The aviation phonetic alphabet (also called the NATO or ICAO alphabet) gives every letter a code word so it can't be misheard on the radio: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliett, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee and Zulu. Pilots and air traffic controllers around the world use it every day.
Spell it like ATC
Tip: share it with a friend who has a hard name to spell over the phone.
The full alphabet, A to Z
| Letter | Code word | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| A | Alpha | AL-FAH |
| B | Bravo | BRAH-VOH |
| C | Charlie | CHAR-LEE |
| D | Delta | DELL-TAH |
| E | Echo | ECK-OH |
| F | Foxtrot | FOKS-TROT |
| G | Golf | GOLF |
| H | Hotel | HOH-TELL |
| I | India | IN-DEE-AH |
| J | Juliett | JEW-LEE-ETT |
| K | Kilo | KEY-LOH |
| L | Lima | LEE-MAH |
| M | Mike | MIKE |
| N | November | NO-VEM-BER |
| O | Oscar | OSS-CAH |
| P | Papa | PAH-PAH |
| Q | Quebec | KEH-BECK |
| R | Romeo | ROW-ME-OH |
| S | Sierra | SEE-AIR-RAH |
| T | Tango | TANG-GO |
| U | Uniform | YOU-NEE-FORM |
| V | Victor | VIK-TAH |
| W | Whiskey | WISS-KEY |
| X | X-ray | ECKS-RAY |
| Y | Yankee | YANG-KEY |
| Z | Zulu | ZOO-LOO |
Numbers: why pilots say "niner"
| Number | Word | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Zero | ZE-RO |
| 1 | One | WUN |
| 2 | Two | TOO |
| 3 | Three | TREE |
| 4 | Four | FOW-ER |
| 5 | Five | FIFE |
| 6 | Six | SIX |
| 7 | Seven | SEV-EN |
| 8 | Eight | AIT |
| 9 | Nine | NIN-ER |
Some numbers get special pronunciations so they can't be mixed up over a scratchy radio. Nine is "niner" so it doesn't blur with five, five is "fife" so it doesn't sound like "fire," and three is "tree" because the "th" sound is hard for many people who learned English as a second language.
How controllers say altitudes, headings and frequencies
- Altitudes: Below 18,000 feet in the U.S., altitudes are said in thousands and hundreds, so 4,500 feet is "four thousand five hundred." Higher up they become flight levels: 35,000 feet is "flight level three five zero."
- Headings: Always three digits. Heading 090 is "heading zero niner zero."
- Frequencies: Each digit separately: 124.8 is "one two four point eight."
- Runways: Runway 9L is "runway niner left," and runway 27 is "runway two seven."
- Tail numbers: N123AB is "November one two three Alpha Bravo." Once contact is made it is often shortened to the type and last three characters, like "Cessna three Alpha Bravo."
Where the alphabet came from
The alphabet used today was adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in the 1950s, after testing to find words that people from many countries could say and understand. NATO adopted the same words, which is why it's often called the NATO alphabet. ICAO officially spells two of them "Alfa" and "Juliett" so speakers of other languages pronounce them correctly.
Now you speak a little ATC. Next time you fly, the voices on the other end of the radio are the ones who got you there. Leave them a quick thank-you, free.
Common questions
What phonetic alphabet do pilots use?
The ICAO phonetic alphabet, the same one NATO uses: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta and so on through Zulu.
Why do pilots say niner instead of nine?
So nine can't be confused with five over a noisy radio. It's part of the official ICAO pronunciation for numbers.
Is the NATO alphabet the same as the aviation alphabet?
Yes. Aviation, the military, police and many call centers use the same 26 code words.
How do you say 35,000 feet in aviation?
"Flight level three five zero." In the U.S., altitudes from 18,000 feet up are said as flight levels.