Mastering this alphabet and all the radio procedures allows to broadcast a clear message, save time and increase safety at sea. This standardization of exchanges between the parties involved remains the guarantee of good communication.
The International Phonetic Alphabet is used to enhance the understanding of words (ship's name, call sign, abbreviation) transmitted by VHF. Words or numbers are spelled by matching each letter to an agreed word. The first letter is the same as the letter of the word to be spelled.
| Letters | Spelling | Pronunciation |
| A | Alpha | A. . L. . F A H |
| B | Bravo | B..R..A VO |
| C | Charlie | T..C..HAH LI or CHAR LI |
| D | Delta | D. . E. . L T A H |
| E | Echo | È. . K. . O |
| F | Foxtrot | F. . O. . X T R O T |
| G | Golf | G. . . O. L F |
| H | Hotel | H. . O. . T È L |
| I | India | I.N...DI AH |
| J | Juliett | D. . J. . O U L I E T T |
| K | Kilo | K..I..LO |
| L | Lima | L..I..MAH |
| M | Mike | M...A. ÏK |
| N | November | NO VÈMM BER |
| O | Oscar | O. . . S . S K A R |
| P | Dad | P. . A. . H P A H |
| Q | Quebec | K. . É. . B E K |
| R | Romeo | R. . O. . M I O |
| S | Sierra | S..I..ER RAH |
| T | Tango | T..A..NG GO |
| U | Uniform | Y..O..U NI FORM or OU NI FORM |
| V | Victor | V.I.K. TAR |
| W | Wiskey | O. . . U . I S S K I |
| X | X-ray | E..K..SS E |
| Y | Yankee | Y..A..NG KI |
| Z | Zulu | Z. . O. . U L O U |
| Figures | Spelling | Pronunciation |
| Zero | ZEERO | 1 |
| One | WUN | 2 |
| Two | TOO | 3 |
| Three | TREE | 4 |
| Oven | FOWER | 5 |
| Five | FIFE | 6 |
| Six | SIX | 7 |
| Seven | SEVEN | 8 |
| Eight | AIT | 9 |
| Nine | NINER | 100 |
| Hundred | HUNDRED | 1000 |
| Thousand | THOUSAND | Some rules to ALWAYS respect: |
Make sure the network is free
- Respecting the order of calls
- Press and wait 1 second before speaking (otherwise the speaker cannot hear the beginning of the sentence)
- Speak clearly and calmly (no need to shout into the radio!)
