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Wing Cracks Force Emergency Checks on 16 Airbus A380 Jets

Emirates Airbus A380 parked at Dubai International Airport with Dubai skyline in background

European aviation regulators have ordered the urgent inspection of 16 Airbus A380 aircraft after cracks were discovered in a critical structural part of their wings. The emergency directive, issued on 22 June 2026, requires five of those aircraft to be grounded and inspected before their next flight.

Why are these inspections so urgent, and what does the directive tell us about how aviation safety regulators respond to emerging risks?

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Listening: Takeoff Miscalculation at Amsterdam

How to do this dictation

Listen to the recording and fill in the missing words as you go. Replay as many times as you need. When you’re ready, type each answer into the boxes and click Check for instant feedback, then read the full transcript to see the complete text.

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Phraseology: Airways Clearance at Dublin

Airliner cockpit radio panel with a pilot headset and boom microphone

Pre-brief

  • Aircraft: Airbus A320
  • Callsign: Shamrock 164 (Aer Lingus)
  • Route: Dublin (EIDW) to London Heathrow (EGLL)
  • Current state: On stand, before pushback, ready to copy your IFR clearance. The Captain is the Pilot Flying; you are working the radio.
  • Your role: First Officer, working the radio (Pilot Monitoring)

Before you listen, predict what the controller will give you and the order you’ll read it back.

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Listening: Compressor Surge on Go-Around at Dubrovnik

Listen to the short incident narration below. Before you press play, read the six sentences in Your dictation task — they tell the story out of order. Then listen once for the whole picture, listen again to confirm the sequence, and write the correct order. Replay as many times as you need, then check your answer against the key.

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Structure: ‘Can and could’

What are ‘can’ and ‘could’?

We use can to talk about ability now — something we are able to do today. We use could to talk about ability in the past — something we were able to do before, or were not able to do. Both words go directly before the main verb, without ‘to’.

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Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines Equip 150 Aircraft with Free Starlink Wi-Fi

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 in cruise flight at dawn above clouds

Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines have equipped around 150 of their aircraft with Starlink satellite Wi-Fi. Passengers on eligible flights can now connect to fast internet in the air, free of charge with an Alaska Airlines loyalty account.

How does Starlink work on a plane, and which flights now offer it?

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