OVERVIEW
The world of aviation relies on a tried-and-true phonetic language based on the english alphabet. Letters are associated with a particular word so, when broadcast over radio, the letters are clearly interpreted by the recipient (be they the pilot or Air Traffic Control). As such, the letter 'A' is represented by the word 'Alpha' and the letter 'B' follows as 'Bravo'. Using this format, Bravo cannot be confused with 'Delta', which takes the place of the letter 'D', in the arrangement. Nor can 'Mike' (the latter 'M') be confused with 'Papa' (the letter 'P'). The current alphabet was adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in March of 1956 for standardized use.
If taking, for example, a fictional identifier of 'FLW', this would be spoken as 'Foxtrot' - 'Lima' - 'Whiskey'. Similarly, 'GTA' would become 'Golf' - 'Tango' - 'Alpha'.
The world of aviation relies on a tried-and-true phonetic language based on the english alphabet. Letters are associated with a particular word so, when broadcast over radio, the letters are clearly interpreted by the recipient (be they the pilot or Air Traffic Control). As such, the letter 'A' is represented by the word 'Alpha' and the letter 'B' follows as 'Bravo'. Using this format, Bravo cannot be confused with 'Delta', which takes the place of the letter 'D', in the arrangement. Nor can 'Mike' (the latter 'M') be confused with 'Papa' (the letter 'P'). The current alphabet was adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in March of 1956 for standardized use.
If taking, for example, a fictional identifier of 'FLW', this would be spoken as 'Foxtrot' - 'Lima' - 'Whiskey'. Similarly, 'GTA' would become 'Golf' - 'Tango' - 'Alpha'.
A = ALPHA
B = BRAVO
C = CHARLIE
D = DELTA
E = ECHO
F = FOXTROT
G = GOLF
H = HOTEL
I = INDIA
J = JULIET
K = KILO
L = LIMA
M = MIKE
N = NOVEMBER
O = OSCAR
P = PAPA
Q = QUEBEC
R = ROMEO
S = SIERRA
T = TANGO
U = UNIFORM
V = VICTOR
W = WHISKEY
X = X-RAY
Y = YANKEE
Z = ZULU
B = BRAVO
C = CHARLIE
D = DELTA
E = ECHO
F = FOXTROT
G = GOLF
H = HOTEL
I = INDIA
J = JULIET
K = KILO
L = LIMA
M = MIKE
N = NOVEMBER
O = OSCAR
P = PAPA
Q = QUEBEC
R = ROMEO
S = SIERRA
T = TANGO
U = UNIFORM
V = VICTOR
W = WHISKEY
X = X-RAY
Y = YANKEE
Z = ZULU
