SERA.14035 Transmission of numbers in radiotelephony

(a)     Transmission of numbers

(1)     All numbers used in the transmission of aircraft call sign, headings, runway, wind direction and speed shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately.

(i)      Flight levels shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately, except for the case of flight levels in whole hundreds.

(ii)     The altimeter setting shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately, except for the case of a setting of 1000 hPa, which shall be transmitted as ‘ONE THOUSAND’.

(iii)     All numbers used in the transmission of transponder codes shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately except that, when the transponder codes contain whole thousands only, the information shall be transmitted by pronouncing the digit in the number of thousands followed by the word ‘THOUSAND’.

[applicable until 30 April 2025 – Regulation (EU) 2016/1185]

(1)     All numbers used in the transmission of aircraft call sign, headings, wind direction and speed, and runway shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately.

(i)      Flight levels shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately, except for the case of flight levels in whole hundreds.

(ii)     The altimeter setting shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately, except for the case of a setting of 1 000 hPa, which shall be transmitted as “ONE THOUSAND”.

(iii)     All numbers used in the transmission of transponder codes shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately except that, when the transponder codes contain whole thousands only, the information shall be transmitted by pronouncing the digit in the number of thousands followed by the word “THOUSAND”.

[applicable from 1 May 2025 – Regulation (EU) 2024/404]

(2)     All numbers used in transmission of other information than those described in point (a)(1) shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately, except that all numbers containing whole hundreds and whole thousands shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit in the number of hundreds or thousands followed by the word ‘HUNDRED’ or ‘THOUSAND’, as appropriate. Combinations of thousands and whole hundreds shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit in the number of thousands followed by the word ‘THOUSAND’, followed by the number of hundreds followed by the word ‘HUNDRED’.

(3)     In cases where there is a need to clarify the number transmitted as whole thousands and/or whole hundreds, the number shall be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately.

(4)     When providing information regarding the relative bearing to an object or to conflicting traffic in terms of the 12-hour clock, the information shall be given pronouncing the digits together such as ‘TEN O'CLOCK’ or ‘ELEVEN O'CLOCK’.

(5)     Numbers containing a decimal point shall be transmitted as prescribed in point (a)(1) with the decimal point in appropriate sequence, indicated by the word ‘DECIMAL’.

(6)     All six digits of the numerical designator shall be used to identify the transmitting channel in very high frequency (VHF) radiotelephony communications, except in the case of both the fifth and sixth digits being zeros, in which case only the first four digits shall be used.