The Aviation Phonetic Alphabet

Pilots spell letters with the international phonetic alphabet: Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta and on to Zulu. Most numbers are said digit by digit, with nine said “niner”; round altitudes such as 4,500, “four thousand five hundred”, and airway numbers are the exceptions. The FAA's table in AIM 4-2-7 gives the pronunciation of every letter and digit, and AIM 4-2-8 to 4-2-12 explain how to say altitudes, headings, frequencies, speeds and times.

How a tail number sounds

November One Two Three Alpha Zulu

N123AZ, letter by letter and digit by digit. With the type, model or maker in front, as the AIM suggests, the November is dropped: “Cessna One Two Three Alpha Zulu”.

The alphabet, letter by letter

Letter	Word	Say it
A	Alfa	AL-FAH
B	Bravo	BRAH-VOH
C	Charlie	CHAR-LEE or SHAR-LEE
D	Delta	DELL-TAH
E	Echo	ECK-OH
F	Foxtrot	FOKS-TROT
G	Golf	GOLF
H	Hotel	HOH-TEL
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 or OO-NEE-FORM
V	Victor	VIK-TAH
W	Whiskey	WISS-KEY
X	Xray	ECKS-RAY
Y	Yankee	YANG-KEY
Z	Zulu	ZOO-LOO

The words, spellings and pronunciations are the FAA's, from the table in AIM 4-2-7. Note the spellings Alfa and Juliett. In written examples of calls, the AIM's own included, you will often see Alpha instead; it is said the same way, and this site writes it that way too.

The numbers

Digit	Say it
0	ZEE-RO
1	WUN
2	TOO
3	TREE
4	FOW-ER
5	FIFE
6	SIX
7	SEV-EN
8	AIT
9	NIN-ER

On US frequencies you will hear “niner” all the time. “Tree” and “fife” are in the table too, though many US pilots and controllers say three and five the ordinary way.

When pilots use it

The AIM asks pilots to use the phonetic alphabet when they identify their aircraft on first contact, and to spell out single letters, groups of letters or difficult words when reception is poor. Controllers may also ask you to use it when aircraft with similar-sounding callsigns are on the frequency (AIM 4-2-7). Day to day, it turns up in:

Your callsign: Cessna One Two Three Alpha Zulu, or November One Two Three Alpha Zulu.
Taxiways: “taxi via Alpha, hold short of Bravo”.
The ATIS letter: “information Charlie”.
Time: Zulu means UTC, as in “one five three zero Zulu” (AIM 4-2-12).
Anything the controller cannot make out, such as an unusual airport or place name, spelled out a letter at a time.

How to say numbers

You see	You say	The rule
Altitude 4,500	four thousand five hundred	Round hundreds and thousands up to 9,900 are said as words (AIM 4-2-8, 4-2-9)
Altitude 10,000	one zero thousand	Above 9,900, the digits before “thousand” are said one by one (AIM 4-2-8)
Altitude 12,500	one two thousand five hundred	Below 18,000 feet MSL: the separate digits of the thousands, then the hundreds (AIM 4-2-9)
Flight level 190	flight level one niner zero	At and above 18,000 feet (AIM 4-2-9)
Heading 090	heading zero niner zero	Always three digits, magnetic unless “true” is added (AIM 4-2-10)
Wind from 220	wind two two zero	Wind directions follow the heading rule (AIM 4-2-10)
Runway 27	runway two seven	Digit by digit, like most numbers (AIM 4-2-8)
Frequency 121.7	one two one point seven	The decimal point is said “point” (AIM 4-2-8)
Squawk code 4351	four three five one	Digit by digit
Speed 250 knots	two five zero knots	Digits, then “knots” (AIM 4-2-11)
Time 0920 UTC	zero niner two zero Zulu	24-hour clock, hours then minutes (AIM 4-2-12)
Airway V12	Victor Twelve	Said as a number, not digit by digit: J533 is “J Five Thirty-Three” (AIM 4-2-8)

Common mistakes

Making up words. “A as in apple” or “N as in Nancy” has no place on the radio. The alphabet works because everyone uses the same 26 words.
Saying “nine” instead of “niner”. The table says NIN-ER.
Saying “oh” for zero. The table has only zero, ZEE-RO.
Shortening your callsign first. Use it in full on first contact, and shorten it only after the controller does (AIM 4-2-4).
Rushing the letters. A clear “Alpha Zulu” beats a fast one that has to be said again.

How to learn it fast

Spell everything you see in the alphabet: tail numbers on the ramp, taxiway signs, license plates.
Spell your own name and your home airport until it is automatic.
Listen to ATIS broadcasts and live ATC. The alphabet is in almost every call.
Say full calls out loud. Knowing “Zulu” is easy. Starting every call with a smooth “November One Two Three Alpha Zulu” takes repetition.

FAQ

Is it Alpha or Alfa?

The FAA and ICAO spell it Alfa, and Juliett has two t's (AIM 4-2-7). Either way it is said AL-FAH.

Why do pilots say “niner”?

Because the FAA's table says to pronounce 9 as NIN-ER (AIM 4-2-7). Of the changed numbers, it is the one you will hear on almost every US frequency.

Is the aviation alphabet the same as the NATO alphabet?

Yes. The AIM calls it the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) phonetic alphabet (AIM 4-2-7), and NATO uses the same 26 words.

How do I say my tail number?

N123AZ is spelled “November One Two Three Alpha Zulu”. The AIM asks civil pilots to start with the aircraft type, model or maker, followed by the registration, and to drop the N when they do: “Cessna One Two Three Alpha Zulu” (AIM 4-2-4). You will also hear the November form on the radio, and the examples on this site use it.

Sources

Checked against its FAA sources on 2026-10-22 · Written by the PilotSpeak team