NATO Phonetic Alphabet

In sailing, the phonetic alphabet is an important thing to know and know well. Since so much communication is heard through the poor fidelity of small radio speakers and takes place in sometimes loud windy conditions, it’s vital to have a means to communicate clearly and precisely. These specifically chosen words used to represent the alphabet’s letters service that goal. In the maritime world the NATO phonetic alphabet is most often used.

  • A
    ALPHA
    AL fah
  • B
    BRAVO
    BRAH voh
  • C
    CHARLIE
    CHAR lee
  • D
    DELTA
    DEL tah
  • E
    ECHO
    EKK oh
  • F
    FOXTROT
    FOKS trot
  • G
    GOLF
    GOLF
  • H
    HOTEL
    HO tell
  • I
    INDIA
    IN dee ah
  • J
    JULIET
    JEW lee ett
  • K
    KILO
    KEY loh
  • L
    LIMA
    LEE mah
  • M
    MIKE
    MIKE
  • N
    NOVEMBER
    NOH vem ber
  • O
    OSCAR
    OSS car
  • P
    PAPA
    PAH pah
  • Q
    QUEBEC
    keh BECK
  • R
    ROMEO
    ROW me oh
  • S
    SIERRA
    see AIR ah
  • T
    TANGO
    TANG go
  • U
    UNIFORM
    YOU nee form
  • V
    VICTOR
    VIK ter
  • W
    WHISKEY
    WISS key
  • X
    XRAY
    EKS ray
  • Y
    YANKEE
    YANG kee
  • Z
    ZULU
    ZOO luu