Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Friendliest aviation Ccmmunity on the web
  • Modern site for PC's, Phones, Tablets - no 3rd party apps required
  • Ask questions, help others, promote aviation
  • Share the passion for aviation
  • Invite everyone to Flightinfo.com and let's have fun

Does the military use the same phonetic alphabet?

Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Modern secure site, no 3rd party apps required
  • Invite your friends
  • Share the passion of aviation
  • Friendliest aviation community on the web

Way2Broke

Member
Joined
Feb 24, 2005
Posts
2,882
Does the military use the same phonetic alphabet found in the aim (4-2-7)? Also, whats up with the gear down and locked call you have to make when flying out of a military field, like Ft. Wood. I know its a military thing, but why? Thanks.
 
The military does use the same phonetic alphabet. As for the gear down call, all Air Force (that's the only service I can speak for) aircraft are required by regs to report gear down prior to crossing the threshold at both civilian and military fields. This may just be an AETC thing, but I believe it's Air Force wide. I would assume that when civilian pilots land at military fields they are required to make the call because they're talking to military controllers.

V/R
R.S.
 
The whole "gear down" call is because USAF (and other military branches, as well, IIRC) controllers are trained to challenge aircrews on it, and what Ragansundowner already said.

What's probably happening with you is the following radio sequence:

"(CALLSIGN), check wheels down, cleared to land, 15C."

You: "(CALLSIGN), cleared to land, 15C."

"(CALLSIGN), confirm wheels down..."

You: "Uh, sure...whatever...gear down..."

^This is mostly because of their training and the fact that they're so used to hearing the "gear down" call.


I've never heard of a military controller actually sending someone around for not making a "gear down" call, though. What usually happens is the controller pesters you until you finally cry uncle and acquiesce to his demands.


Perhaps you've heard a USAF aircraft make a "base--gear--stop/option--left/center/right" call. This is used as a military jet rolls off the perch at non-SUPT bases to call base, check the gear down, advise tower of the full stop/option, and to offer clarification of the runway in question.

For example: "FOXY69, base, gear, stop."
 
Last edited:
In my experience (at least at McGuire), it goes something like this:

Me: "McGuire Tower, Opec 76, final approach fix, runway 24, gear down."

Tower: "Opec 76, check gear down, runway 24, cleared to land."

Me: "Roger, Opec 76, gear down, cleared to land, runway 24."


Pretty redundant, isn't it?


What's really pathetic is when I call gear down to a major int'l airport tower (when flying for the company), like I did once at JFK. I get confused sometimes, I guess.
 
KC-10 Driver said:
In my experience (at least at McGuire), it goes something like this:

Me: "McGuire Tower, Opec 76, final approach fix, runway 24, gear down."

Tower: "Opec 76, check gear down, runway 24, cleared to land."

Me: "Roger, Opec 76, gear down, cleared to land, runway 24."


Pretty redundant, isn't it?

That's pretty standard here at KSPS, too, as they snooze in the tower from time to time... :)
 
Way2Broke said:
Also, whats up with the gear down and locked call you have to make when flying out of a military field, like Ft. Wood. I know its a military thing, but why? Thanks.

Maybe it's because we still have pilots (young and old) who try to land gear up. We've even had a pilot or two make their "gear down" call with the gear warning horn going off in the background.

Like Fury said, it's part of our reg. We have more retractable gear aircraft than fixed gear cessnas in the military.

Speaking of gear down calls...have you guys seen this? At least one of them had their gear down.

http://images.military.com/Video/050906_MadHATR.wmv
 
Last edited:
Thanks guys, I just didn't know why they give it to the civilian guys as well. There is alot to be said about doing it the same way everytime.
 
Fury220 said:
Haha -- "sorry about that, sir..." YGBSM.

I had pilots asking for "forgiveness" more than once when I was a military controller. Don't forget that we're all human. Controllers screw up sometimes and so do you.
 

Latest resources

Back
Top