Q 01/05

Which spelling of the NATO code word for A is official, chosen to suit non-English speakers?

A) Alfa

B) Alpha

C) Alfah

D) Alpa

Answer · why

A) Alfa

Alfa is the official spelling because speakers of some languages would not know to pronounce 'ph' as an f. Most European languages already write the w...

Q 02/05

Which name do pilots say for 'message received', because it once stood for R in wartime alphabets?

A) Roger

B) Robert

C) Ronald

D) Rodney

Answer · why

A) Roger

Roger stood for R, short for 'received', in the British and American military alphabets of World War II. The habit stuck even after the letter was giv...

Q 03/05

On aviation radio, a time ending in the NATO code word 'Zulu' is given in which time standard?

A) EST

B) CET

C) UTC

D) JST

Answer · why

C) UTC

UTC is the zero-offset time zone, which carries the letter Z, so a 'Zulu' time reads the same for every crew. The zones to its east and west take othe...

Q 04/05

In naval signalling, what does the two-flag hoist spelled 'Bravo Zulu' tell another ship's crew?

A) Return to port

B) Well done

C) Enemy sighted

D) Abandon ship

Answer · why

B) Well done

Well done is the meaning listed for the letter group BZ in the Allied naval signal book. The phrase has since spread from flag hoists and voice radio ...

Q 05/05

Which digit do pilots give an extra syllable so nobody mistakes it for the German word for 'no'?

A) Six

B) Seven

C) Eight

D) Nine

Answer · why

D) Nine

Nine becomes 'niner' on the radio so that nobody hears the German 'nein'. The same rulebook respells a few other digits so they survive static and str...