The U.S. Navy and other services use the same 26-letter alphabet that people use every day, but they substitute a word for each letter. You might pronounce the letter "a" when spelling the word a-n-t. A sailor uses words in place of each letter, making a-n-t into "alpha-november-tango." This system prevents mix-ups between similar sounding letters such as "m" and "n," and "b" and "v." This clarifies a message over a static-filled telephone line. The Navy also uses flags to symbolize letters. These signal flags are flown on the open deck of a vessel. Flags allow ships to communicate with other vessels without picking up a radio or sending an e-mail. This lesson is divided into five sections: (1) "Navy ABCs"; (2) "Military Alphabet and Signal Flags"; (3) "Spelling Worksheet"; (4)"Flag Worksheet"; and (5) "History of Phonetic Alphabet and Signal Flags". (BT)