When a huge plane is passing through the clouds at immense heights in the sky carrying thousands of passengers, then to ensure the safety of that flight, the communication between the pilot sitting inside the cockpit and the Air Traffic Control (ATC) present on the ground is the most important link. Many times such sudden and dangerous emergency situations arise inside the aircraft where it becomes difficult or impossible for the pilot to talk through normal radio, and for such moments of crisis, some special digital codes have been created in the aviation world which are called Transponder Squawk Codes. Recently, when discussions have intensified regarding emergency incidents related to such flights and technical glitches in the planes of airlines like Flydubai, then the question that is arising most in the minds of common people is what exactly are these three digit mysterious numbers i.e. 7500, 7600 and 7700. Knowing the technical truth behind these extremely strict and secret rules of aviation security is of great interest and importance for every traveler who wants to understand the world of air travel and its invisible security circle.
What is a transponder and how does the ATC team keep a close watch on every activity of the planes flying in the air?
A transponder inside an airplane is a sophisticated electronic device that continuously sends accurate information about the aircraft’s altitude, speed, identity and exact position to the air traffic control on the ground in response to radar signals. During normal flights, ATC assigns a special four-digit code, or squawk code, to each aircraft so that aircraft can be easily identified in the vast expanse of sky and a safe distance can be maintained between them. But when an unexpected crisis occurs with an aircraft, the pilot does not have enough time to explain his situation by talking at length on the radio and hence a special emergency code is immediately set in the transponder. As soon as this code is set, a red warning immediately flashes on the ATC computer screen and the authorities know within seconds what type of serious problem has arisen with that specific aircraft flying in the air.
What is the scary meaning of squawk code 7500 and how is this secret alert activated when the plane is hijacked?
Of all these emergency codes, the most sensitive and scary code is considered to be 7500, which is set during a serious and life-threatening situation like hijacking of an aircraft. If unfortunately the plane is taken over by some anti-social element or terrorist and the pilot is pressurized, then the pilot silently feeds the code 7500 into the transponder without the hijackers being aware of it. As soon as this code is activated, the security agencies and air traffic control present on the ground get a secret signal without uttering a single word that the plane has now come under the control of some anti-social element and preparations for the rescue operation are started immediately. In the history of aviation security, this secret code has many times helped the security forces to take timely action and avoid any major disaster, thereby increasing the chances of saving the lives of passengers.
Know the complete mathematics of technical emergencies like communication failure and engine failure through codes 7600 and 7700.
Apart from hijacking, two more important codes have been fixed for other technical and mechanical problems in aircraft, in which 7600 and 7700 are mainly involved. When an aircraft’s on-board radio system fails completely and the pilot is unable to communicate with ground ATC, the code 7600 is fed into the transponder as an indication of communication failure. In this situation, the pilot continues to fly on the prescribed routes under international aviation rules and ATC understands that the aircraft’s radio is not working but the aircraft is safe. On the other hand, if an aircraft engine catches fire, there is a major technical failure, or a passenger on board the aircraft suddenly becomes extremely ill, then the most dangerous and common emergency code i.e. 7700 is activated. This code warns ground officials to immediately give priority to the aircraft for emergency landing and to keep ambulances and fire brigades deployed on the runway.