Two-Way Radio Procedure
Doin it Right
The Electromagnetic Spectrum between 3 kHz and 300 GHz is mostly used for radio communications.
This is the ICAO standard phonetic alphabet, now used globally for military, aviation, security and telecommunications. This replaced the WWII Allied "able baker charlie" military phonetic alphabet, however a few old vets still cling to the obsolete version.
A . - Alfa (AL-FAH) S . . . Sierra (SEE-AIR-RAH) B - . . . Bravo (BRAH-VOH) T - Tango (TANG-GO) C - . - . Charlie (CHAR-LEE)
(or SHAR-LEE)U . . - Uniform (YOU-NEE-FORM)
(or O-NEE-FORM)D - . . Delta (DELL-TAH) V . . . - Victor (VIK-TAH) E . Echo (ECK-OH) W . - - Whiskey (WISS-KEY) F . . - . Foxtrot (FOKS-TROT) X - . . - Xray (ECKS-RAY) G - - . Golf (GOLF) Y - . - - Yankee (YANG-KEE) H . . . . Hotel (HOH-TELL) Z - - . . Zulu (ZOO-LOO) I . . India (IN-DEE-AH) 1 . - - - - Wun J . - - - Juliett (JEW-LEE-ETT) 2 . . - - - Too K - . - Kilo (KEY-LOH) 3 . . . - - Tree L . - . . Lima (LEE-MAH) 4 . . . . - Fow-er M - - Mike (MIKE) 5 . . . . . Fife N - . November (NO-VEM-BER) 6 - . . . . Six O - - - Oscar (OSS-CAH) 7 - - . . . Sev-en P . - - . Papa (PAH-PAH) 8 - - - . . Ait Q - - . - Quebec (KEH-BECK) 9 - - - - . Nin-er R . - . Romeo (ROW-ME-OH) 0 - - - - - Ze-ro Your callsign is typically your FCC license number. Public safety repeaters and trunked systems are identified automatically with the official license callsign and the using agency coordinates "tactical" callsigns among all the authorized groups and users (Adam 12, Dispatch, Red Dog 28, etc.). Civil aviation uses FCC license number which is the same as aircraft tail number, scheduled airlines may use flight number for callsign. Military almost exclusively uses "Tactical" callsigns. Check rules and customs for your radio service.
Rules for identifying stations vary with service and custom. In two-way use, however, the other stations callsign always comes first. Only in the movies you hear "Alameda to China Clipper, come in!" In the real world its "China Clipper, China Clipper, this is Alameda, come in!". In a crowded or impaired channel such as HF, the called station may be spoken several times while attempting to make contact, once radio contact is established callsigns are usually spoken no more than once per transmission. In a repeater or dedicated channel with clear communications it is not necessary or desirable to repeat callsigns.
Generally all transmissions must be identified with callsigns. Normally identification happens by default at the beginning of a contact and is required again every 10 minutes and at the end of an exchange. Conventional repeaters automatically identify themselves, users of Nextel Direct Connect and other Trunked Radio systems do not have to identify as the repeater identifies in CW morse code without the users hearing it. (scanners will hear it) Paging systems, navigation beacons and data systems are usually identified by callsign in morse code in between or overlaid on normal transmissions. Only a few special transmissions such as radar are entirely exempt from callsign identification, and the FCC has pretty much given up on CB radio. Check FCC rules for your license class.
Each voice transmission in a simplex two way contact is ended with "OVER", when you sign off the channel your last transmission ends with "
OUT". Saying "Over and Out" is redundant and unnecessary but common. Aviators usually get handed off to the next controlling agency and leave the channel with " Good Day" or simply "G'Day". Repeaters and some half-duplex systems like NASA space shuttle communications have an automatic courtesy tone or "roger beeper" making "Over" by voice unnecessary. Trunked radio and Nextel Direct Connect have a "wait" tone only heard at the transmitting station while the system is allocating a channel from the pool, then the channel is given to the user for voice. A courtesy tone may be automatically sent at the end of each transmission, or you may say "Over" to avoid accidentally "stepping on" the other user. These types of systems usually have a noticeable delay which can be confusing to the novice. RESERVED WORDS FOR DISTRESS CALLS should not be used unless you mean it.
MAYDAY Distress call, grave danger, need immediate help. From French "M'aidez" or "Help Me". PAN PAN Distress call, need help. Can use with modifiers such as PAN Medico. Radio Etiquette depends on service. CB has essentially no etiquette other than the use of jive. In most other services you state who you are calling and who you are, dont monopolize the channel, give everyone a chance to talk, dont cuss or deride others, and give priority to distress or emergency traffic. In other words, just common sense.
Beyond that, many radio services such as aviation or ham radio have developed a jargon for brevity and clarity among pilots or operators, a set of familiar phrases for those of foreign tongues. Such as "roger" "say again" "proceed without delay". Public Safety in attempts to thwart eavesdropping began using "ten codes" (such as 10-20 for "location"). Regretably there are over 20 different "official" versions that have defied attempts to standardize since 1940. Use of Ten codes is on the decline anyway. 911dispatch.com gives the APCO (Association of Public Communications Officers) standard Ten Code plus links to many others.
But dont worry if you are not fully trained in the jargon, just say what you would normally say to someone if on the telephone, try to be brief and concise, you can pick up the standard phrases as you go.
Hope you enjoyed the article, this is Altair, N4YWK, Good Day !
