Any Unknown or Unlisted Aircraft Manufacturer
Communication Breakdown; Confusion
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Other / Unknown
General None Reported / Taken
Company Policy; Environment - Non Weather Related; Procedure
At concern is prerecorded ATIS broadcast information. Specifically the speed at which this information is read for broadcast is not acceptable.As an air carrier user of the ATIS broadcast it is our company policy and procedure to write down the information. We are required by FAR to calculate a landing and takeoff distance using the latest information available. As such details of the ATIS broadcast are critical. Being able to write down ceiling; wind and altimeter information correctly must occur. The terminology 'Packed snow and ice on the runway' verses 'Patchy packed snow and ice on the runway' is often the difference of landing or not landing. Knowing which taxiways are closed and what airport lighting systems are not working also has a dramatic effect on approach minimums. We fly airplanes to minimums that are so low that incorrect altimeters kill people. Communication must transfer information between people effectively and accurately; verbal speed is a factor in communication.These Alaska stations are especially terrible in descending order:Bethel TowerKodiak TowerKotzebue FSSNome FSSSitka FSSJNU FSSDeadhorse FSS has a unique affliction in that they patch together an ATIS; so as to not need to read the NOTAMs for each broadcast and as a result frequently get different ATIS Code information on the same tape (Charlie in the beginning and Bravo at the end).I am not sure how you can listen to the ATIS broadcast by telephone from your office. Please call the FSS or Tower and ask that they make the broadcast available to you via phone. In all fairness you could listen to many broadcasts at different times of the day to determine if verbal rate is appropriate.The ASOS recordings for these stations are much better; however these are not broadcasts of the current ATIS information.I am including a form that is used to write down the ATIS information. If you can write it down and understand what is said without listening to the recording more than twice disregard this filing. I as a user cannot gather the information accurately in enough detail to make the informed decisions that are necessary for safe flight. I have personally talked with the people whose voices are on the tape and spoke with their supervisors on the jump seats of our aircraft. They either laugh or respond in a manner such as; 'That is a known problem' [or] 'You just have to write faster'. That [it] is done for the small aircraft operators who do not really need all the information [they] are required to put on the broadcast.There is a problem in effective communication here and I am asking that you take a third party view of the verbal speed on the ATIS broadcasts at these ATC facilities. Keep in mind these facilities are not that busy that it requires the verbal speed that is being used on the broadcast.These agencies and operators have been informed of the problem and have been asked to make the necessary changes. The required changes have not been put in place.
A pilot stated that some Alaska airport ATIS verbal recording rates are too high for the information to be recorded and at select airports some critical information cannot be written down after listening twice.