Reference · for crews, stewards and event teams
Walkie-talkie codes: the honest list
Start here, because it saves most teams a laminated card.
Ten-codes are not standardised. The same number means different things to different organisations, which is why many services dropped them for plain speech years ago. Unless you are joining a team that already uses a code set, say the thing: "Gate 4 needs backup" beats any number, and a new starter can follow it on their first shift.
What does 10-4 mean?
10-4 means "message received and understood", and it is the one ten-code most people in the UK recognise without being taught it. The rest of the list below is worth knowing mainly so you understand someone else using it.
The ten-codes people actually search for
| Code | Usual meaning |
|---|---|
| 10-1 | Receiving badly / signal poor |
| 10-2 | Receiving well |
| 10-4 | Message received and understood |
| 10-6 | Busy — stand by |
| 10-7 | Out of service / going off air |
| 10-8 | In service / available |
| 10-9 | Repeat your last message |
| 10-10 | Finished, but still listening |
| 10-20 | Your location ("what's your 20?") |
| 10-33 | Emergency traffic — clear the channel |
Treat these as indicative, not authoritative. They vary between organisations and always have. If your team is going to use them, write your own one-page list and hand it to every new starter — that sheet, not the tradition, is what makes them work.
What is the NATO phonetic alphabet?
The phonetic alphabet spells letters as whole words so they survive a bad connection, and it is genuinely useful on a channel where a "B" and a "D" sound identical.
| A–F | G–L | M–R | S–Z |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alfa · Bravo · Charlie Delta · Echo · Foxtrot | Golf · Hotel · India Juliett · Kilo · Lima | Mike · November · Oscar Papa · Quebec · Romeo | Sierra · Tango · Uniform Victor · Whiskey · X-ray Yankee · Zulu |
The plain-English phrases worth keeping
A handful of radio conventions earn their place because they solve a real problem — one person talking at a time — and they work just as well on a push-to-talk app.
- "Go ahead" — I'm listening, send your message.
- "Stand by" — wait, I'll come back to you.
- "Say again" — repeat. Never "repeat" on its own, which means something else in some services.
- "Over" — I've finished, your turn.
- "Out" — the conversation is finished. "Over and out" is a contradiction and comes from films.
- "Copy" or "received" — heard and understood. This is the everyday replacement for 10-4.
How should a team name its channels?
Name a channel for the job it does, so somebody joining mid-shift can act on it without being briefed — GATE4, LOADIN, KITCHEN, CARPARK. Every team invents a BINS9 at some point; it is funnier than it is useful at 2am with an agency steward on their first night.
CRAGGEN channels are joined with a random four-word code plus an optional PIN, so the channel name is purely for your team's benefit — anyone who has the code and PIN can join, which is why you share them with the crew and check the visible roster.
Do you need any of this to use an app?
No — a push-to-talk app needs no codes, no call signs and no radio etiquette to work, and most crews get further with clear plain speech than with a borrowed code set. Keep the discipline that matters: one person at a time, say who you are, say where you are, and say what you need.
Skip the codes. Just say the thing.
One button, one channel, and the whole crew hears it at once.
No account · no tracking in the app · no server audio recording · joining is always free