Event Overview
On August 6, 2015, a pilot flying a Cessna 152 encountered a radio communication failure while on a navigation flight to Krasnystaw, Poland. The incident occurred around 06:36 as the pilot was approaching the EPCD airport area and attempting to contact FIS Warsaw. No injuries were reported.
Sequence of Events
The pilot initially tried to call FIS Warsaw three times without success. After failing to establish contact, the pilot attempted to reconfigure the aircraft's audio equipment, including switching to the second audio set intended for the instructor. Still unable to transmit, the pilot then tried to call the instructor supervising flights at EPCD directly by phone at 06:41. That attempt also failed, so the pilot sent an SMS to the instructor with the current position, the problem, and the intended landing plan. Simultaneously, the pilot set the transponder to code 7600 and made a blind transmission on the FIS frequency announcing the switch to the EPCD airport frequency.
Receiving no confirmation from FIS, the pilot changed frequency and sent an SMS to a pilot on another aircraft (SP-KAH) that was about 10 minutes behind, still on the FIS Warsaw frequency, to relay the situation and current position. Aware of the traffic at EPCD (one aircraft in the circuit, one departing, three approaching, and one expected in ~10 minutes), the pilot continued the approach following standard procedures. The aircraft maintained 2,700 ft heading toward the ARP while monitoring the EPCD frequency and making blind position reports.
At 06:49, the aircraft was over the airport markers, and the supervising instructor at EPCD called the pilot by phone to coordinate the next steps. The pilot then entered a right-hand circuit, descended to 1,700 ft, and completed a normal circuit and landing on runway 19L at 06:54 without further issues.
Cause
The incident was caused by damage to the headset.