The other day I was browsing through Wikipedia and chanced upon this topic on NATO Phonetic Alphabets. It's a pretty entertaining read and highly recommended.
For instance you probably heard these in movies involving the armed forces and/or aeroplanes:
Alpha (stands for A), Bravo (B), Charlie (C), Delta (D).
From Wiki:
The NATO phonetic alphabet is a common name for the international radiotelephony spelling alphabet which assigns code words to the letters of the English alphabet so that critical combinations of letters (and numbers) can be pronounced and understood by those who transmit and receive voice messages by radio or telephone regardless of their native language, especially when the safety of navigation or persons is essential. It is used by many national and international organizations, including the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).Some usages in movies and novels include:
And now for the desi connection:The NATO phonetic alphabet is referred to repeatedly in Robert Ludlum's novel The Bourne Identity. The phrase Cain is for Charlie and Delta is for Cain is repeated, always italicised, to symbolise the messages relayed to the main character during the Vietnam war....................................
The nickname "Charlie" used by US servicemen in the Vietnam War is derived from "Victor Charlie", the NATO phoneticism for the initials of the Viet Cong, the armed insurgents in the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam)............................
The term "Charlie Foxtrot" is used as an abbreviation for CF in American Military slang to refer to a "cluster f@#k" or "completely f@#ked".................
India is the "I" in the Nato Phonetic Alphabet.
Refer to "I" for "India"
So, if I wanted to say "I'm (I M) completely f@#ked" that would be "India Mike Charlie Foxtrot".
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