AAn accident that occurred in the skies over the Grand Canyon in 1956 resulted in the establishment of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to regulate and oversee the operation of aircraft in the skies over the Unite States, which were becoming quite congested. The resulting structure of air traffic control has greatly increased the safety of flight in the United States, and similar air traffic control procedures are also in place over much of the rest of the world.
A 1956年美国大峡谷上空发生的一起事故促成了联邦航空局(FAA)的成立。该局负责管理和监督美国越来越拥挤的天空。由此形成的空中交通管制结构大大增加了飞机在美国的飞行安全，世界其他很多地方也采取了类似的空中交通管制程序。
B 早在大峡谷灾难发生之前就存在雏形的航空交通管制(ATC)。早在20世纪20年代初，最早的空中交通管制员在机场附近用灯和标志旗手动引导飞机。当时，灯标和闪光灯沿着越野路线放置以建立最早的航线。然而，这种纯粹的视觉系统在恶劣天气情况下是无用的。到20世纪30年代，航空交通管制开始使用无线电通讯。首个采用类似于今天的航空交通管制的地方是纽约市，其他主要的大都市紧随其后。
BRudimentary air traffic control (ATC) existed well before the Grand Canyon disaster. As early as the 1920s, the earliest air traffic controls manually guided aircraft in the vicinity of the airports, using lights and flags, while beacons and flashing lights were placed along cross-county routes to establish the earliest airways. However, this purely visual system was useless in bad weather, and, by the 1930s, radio communication was coming into use for ATC. The first region to have something approximating today's ATC was New York City, with other major metropolitan areas following soon after.
C 20世纪40年代，航空交通管制中心利用了第二次世界大战催生出的新研制的雷达和改进后的无线电通讯技术，但管制系统仍然很不成熟。直到联邦航空局分创建以后，美国才开始进行全面的领空管制。而这一事件却是偶然的，因为喷气式发动机的产生突然导致大批快速飞机的出现。这些飞机减少了飞行员的误差幅度，并且需要实际的褴套规则以使飞机之间保持良好的分离状态，在空中安全行驶。
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CIn the 1940s, ATC centres could and did take advantage of the newly developed radar and improved radio communication brought about by the Second World War, but the system remained rudimentary. It was only after the creation of the FAA that full-scale regulation of America's airspace took place, and this was fortuitous, for the advent of the jet engine suddenly resulted in a large number of every fast planes, reducing pilots' margin of error and practically demanding some set of rules to keep everyone well separated and operating safely in the air.
D 很多人认为，航空交通管制就是一排管理人员坐在国家机场的雷达屏幕前指挥着抵港及离港的交通。这只是整个场景中的一部分。美国联邦航空局认识到每时每刻都会有许多不同种类的飞机，为了这样那样的目的，在各种各样的天气情况下飞行在美国的空中。因此，急需一个能够容纳所有情况的同一体系。
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DMany people think that ATC consists of a row of controllers sitting in front of their radar screens at the nation's airport, telling arriving and departing traffic what to do. This is a very incomplete part of the picture. The FAA realised that the airspace over the United States would at any time have many different kinds of planes, flying for many different purposes, in a variety of weather conditions, and the same kind of structure was needed to accommodate all of them.
E 为了迎接这一挑战，美国联邦航天局实施了以下重要措施。首先。让航空交通管制几乎遍及整个美国。一般来说，离地面365米以及更高的地方，整个国家都被管制空域覆盖。在某些地区，主要是靠近机场的地带，管制空域扩大到自地面215米以上的范围，而在紧邻机场的区域，管制空域包括地面以上所有区域。管制空域是美国联邦航空局规定适用的空域。在其他非受控空域，飞行员受到的限制较少。如此一来，那些出于娱乐目的只想短时间飞行而不受美国联邦航空局规定限制的飞行员就只能停留在365米以下的非受控领空，而希望得到航空局保护的飞行员可以很容易地进入管制空域。
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ETo meet this challenge, the following elements were put into effect. First, ATC extends over virtually the entire United States. In general, from 365m above the ground and higher, the entire country is blanketed by controlled airspace. In certain areas, mainly near airports, controlled airspace extends down to 215m above the ground and, in the immediate vicinity of an airport, all the way down to the surface. Controlled airspace is that airspace in which FAA regulations apply. Elsewhere, in uncontrolled airspace, pilots are bound by fewer regulations. In this way, the recreational pilot who simply wishes to go flying for a while without all the restrictions imposed by the FAA has only to stay in uncontrolled airspace, below 365, while the pilot who does want the protection afforded by ATC can easily enter the controlled airspace.
F 然后，美国联邦航空局确认了两种类型的飞行环境。在气象条件良好的情况下，飞行员可按照目视飞行规则(VFR)飞行。该规则主要依靠视觉线索来维持可接受的安全水平。低能见度使建立一套仪表飞行规则(IFR)成为必需。根据该规则，飞行员依靠飞机仪表盘提供的飞行高度和导航信息确保飞行安全。天气晴朗时，管制空域内的飞行员可以选择在目视飞行规则或仪表飞行规则下飞行，而美国联邦航空局的规定在同一空域同时适用于两套规则的实施。但如果飞行员的仪表等级超出或低于了其必须持有的基本飞行员执照规定的等级，飞行员只能选择遵循仪表飞行规则。
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FThe FAA then recognised two types of operating environments. In good meteorological conditions, flying would be permitted under Visual Flight Rules (VFR), which suggests a strong reliance on visual cues to maintain an acceptable level of safety. Poor visibility necessitated a set of Instrumental Flight Rules (IFR), under which the pilot relied on altitude and navigational information provided by the plane's instrument panel to fly safely. On a clear day, a pilot in controlled airspace can choose a VFR or IFR flight plan, and the FAA regulations were devised in a way which accommodates both VFR and IFR operations in the same airspace. However, a pilot can only choose to fly IFR if they possess an instrument rating which is above and beyong the basic pilots' license that must also be held.
G 管制空域分为几个不同的类型，以英文字母命名。非受控空域被定为F级，而海拔5490米以下非紧邻机场的受控空域被定为E级。5490米以上的所有空域被定为A级。E级和A级是根据其间飞行的不同飞机类型而划分的。一般来说，通用航空飞机(这类飞机的飞行高度大多不超过5490米)和商业涡轮螺旋桨飞机在E级空域飞行。5490米以上是大型喷气机的领空，因为喷气式发动机的效率随着高度的增加而增高。E级和A级之间的区别在于A级空域中所有的操作都遵循仪表飞行规则，飞行员必须具有仪表级别，换言之，必须熟练掌握飞机仪表的使用并获得许可。因为航空交通管制对整个空域的控制是至关重要的。其他三个等级：D级、C级和B级用于管理机场附近的区域。这三个级别大致分别适用于小型城市、中等城市和大型城市的机场，包含了一套越来越严格的规章制度。例如。目视飞行规则飞行员如要进入 C级空域，必须与航空交通管制建立双向无线电联系。航空交通管制无需提供明确的进入许可，但飞行员必须始终遵守在目视飞行规则下飞行的所有规定。如要进入B级空域，比如飞临主要城市机场，则必须有明确的航空交通管制许可。未经许可进入领空的私人飞行员可能会被吊销飞行执照。
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GControlled airspace is divided into several different types, designated by letters of the alphabet. Uncontrolled airspace is designated Class F, while controlled airspace below 5,490m above sea level and not in the vicinity of an airport is Class E. All airspace above 5,490m is designated Class A. The reason for the division of Class E and Class A airspace stems from the type of planes operating in them. Generally, Class E airspace is where on finds general aviation aircraft (few of which can climb above 5,490m anyway), and commercial turboprop aircraft. Above 5,490 is the realm of the heavy jets, since jet engines operate more efficiently at higher altitudes. The difference between Class E and A airspace is that in Class A, all operations are IFR, and pilots must be instrument-rated, that is, skilled and licensed in aircraft instrumentation. This is because ATC control of the entire space is essential. Three other types of airspace, Classes D, C and B, govern the vicinity of airports. There correspond roughly to small municipal, medium-sized metropolitan and major metropolitan airports respectively, and encompass an increasingly rigorous set of regulations. For example, all a VFR pilot has to do to enter Class C airspace is establish two-way radio contact with ATC. No explicit permission from ATC to enter is needed, although the pilot must continue to obey all regulations governing VFR flight. To enter Class B airspace, such as on approach to a major metropolitan airport, an explicit ATC clearance is required. The private pilot who cruises without permission into this airspace risks losing their license.
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2?
In boxes 20-26 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information given in the text. FALSE if the statement contradicts the information. NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this.
20 The FAA was created as a result of the introduction of the jet engine.
TRUE
FALSE
NOT GIVEN
显示答案
正确答案： FALSE
21 Air Traffic Control started after the Grand Canyon crash in 1956.
TRUE
FALSE
NOT GIVEN
显示答案
正确答案： FALSE
22 Beacons and flashing lights are still used by ATC today.
TRUE
FALSE
NOT GIVEN
显示答案
正确答案： NOT GIVEN
23 Some improvements were made in radio communication during World War II.
TRUE
FALSE
NOT GIVEN
显示答案
正确答案： TRUE
24 Class F airspace is airspace which is below 365m and not near airports.
TRUE
FALSE
NOT GIVEN
显示答案
正确答案： TRUE
25 All aircraft in Class E airspace must use IFR.
TRUE
FALSE
NOT GIVEN
显示答案
正确答案： FALSE
26 A pilot entering Class C airspace is flying over an average-sized city.