ICAO AELTS recognition
ELPAC ATC and ELPAC Pilot are recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) under the Aviation English Language Test Service (AELTS).
ELPAC ATC and ELPAC Pilot
Both the ELPAC ATC and ELPAC Pilot tests are recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) under the Aviation English Language Test Service (AELTS).
What recognition under AELTS means
The AELTS programme is ICAO's mechanism for assessing whether tests of aviation English conform to ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) for Language Proficiency Requirements and the criteria set out in ICAO Doc 9835.
Recognition under AELTS means the test has been reviewed by ICAO against its published assessment criteria and determined to conform to the relevant SARPs. It does not constitute a partnership, endorsement or joint venture between ICAO and the test provider.
Current cycle and renewal
Current recognition is valid through the end of 2026. The ELPAC team started working on the renewal application for the 2027–2029 recognition cycle in June 2026.
ICAO has since published Doc 10197, Test Design Guidelines, which sets out eight criteria for the design of language proficiency tests. A criterion-by-criterion overview of how ELPAC relates to those criteria is available under ICAO Doc 10197 test design criteria. An item-by-item overview against the checklist for aviation language testing in Doc 9835, Appendix C, is available under ICAO Doc 9835 testing criteria. Both overviews are ELPAC's own self-assessments; they are not part of the AELTS recognition and have not been reviewed by ICAO.