CNN recently noted that the US government is attempting to remove the term “retarded,” as it refers to mental capability, from its lexicon.  Public sensitivity to the term has raised since the 2008 election and the use of the word by several celebrities.

Believe it or not, there is impact in this discussion to pilots. 

Airbus, one of the two major heavy aircraft manufacturers in the world, has a cockpit voice system that alerts pilots to certain flight conditions or directs them to perform certain actions.  For example, it says “minimums” when the aircraft reaches the instrument approach minimum altitude during a landing.

The voice also says “retard” during the landing phase.  Simply put, the intent is to tell the pilot to move the throttles to the idle detent.  Airbus sells its aircraft throughout the world, and English is the only language spoken by its computer.  It chose a word that would quickly communicate the intended meaning and simultaneously survive understanding in different cultures.

Though innocent enough in creation, the natural pilot sense of humor means that virtually every (non-Airbus) pilot who hears the cockpit voice jokes about the computer’s critique of the pilot’s landing.  While shocking to some, no one ever claimed pilots were politically correct (and there are far worse examples).

For examples (of both the recording and the pilot reaction), simply search the web for “Airbus retard.”