Let’s pick this up right where the regulation gets practical — Page 118, Lesson 188

Let’s pick this up right where the regulation gets practical. We’ve just covered the policy side — that interception is the tool a State uses when an aircraft is flying in its airspace without authorization, or when an aircraft penetrates a notified sensitive or prohibited area. Now I want to walk you through what actually happens to you, the pilot, when you’re the one being intercepted. First, the legal backbone. When a Contracting State — that’s a State that has signed the Chicago Convention — formulates its interception policy, it has to recognize that safety of flight is paramount. So any visual signals used during an interception must be in accordance with Appendix 1 to Annex 2 of the Chicago Convention. That’s the standardized set of visual signals. The Council has also issued special recommendations so that interception procedures are applied uniformly across all States. The point is: you should be able to predict what’s coming, because the signals are standardized. Now, your duty. The Pilot-in-Command of a civil aircraft, when intercepted, must comply with the standards set out in Appendix 2, sections 2 and 3, to Annex 2. That means you interpret and respond to the visual signals and procedures exactly as laid out there. You don’t improvise — you follow the standard. Next, a practical requirement — paragraph 6.52, Carriage of Interception Tables. National law requires that aircraft on international flights carry the interception tables. The intent is clear: in the event of an interception, you refer to the tables. You are not expected to memorize the content of the tables, but you must know what the tables contain. I’d suggest you read through them to familiarize yourself — they’re reproduced at paragraphs 6.57 and 6.58, which we’ll get to. Then, paragraph 6.53, the Procedure itself. When your aircraft is intercepted by another aircraft, you shall immediately do three things. First, follow the instructions given by the intercepting aircraft, interpreting and responding to visual signals in accordance with the tables at 6.57 and 6.58. Second, notify, if possible, the appropriate Air Traffic Services Unit — that’s your ATS unit. Third, attempt to establish radio communication with the intercepting aircraft, or with the appropriate intercept control unit, by making a general call on the emergency frequency 121.500 MHz. In that call, you give the identity of the intercepted aircraft and the nature of the flight. So the sequence is: comply with the visual signals, tell ATS what’s happening, and get on 121.5 with your identity and flight nature. That’s the immediate response. Let’s look at the tables next.