FAA Plans to Phase Out Floppy Disks in Air Traffic Control

Study the questions and tasks

Work through the material below, or start the interactive practice above to complete an attempt. Try the exercises before opening any answer or transcript sections, then use them to review your work.

Practice level

C1. Try this level if you can follow the instructions and understand most of the language; choose an earlier level if you need more support.

Question formats

Single choice

How to approach this practice

Read the questions, then listen before opening the transcript. Notice names, numbers and any corrections the speaker makes.

1. Question 1 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   According to the narration, what can be recorded on each disk?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Digital information
   2. Aircraft movement schedules
   3. Network connection settings
   4. Personal computer software
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Digital information

   The sentence specifies the disk’s magnetic material as the recording surface.

   Each disk contains magnetic material on which digital information can be recorded.

2. Question 2 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which sequence describes the designs mentioned in the narration?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Rigid cases appeared first, followed by flexible sleeves.
   2. Flexible sleeves characterized earlier versions; later designs had protective casings.
   3. Flash drives came before disks in rigid cases.
   4. The narration gives no comparison between earlier and later versions.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Flexible sleeves characterized earlier versions; later designs had protective casings.

   The narration moves from flexible sleeves to more protective casings.

   Earlier versions were enclosed in flexible sleeves, while later designs offered a more protective casing.

3. Question 3 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What do controllers do, as described in the narration?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. They manufacture storage devices for aircraft.
   2. They organize aircraft movements and coordinate traffic.
   3. They maintain personal computers in homes and offices.
   4. They transfer files between computers using network connections.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   They organize aircraft movements and coordinate traffic.

   The account emphasizes communication and coordination of aircraft traffic.

   Controllers help organize aircraft movements, communicating with pilots and coordinating traffic in the air and around airports.

4. Question 4 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What result can network connections allow, according to the narration?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Files can move between computers without carrying a device.
   2. Disks can record information without magnetic material.
   3. Controllers can avoid communicating with pilots.
   4. Older formats remain accessible automatically.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Files can move between computers without carrying a device.

   They support computer-to-computer file transfer without physical carriage.

   Network connections also allow files to be transferred between computers without someone physically carrying a storage device from one machine to another.

5. Question 5 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What is the stated concern about systems supporting air traffic control work?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Information must be available and understood reliably.
   2. All systems must use the same physical storage device.
   3. Controllers need to carry disks between airports.
   4. Information should be stored only in flexible sleeves.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Information must be available and understood reliably.

   The narration highlights dependable availability and understanding of information.

   The systems used to support such work operate in an environment where information needs to be available and understood reliably.

6. Question 6 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What does the narration say may need attention during a technology transition?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Whether earlier disks had misleading names
   2. Whether stored information remains accessible and systems exchange it
   3. Whether office computers spread into homes
   4. Whether flash drives contain moving magnetic disks
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Whether stored information remains accessible and systems exchange it

   It identifies continued access to stored information as a consideration.

   Information stored in an older format may need to remain accessible, and equipment designed to work together must still be able to exchange information.

7. Question 7 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What outcome does the final sentence attribute to the announced plan?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. It would restore floppy disks’ prominence in computing.
   2. It would end floppy disk use in air traffic control.
   3. It would replace network connections with physical transfers.
   4. It would change the design of personal computers.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   It would end floppy disk use in air traffic control.

   It says the plan would end disk use in this operation.

   The announced plan would end the use of floppy disks in air traffic control, bringing that part of the operation away from a technology whose prominence in the wider computer industry faded long ago.

What to review next

Listen again to difficult sections, then open the transcript to check what you heard. Repeat a useful phrase aloud and try the recording once more without the text.

A focused practice result shows how you did on these tasks. Use several activities across skills to decide what to study next; one practice score does not certify an overall CEFR level.

Before you practise: a worked example

Listen for the final information, especially when a speaker corrects or changes an earlier statement.

Example transcript: “Let’s meet at five — actually, half past five would be better.” What is the final suggested time?

The final suggested time is 5:30. Actually signals a correction; the first time is replaced by the later suggestion.

This teaching example is separate from the scored questions. After your test, compare any mistakes with the explanation and revisit the topic before trying again.