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Best Practices voor een duurzame toekomst
28 juni 2014

The NATO alphabet made easy (and funny)

After drinking WHISKEY VICTOR produces an XRAY of a YANKEE and a ZULU at the same time. And 5 other mnemonics to memorize the Nato / Navo alphabet easily.

When a friend asked me to take over a new-classic '78 yacht this spring, his fathers beloved Albin Vega, I became the owner of a VHF (very high frequenty) radio at the same time. With the purfchase I became an illegal radiotransmittor, since I was not having the proper documents to use it. Sailing away in Dutch Delta could cost me a euro 250 fine. 

So, I order to get me a proper radio license, I had to learn the NATO phonetic alphabet. And fast. At first sight this alphabet it is a very illogical gathering of words. It made no sense to me at all. Names of five guys and one girl, one city, two countries, one state, two dances… And of course some military terms, like ‘uniform’, since the definitive version of this list was formed after the Second World War by NATO-forces, in Europe known as the NAVO. Never before I realized that the American army named their enemy in Vietnam, the Vietcong, after 'Charlie', one of the two boys in the alphabet with the names Victor and Charlie (VC). 

I have never been a soldier. So, as an ordinary civilian I have tried to make some sense of these 26 irregular words. In doing so I regrouped the alphabet in 6 sentences that are sometimes as absurd as a scene in a Monthy Python movie. Funny, and certainly non-violent.For me, the actions of the main characters in my list of 6 mnemonics are very easy to remember…

I wished I could change the F of Foxtrot for Fun!

ABCD

Q: What is C. doing?
A: BRAVO! ALPHA male CHARLIE causes an ECHO in the DELTA

FGHI

Q: Where am I?
A: I am dancing a FOXTROT in a GOLF HOTEL in INDIA

JKL

Q: What is J. doing?
A: JULIETT eats a KILO in LIMA

MNOPQ

Q: Wat is M. doing?
A: In NOVEMBER MIKE is leaving with OSCAR and PAPA to QUEBEC

RSTU

Q: What is R. doing?
A: In the SIERRA ROMEO dances a TANGO in UNIFORM

VWXYZ

Q: What is V. doing?
A: After drinking WHISKEY VICTOR produced an X-RAY of a YANKEE and a ZULU

On the left side of the page you can find and download a PDF, for a nice print out of the mnemonics.

And here’s also a DUTCH version, with some slightly different sentences.

Het Radiografisch Alfabet in 6 ezelsbruggetjes

Q: Wat doet C.?
A: BRAVO! ALPHA-mannetje CHARLIE maakt een ECHO in de DELTA

Q: Waar ben ik?
A: Ik dans een FOXTROT in een GOLF HOTEL in INDIA

Q: Wat doet J.?
A: JULIETT eet een KILO in LIMA

Q: Wat doet M.?
A: MIKE gaat in NOVEMBER met OSCAR en PAPA naar QUEBEC

Q: Wat doet R.?
A: ROMEO danst in de SIERRA een TANGO in UNIFORM

Q: Wat doet V.?
A: VICTOR drinkt zoveel WHISKEY dat hij een X-RAY maakt van een YANKEE en een ZULU tegelijkertijd

THE REGROUPED ALPHABET / HET HERGEGROEPEERDE ALFABET

A: Alpha
B: Bravo
C: Charlie
D: Delta
E: Echo

F: Foxtrot
G: Golf
H: Hotel
I: India

J: Juliett
K: Kilo
L: Lima

M: Mike
N: November
O: Oscar
P: Papa
Q: Quebec

R: Romeo
S: Sierra
T: Tango

U: Uniform
V: Victor
W: Whiskey
X: Xray
Y: Yankee
Z: Zulu

Op de linkerkolom onderaan staat een PDF met daarin een opgemaakte versie van deze makkelijk te leren versie van het radiografische alphabet.

Have fun!

Jan Bom, editor in chief P+ People Planet Profit.
 

Downloads

Meer info download je hier:

alpha.. bravo...charlie...delta (75 kb)