“Wilco” is the abbreviation of the expression “will stick to it”, which means that the speaker follows the instructions to which he answers. Merriam-Webster places the origin on the year 1938, some time after the invention of the radio, probably for military use. “The instructions submitted must be followed and in most cases should be proofread to reduce the risk of ambiguity or misunderstanding, e.g. `G-ABCD, taxi to tarmac via taxiway Charlie`. Chapter 2 specifies the instructions to be read in full. However, if the instruction is short, clear and unambiguous, confirmation of the instruction using standard phrases such as “Roger” (I received all your last transmission) or Wilcoâ (I understand your message and will follow it) will be preferred for brevity when using broadcast time. “I`ve been a pilot for 47 years. The use of the word WILCO vs. The playback of a share is set. Keep in mind that the first radios were not easy to understand and the phonetic alphabet was formed. An ATC statement “Plan on crossing XXXXX at FL280” may be called WILCO because it is not a release. “Cross XXXXX at FL280” is a version and needs to be proofread.
The problem I see with using wilco is that you confirm that you are following an instruction, but if you don`t read the instruction too, the controller has no way of knowing what you`re doing. Maybe you got it wrong or misunderstood, then you should repeat it. But if you repeat it, then wilco is useless. Outside the US, I was first taught never to use Roger or Wilco for this reason: the controller wonders what you really heard and what you`re going to do next. But as far as U.S. aviation is concerned, both are perfectly acceptable. Pilots often learn to use the word “wilco” on the radio through contextual interpretation. In my experience as a pilot who communicated on the radio, I often observed pilots use the word “wilco” inappropriately. What is the true meaning of the word “wilco” and what is its origin? Although the term “roger wilco” is sometimes used, it is considered redundant because it implies “roger” (meaning “to receive and understand”). Again, in this scenario, a truncated reading can be confusing (“. G-ABCD final”). However, “Roger G-ABCD” (or simply “G-ABCD”) simply means that the transmission has been received.
This can refer to traffic information, instructions, or both. The investigation could have been neglected, particularly in the context of a longer and more complicated transfer. In both scenarios, “Wilco” is the only answer that clearly indicates that the pedagogical element of the transmission has been received, understood and implemented. For this reason, “Roger” is preferred if brief recognition is desirable. As other responses have mentioned, WILCO is a concatenation of Will Comply. To give a British perspective, there are a number of ATC instructions that need to be reread, but in other cases, “Wilco” is preferred. CAA Radiotelephony Manual CAP 413 states (emphasis added): Based on the fairly strong opinions of a CAA reviewer, the following scenarios illustrate an example of confirmation of the position report instructions: WILCO – I have received your message, I understand it and I will follow it If the response contains a reading and is truncated, the controller could hear.” Abeam Farmoor Reservoir G-ABCD”, which could be confusing. Confirmation with “Wilco G-ABCD”, “Roger G-ABCD” or even simply “G-ABCD” reduces the risk of confusion if the answer is truncated and provides brevity. (Note that this is slightly different from roger, which is just a confirmation and doesn`t mean you`ll comply with anything.) “Wilco” is the abbreviation of the expression “will stick to it”, which means that the speaker follows the instructions to which he answers.