The Phonetic Alphabet

The Phonetic Alphabet is a spelling alphabet used by pilots and the military to prevent confusion when spelling with similar sounding letters e.g. p/b t/d. Each letter is given a name and pilots communicate using a transformation from the letter names to the Phonetic Alphabet names. This chart was adapted from the FAA AIM publication. Wikipedia has a good entry on the history of the phonetic alphabet.

Use this section to learn the letter name and its pronunciation. Most of the names are pronounced as English speakers would pronounce them. The main exception is Quebec—KEH-BECK. Also, Lima—LEE-MAH, Papa—PAH-PAH, and Victor—VIK-TAH are variations on standard English pronunciation so they might trip you up. Read through the list several times. Once you think you've got it—click here to test yourself.