Narrative:

I was plugged into sector 63/69; previewing the sector when magadan control called. In broken english; the russian controller asked about aircraft X; saying that his flight plan was not approved by the russian state department; that the approval to enter russian airspace was in error; saying the 'date was incorrect.' the russian controller was asking for an updated entry approval; saying that he knew 'it wasn't a big deal for us but that it was a big deal for him.'I told the R63/69 controller that I would coordinate with the watch desk and [the] traffic management unit (tmu). I unplugged and verbally informed the watch desk OM (operations manager) what was happening and I asked him to make the appropriate phone calls. His response was 'we don't do that here.' I told him that the aircraft was approaching the russian boundary and that I was unsure if he was going to be able to enter their airspace safely. I then asked him to call aircraft X dispatch and ask them to forward the appropriate information to the russian controllers. His response was 'we do not have the dispatch number so ask the pilot to contact their own dispatch.' I then suggested that tmu might have the dispatch numbers or at the very least the command center would have contact information. The watch desk OM negated my request to tmu and instead went back to flight data; asking them to send another flight plan. I tried to explain that the russians were asking for was an updated entry approval and he again stated that 'we don't do that here' and he told me not to worry about it.I decided that I wasn't going to get any help from the OM so I returned to the sector. The R63/69 controller told me that he would slide over to the d-side to assist me in contacting dispatch. I took over the sector and for the next 10 minutes the controller in charge and the new d-side controller attempted to contact aircraft X dispatch using a landline phone number; to no avail. I finally broadcast to the pilot our difficulties and requested his assistance in getting the appropriate information to the russian authorities. The pilot's english was very poor but I think he got the message and was attempting to do so.during these exchanges; I was attempting to help multiple pilots that were experiencing moderate turbulence and wind shear aloft in excess of 50 knots in the southern end of sector 69. The added distraction of having to attempt this coordination through a foreign-speaking pilot was disconcerting; to say the least.the russian controller called me back about 15 minutes prior to aircraft X entering their airspace and requested that I confirm his cleared routing. I did so and then relayed the information back to magadan. I then asked if aircraft X was approved to enter their airspace and the magadan controller said affirmative. I relayed this back to the pilot and he continued on without delay.I would recommend a briefing about the necessity to obtain approval before entering foreign airspace; the need to support the requests for operational assistance from working controllers; and possibly an updated contact list for all the company dispatchers.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: ZAN Controller reports of problems associated with language barriers from a pilot and another control facility where English isn't the major language. The flight in question wasn't allowed into the foreign Controller's airspace because the date on the overflight permit was incorrect on the flight plan. ZAN Controller goes on to tell how they got the flight approved and able to remain on course.

Narrative: I was plugged into Sector 63/69; previewing the sector when Magadan Control called. In broken English; the Russian controller asked about Aircraft X; saying that his flight plan was not approved by the Russian State Department; that the approval to enter Russian airspace was in error; saying the 'date was incorrect.' The Russian controller was asking for an updated entry approval; saying that he knew 'it wasn't a big deal for us but that it was a big deal for him.'I told the R63/69 controller that I would coordinate with the Watch Desk and [the] traffic management unit (TMU). I unplugged and verbally informed the Watch Desk OM (Operations Manager) what was happening and I asked him to make the appropriate phone calls. His response was 'We don't do that here.' I told him that the aircraft was approaching the Russian Boundary and that I was unsure if he was going to be able to enter their airspace safely. I then asked him to call Aircraft X dispatch and ask them to forward the appropriate information to the Russian Controllers. His response was 'We do not have the dispatch number so ask the pilot to contact their own dispatch.' I then suggested that TMU might have the dispatch numbers or at the very least the Command Center would have contact information. The Watch Desk OM negated my request to TMU and instead went back to Flight Data; asking them to send another flight plan. I tried to explain that the Russians were asking for was an updated entry approval and he again stated that 'we don't do that here' and he told me not to worry about it.I decided that I wasn't going to get any help from the OM so I returned to the sector. The R63/69 controller told me that he would slide over to the D-side to assist me in contacting dispatch. I took over the sector and for the next 10 minutes the CIC and the new D-side controller attempted to contact Aircraft X dispatch using a landline phone number; to no avail. I finally broadcast to the pilot our difficulties and requested his assistance in getting the appropriate information to the Russian authorities. The pilot's English was very poor but I think he got the message and was attempting to do so.During these exchanges; I was attempting to help multiple pilots that were experiencing moderate turbulence and wind shear aloft in excess of 50 knots in the southern end of Sector 69. The added distraction of having to attempt this coordination through a foreign-speaking pilot was disconcerting; to say the least.The Russian controller called me back about 15 minutes prior to Aircraft X entering their airspace and requested that I confirm his cleared routing. I did so and then relayed the information back to Magadan. I then asked if Aircraft X was approved to enter their airspace and the Magadan controller said affirmative. I relayed this back to the pilot and he continued on without delay.I would recommend a briefing about the necessity to obtain approval before entering foreign airspace; the need to support the requests for operational assistance from working controllers; and possibly an updated contact list for all the company dispatchers.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.