The Phonetic Alphabet is used to spell out letters in place of just saying the letter itself. By using a word for each letter there is less chance that the person listening will confuse letters. For instance, some letters that can easily be confused are "D" and "B". Using the phonetic alphabet, "Delta" and "Bravo" can be easily distinguished.
This system of spelling letters is used around the world by maritime units, aircraft, amateur radio operators, and the military. This alphabet is recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and NATO as the standard for aircraft communications and radio communications.
We always want to use this phonetic alphabet to achieve clear communication and demonstrate our professionalism.
Letter |
Pronunciation |
Letter |
Pronunciation |
Number |
Pronunciation |
A |
Alpha (AL fah) |
N |
November (no VEM ber) |
0 |
ZEE row |
B |
Bravo (BRAH VOH) |
O |
Oscar (OSS cah) |
1 |
WUN |
C |
Charlie (CHAR lee) |
P |
Papa (pah PAH) |
2 |
TOO |
D |
Delta (DELL tah) |
Q |
Quebec (keh BECK) |
3 |
TREE |
E |
Echo (ECK oh) |
R |
Romeo (ROW me oh) |
4 |
FOW er |
F |
Foxtrot (FOKS trot) |
S |
Sierra (see AIR rah) |
5 |
FIFE |
G |
Golf (GOLF) |
T |
Tango (TANG go) |
6 |
SIX |
H |
Hotel (hoh TELL) |
U |
Uniform (YOU nee form) |
7 |
SEVEN |
I |
India (IN dee ah) |
V |
Victor (VIK tah) |
8 |
AIT |
J |
Juliet (JEW lee ETT) |
W |
Whiskey (WISS key) |
9 |
NINE er |
K |
Kilo (KEY loh) |
X |
X Ray (ECKS RAY) |
|
|
L |
Lima (LEE mah) |
Y |
Yankee (YANG key) |
|
|
M |
Mike (MIKE) |
Z |
Zulu (ZOO loo) |
|
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Note: The syllables printed in capital letters are to be stressed.