Nautical Signal Flag Maker | Turn a Name or Word into International Code of Signals Flags and Save as an Image, Substitute Flag Rules, Single-Flag Meanings (UW, NC, Zulu), Read Flags and a Flag Quiz
The Nautical Signal Flag Maker answers questions such as “what does my name look like in signal flags?”, “what does the UW signal mean?” and “how do you hoist the same letter twice?”. Type letters and numbers and it lays out the 26 alphabet flags and 10 numeral pennants of the International Code of Signals, either side by side as bunting or hanging vertically as a real flag hoist. Repeated flags are replaced with the 1st to 3rd substitutes following the rules of the International Code of Signals (for example, L1100 becomes L, 1, 1st substitute, 0, 3rd substitute), and it tells you when a second set of flags would be needed instead. Save it as PNG or SVG on a white, navy or transparent background for wedding and birthday decorations, sailing, yacht and marine logos and merchandise, or any design with a name in it. It also includes a reader that turns flags you tap back into letters, a flag quiz, a full table of each flag’s name (Alfa, Bravo…), Morse code, single-flag meaning and colours, and notes on well-known signals such as NC (distress), UW (I wish you a pleasant voyage), the Z flag and Japan’s tsunami flag (the U flag).
Nautical Signal Flag Maker
Type a name or word and it is laid out in international maritime signal flags. Repeated letters are replaced with substitute flags, just as in a real signal.
Layout
Background
Flags
9
Hoists
2
Substitutes
2
Reads
HAPPY TOOL
Flags you need
Read flags
Tap the flags you saw from the top (or left) in order and they are read back as letters. Substitutes are resolved too.
—
Flag quiz
Which letter is this flag? Choose from the four answers.
All signal flags and their meanings
The single-letter meanings of the alphabet flags follow the International Code of Signals. The roles of the numeral pennants, substitutes and answering pennant are listed too.
| Flag | Letter | Name | Morse | Single-flag meaning / role | Colours and shape |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Alfa | •− | I have a diver down; keep well clear at slow speed | White and blue halves, swallow-tailed | |
| B | Bravo | −••• | I am taking in, discharging or carrying dangerous goods | Plain red, swallow-tailed | |
| C | Charlie | −•−• | Yes (affirmative) | Horizontal stripes: blue, white, red, white, blue | |
| D | Delta | −•• | Keep clear of me; I am manoeuvring with difficulty | Horizontal stripes: yellow, blue, yellow (wide blue) | |
| E | Echo | • | I am altering my course to starboard | Blue over red | |
| F | Foxtrot | ••−• | I am disabled; communicate with me | Red diamond on white | |
| G | Golf | −−• | I require a pilot (from fishing vessels: “I am hauling nets”) | Vertical stripes of yellow and blue (six) | |
| H | Hotel | •••• | I have a pilot on board | White and red halves | |
| I | India | •• | I am altering my course to port | Black circle on yellow | |
| J | Juliett | •−−− | I am on fire and have dangerous cargo on board (or I am leaking dangerous cargo); keep well clear of me | Horizontal stripes: blue, white, blue | |
| K | Kilo | −•− | I wish to communicate with you | Yellow and blue halves | |
| L | Lima | •−•• | You should stop your vessel instantly | Quartered yellow and black | |
| M | Mike | −− | My vessel is stopped and making no way through the water | White diagonal cross on blue | |
| N | November | −• | No (negative) | Blue and white chequers (16 squares) | |
| O | Oscar | −−− | Man overboard | Diagonally halved red and yellow | |
| P | Papa | •−−• | In harbour: all persons should report on board as the vessel is about to proceed to sea (the Blue Peter) | White square on blue | |
| Q | Quebec | −−•− | My vessel is healthy and I request free pratique | Plain yellow | |
| R | Romeo | •−• | No meaning as a single-letter signal | Yellow cross on red | |
| S | Sierra | ••• | I am operating astern propulsion | Blue square on white | |
| T | Tango | − | Keep clear of me; I am engaged in pair trawling | Vertical thirds: red, white, blue | |
| U | Uniform | ••− | You are running into danger | Quartered red and white | |
| V | Victor | •••− | I require assistance | Red diagonal cross on white | |
| W | Whiskey | •−− | I require medical assistance | Blue border, white, red centre (nested) | |
| X | X-ray | −••− | Stop carrying out your intentions and watch for my signals | Blue cross on white | |
| Y | Yankee | −•−− | I am dragging my anchor | Diagonal stripes of yellow and red | |
| Z | Zulu | −−•• | I require a tug (from fishing vessels: “I am shooting nets”) | Four triangles: black, yellow, red, blue | |
| 0 | Nadazero | −−−−− | Number 0 | Red vertical band on yellow | |
| 1 | Unaone | •−−−− | Number 1 | Red circle on white | |
| 2 | Bissotwo | ••−−− | Number 2 | White circle on blue | |
| 3 | Terrathree | •••−− | Number 3 | Vertical thirds: red, white, blue | |
| 4 | Kartefour | ••••− | Number 4 | White cross on red | |
| 5 | Pantafive | ••••• | Number 5 | Yellow and blue halves | |
| 6 | Soxisix | −•••• | Number 6 | Black over white | |
| 7 | Setteseven | −−••• | Number 7 | Yellow over red | |
| 8 | Oktoeight | −−−•• | Number 8 | Red cross on white | |
| 9 | Novenine | −−−−• | Number 9 | Quartered white, black, red and yellow | |
| Substitute 1 | First Substitute | — | Repeats the 1st (topmost) flag of the same class in the hoist | Yellow triangle with a blue border | |
| Substitute 2 | Second Substitute | — | Repeats the 2nd flag of the same class in the hoist | Triangle halved blue and white | |
| Substitute 3 | Third Substitute | — | Repeats the 3rd flag of the same class in the hoist | White triangle with a black horizontal band | |
| Answering | Answering Pennant | — | Signal understood (answer). Also used as a decimal point in numbers | Tapered pennant with red and white vertical stripes |
Well-known signals
- NCI am in distress and require immediate assistance (distress signal)
- UWI wish you a pleasant voyage (a farewell to a departing ship)
- ACI am abandoning my vessel
- ZFamous in Japan as the flag Admiral Togo Heihachiro raised at the Battle of Tsushima in 1905, meaning “the fate of the Empire rests on this battle”
- UIn Japan it is used as the “tsunami flag” at beaches to show that a tsunami warning or advisory has been issued (quartered red and white)
ABOUT
About Nautical Signal Flag Maker | Turn a Name or Word into International Code of Signals Flags and Save as an Image, Substitute Flag Rules, Single-Flag Meanings (UW, NC, Zulu), Read Flags and a Flag Quiz
The Nautical Signal Flag Maker is a free tool that turns a name or word into international maritime signal flags and saves the result as PNG or SVG. Repeated letters are replaced with substitute flags, and it includes the single-flag meanings of A to Z, a table of numeral pennants and substitutes, a flag reader and a flag quiz.
How to use Nautical Signal Flag Maker | Turn a Name or Word into International Code of Signals Flags and Save as an Image, Substitute Flag Rules, Single-Flag Meanings (UW, NC, Zulu), Read Flags and a Flag Quiz
- 1Type the word you want as flags using letters and numbers
- 2Choose “Side by side (bunting)” or “Hang vertically (flag hoist)”, then pick a background (white, navy or transparent) and whether to add the letters
- 3For repeated letters, choose whether to show the same flag again or replace it with substitute flags as in a real signal
- 4Use “Save as PNG” or “Save as SVG” to get an image, or “Copy share URL” to send the same flags to someone
- 5To read flags you have seen, tap them from the top in “Read flags”. To memorise them, practise with the “Flag quiz”
Great for
- Making name or message decorations in signal flags for weddings, birthdays or farewell parties
- Drafting logos, T-shirts or stickers for a sailing club, boat shop or marine-themed team
- Finding out what a row of flags seen in a harbour or on a ship says
- Checking the meaning of famous signals such as UW, NC or the Z flag
- Practising signal flags at a maritime school, sea cadets or scouts
- Using signal flags as a cipher in puzzle hunts and escape games
Good to know
- International signal flags are defined in the International Code of Signals: 26 alphabet flags, 10 numeral pennants, 3 substitutes and 1 answering pennant, 40 in all. An alphabet flag hoisted on its own has a fixed meaning (a single-letter signal), and combinations of two or more flags have meanings too.
- Substitute flags let a ship with only one set of flags repeat a flag. A substitute repeats the 1st, 2nd or 3rd flag, counted from the top, of the same class (alphabet flags or numeral pennants) as the flag immediately before it. For example, L1100 is L, 1, 1st substitute, 0, 3rd substitute, and NOON is N, O, 2nd substitute, 1st substitute. Repeating the 4th or a later flag, or repeating a letter straight after a number, cannot be done with substitutes, so the tool marks those flags with a yellow frame as needing a second set.
- Only the letters A to Z, the numbers 0 to 9 and spaces become flags. Spaces split the text into separate hoists. Accented letters are converted to their plain letters where possible, and other symbols are dropped.
- The colours are the five used by the International Code of Signals: red, blue, yellow, black and white. Alphabet flags are rectangular (A and B are swallow-tailed), numeral pennants and the answering pennant are tapered, and substitutes are triangular. Proportions and exact shades differ slightly between flag makers.
- When a ship is “dressed overall” with flags, they are arranged for looks and carry no meaning. The “Side by side” layout in this tool is for making decorations that spell out a readable word.
Questions this tool answers
Use Nautical Signal Flag Maker | Turn a Name or Word into International Code of Signals Flags and Save as an Image, Substitute Flag Rules, Single-Flag Meanings (UW, NC, Zulu), Read Flags and a Flag Quiz for searches like these:
- Turn my name into nautical signal flags as an image
- See all international signal flags and their meanings
- Find out what the UW, Z and U flags mean
- Learn how substitute flags are used for repeated letters
- Read a row of signal flags I have seen
- Take a quiz to memorise the signal flags
FAQ
- How do I write my name in nautical signal flags?
- Use one flag for each letter of your name, in order. Type your name into this tool and the flags are laid out for you, ready to save as PNG or SVG.
- What does the UW signal mean?
- UW is a two-letter signal meaning “I wish you a pleasant voyage”, hoisted to see off a departing ship. U is quartered red and white, and W is a blue border around white with a red centre.
- What does the Z flag mean?
- As a single-letter signal in the International Code of Signals it means “I require a tug”. In Japan it is famous as the flag Admiral Togo Heihachiro raised on the flagship Mikasa at the Battle of Tsushima in 1905, meaning “The fate of the Empire rests on this battle; let every man do his utmost”.
- How do you signal the same letter twice?
- With substitute flags. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd substitutes repeat the 1st, 2nd and 3rd flag, counted from the top, of the same class as the flag before them. HANNAH, for example, is H, A, N, 3rd substitute, 2nd substitute, 1st substitute. If you just want the same flag repeated as a decoration, turn off “Use substitute flags for repeated letters”.
- What is the red and white chequered flag on Japanese beaches?
- It is the tsunami flag. It has the same design as the U flag (quartered red and white) of the International Code of Signals, and since 2020 Japan has used it at beaches to show that a tsunami warning or advisory has been issued. In the International Code of Signals, the U flag means “You are running into danger”.
- What does NC mean?
- NC combines N (no) and C (yes) and is the distress signal: “I am in distress and require immediate assistance”.
Special Thanks