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What are the words and phrases used in French for communicating over radio? I found this link but it is not quite what I'm looking for. For example in English phrases like:

  • copy that / roger that
  • over (and out)
  • do you read me

are commonly heard. Do they have French equivalents? What other French phrases are used over radio?

2 Answers 2

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  • copy that / roger that -> Reçu ! or Bien reçu !

  • over -> À vous !, or Parlez !, or Transmettez !

  • over and out -> Terminé !

  • do you read me? -> Est-ce que vous me recevez ? or Essai radio !

  • yes/no -> Affirmatif / Négatif

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In a comment, user3486184 noted the NATO phonetic alphabet. It and other radio spelling alphabets were developed so that no letters could be confused in communications (B rhymes with C, D, G, P, T, V; I rhymes with J, V vs W, etc). It was developed primarily to be accessible English, French, and Spanish speakers. France, like many countries, uses it internationally in air traffic and emergency services.

France also has its own version. L'alphabet téléphonique (ou radio) français uses completely different words, most of which are first names:

Anatole, Berthe, Célestine, Désiré, Eugène, François, Gaston, Henri, Irma, Joseph, Kléber, Louis, Marcel, Nicolas, Oscar, Pierre, Quintal, Raoul, Suzanne, Thérèse, Ursule, Victor, William, Xavier, Yvonne, Zoé

Oscar and Victor are the same in both l'alphabet radio and NATO/ICAO spelling alphabets.

In other parts of the Francophone world, A is for Alice in Canada, Arthur in Belgium and Anna in Switzerland.

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