Some relevant facts about me
Aeronautical, legal and linguistic background
I hold the following pilot licenses: the US PPL-IFR, the German CPL-VFR and the Austrian CPL-IFR (incl. theory for ATP). The main training facilities were Lufthansa Flight Training/ LFT with its affiliation in the US, the Airline Training Center Arizona in Goodyear/Az and the Österreichische Luftfahrtfachschule (ÖLS) in Graz /Austria (formerly pilot school of Austrian Airlines). I currently use my licenses on a private basis, but the theory during my pilot training totals a sum of about 1250 hrs, which provides me with a huge theoretical background in aviation.
Between 1998 and 2001 I earned a degree in administrative law at a University for Applied Sciences in Bavaria/ Germany (about 2200 hrs in various fields of law).
In 2002, while working as a civil servant, I began studying English, Spanish and Latin Philology. I started to fulfil my dream of integrating my passion for flying with my studies, when I wrote my Bachelor thesis in 2005/06 in the department of English linguistics at the University of Regensburg. In my thesis, I investigated the various Aspects of oral English communication in aviation, combining considerations for flight safety with linguistic analysis. Preliminary linguistic findings were made public at the 16th International Postgraduate Linguistics Conference of the University of Manchester in April 2007 (my presentation).
I completed my linguistic studies successfully in August 2008 by earning a Master's degree in English Philology. For my final thesis (on the field of applied linguistics) I conducted a survey among pilots and controllers on their awareness of the fallibility of the (English) language: pilots, controllers, civil aviation authorities and flight schools in more than 152 ICAO regions were informed via mass emails, via internet forums, via advertisements in relevant magazines, by contacting them directly, and ultimately by establishing a "snowball system", where participants were requested to inform others by using the standard texts I had provided in English, Spanish, French, Arabic, Russian, German and Chinese language. Under the heading Aspects of communication in Aeronautical English I went on concentrating on communicative difficulties, whereby my focus mainly lied on safety inhibiting differences within the aeronautical application of English in countries with both native and non-native speakers worldwide. A book summarising my academic work has been published very recently. Shortly after completing my studies I have started to work in a job that enables me to combine academic fundamental knowledge with the necesities of real aeronautical life.