| Older version (to WW II) |
Current version by International Civil Aviation Organisation (1955) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABLE | NAN | ALPHA | NOVEMBER | |
| BAKER | OBOE | BRAVO | OSCAR | |
| CHARLIE | PETER | CHARLIE | PAPA | |
| DOG | QUEEN | DELTA | QUEBEC | |
| EASY | ROGER | ECHO | ROMEO | |
| FOX | SUGAR | FOXTROT | SIERRA | |
| GEORGE | TAPE | GULF | TANGO | |
| HOW | UNCLE | HOTEL | UNIFORM | |
| ITEM | VICTOR | INDIA | VICTOR | |
| JIG | WILLIAM | JUNO | WHISKEY | |
| KING | X-RAY | KILO | X-RAY | |
| LOVE | YOLK | LIMA | YANKEE | |
| MIKE | ZEBRA | MIKE | ZULU |
There have been many other similar alphabets, and they exist for many languages, not just English. Most people, however, invent their own on the fly, often using proper names, J as in JIM, E as in EDWARD, etc. Readers of Arthur Ransome's children's books will remember Uncle Jim's angry conversation with the telephone operator when he tries to alert the firefighters to a fell fire in Pigeon Post, "Fellside seven-five... No, not NINE, FIVE... F for FOOL, I for IDIOT, ..."
Another variant is my SILENT ALPHABET.