not slip at their next evaluation.

Do Captains and First Officers perform the same?

No. 87.0% of Captain applicants passed, versus 75.3% of First Officer applicants: an 11.7 percentage-point gap. First Officers are the largest group (392 of those assessed), so their result moves the overall rate the most. The earliest assessments, when position was not recorded, had an 85.0% pass rate.

Captains have a higher average on all six criteria, but the gap is not even:

The First Officer gap is in understanding and responding, not in how they sound. A likely explanation is that Captains have spent more years using English on the radio.

Which ICAO criterion holds back the most candidates?

Among the 130 applicants who did not pass, these are the criteria that fell below 4. A candidate can fall short on several, so percentages add up to more than 100%.

In practice, weak comprehension means difficulty understanding controller instructions or unexpected messages, including unfamiliar accents and non-routine topics. These applicants find it harder to understand what is said to them than to make themselves understood.

The full score distribution confirms the pattern: almost no one scored 1 or 2, and scores of 3 cluster in comprehension (93) and fluency (72), while pronunciation has only 17.

How close were the applicants who did not pass?

Closer than it looks. Of the 130 who did not pass:

67 applicants (more than half) are one or two criteria away from Level 4. Only 5 scored below 4 on all six. Most do not need a full course, just targeted reinforcement. The 22 who fell short on a single criterion (in 11 cases, comprehension) have the best outlook for a second interview.

One more data point: 211 applicants (33.3%) received the same score on all six criteria. That signals even proficiency: no strong criterion paired with a weak one, but balanced performance at their level.

How should you prepare for an airline ICAO English assessment?

The data from this process points to concrete priorities:

1. Train your listening, not just your speaking. Practice with real radiotelephony audio, with background noise and varied accents. This is where most candidates fall short.
2. Work on fluency. Speak at a natural pace without long pauses, especially when the situation goes off-script.
3. Prepare for the unexpected. The jump from Level 3 to Level 4 is responding confidently to non-routine events: an emergency, a changed clearance, a misunderstanding you need to resolve.
4. If you are a First Officer, strengthen comprehension and interactions. That is where the gap with Captains is largest.
5. If you are already at Level 4, do not get comfortable. More than half of those who passed landed right at the minimum; consolidating that level avoids surprises at your next re-evaluation.

Before paying for any test, also confirm with the authority or airline that requires it which tests it accepts.

ICAO English assessment for airlines

Sky Aviation Club administers aviation English assessments for airline selection processes, with reporting by level, criterion, and position like the one summarized here. If your airline or organization needs to assess its pilots, see our airline services or contact us.

Method note: figures were calculated from the process’s assessment sheet (644 records, 633 with a result). An applicant passes with an overall level of 4 or higher, where the overall level is the lowest of the six ICAO criteria. Recording inconsistencies (out-of-sequence dates, miscalculated overall levels, duplicate rows) were corrected before calculating. The results describe this group of applicants and should not be generalized to all pilots in the region.