Phonetic alphabet & VHF cheat sheet
Phonetic alphabet (ITU / NATO)
AAlfaAL-fah
BBravoBRAH-voh
CCharlieCHAR-lee
DDeltaDELL-tah
EEchoECK-oh
FFoxtrotFOKS-trot
GGolfgolf
HHotelhoh-TELL
IIndiaIN-dee-ah
JJuliettJEW-lee-ett
KKiloKEY-loh
LLimaLEE-mah
MMikemike
NNovemberno-VEM-ber
OOscarOSS-cah
PPapapah-PAH
QQuebeckeh-BECK
RRomeoROW-me-oh
SSierrasee-AIR-rah
TTangoTANG-go
UUniformYOU-nee-form
VVictorVIK-tah
WWhiskeyWISS-key
XX-rayECKS-ray
YYankeeYANG-key
ZZuluZOO-loo
Numbers on the radio
0ZERO
1WUN
2TOO
3TREE
4FOW-ER
5FIFE
6SIX
7SEV-EN
8AIT
9NIN-ER
Say numbers digit by digit: channel 16 is “wun six”; 14:25 is “wun fow-er too fife”.
Procedure words
| MAYDAY | Distress: grave and imminent danger to a vessel or person; immediate help needed. |
|---|---|
| PAN-PAN | Urgency: an urgent message about the safety of a vessel or person. |
| SÉCURITÉ | Safety: navigational or weather warning to follow. |
| OVER | I have finished and expect a reply. |
| OUT | End of the conversation. Never 'over and out'. |
| SAY AGAIN | Repeat your last message. |
| I SAY AGAIN | I am repeating my message. |
| I SPELL | Phonetic spelling follows. |
| CORRECTION | I made a mistake; the correct version follows. |
| RECEIVED | I have received your message. |
| WAIT | Wait; I will call you back. |
| ALL STATIONS | A message for everyone listening. |
| SEELONCE MAYDAY | Radio silence: only distress traffic on this channel. |
| SEELONCE FEENEE | Distress over; normal traffic may resume. |
| MAYDAY RELAY | Passing on a distress call for another vessel. |