Editing NATO reporting name (section)

{{short description|NATO code name for military equipment of purported opponents}}
{{More citations needed|date=June 2010}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
[[NATO]] uses a system of [[code name]]s, called '''reporting names''', to denote military aircraft and other equipment used by [[post-Soviet states]], former [[Warsaw Pact]] countries, [[China]], and other countries. The system assists military communications by providing short, one- or two-syllable names, as alternatives to the precise [[proper name]]s, which may be easily confused under operational conditions or are unknown in the [[First World|Western world]].<ref name="NATO list">{{cite web|title=NATO Code Names for Submarines and Ships: Submarine Classes / Reporting Name|work=Art and Aerospace Page|publisher=Univ. of Michigan, UMCC / AIS|url=http://www.ais.org/~schnars/aero/nato-shp.htm|access-date=29 April 2011}}</ref>

The assignment of reporting names is managed by the [[Five Eyes Air Force Interoperability Council]] (AFIC), previously known as the Air Standardization Coordinating Committee (ASCC), which is separate from [[NATO]]. Based in Washington DC, AFIC comprises representatives from the militaries of three NATO members (Canada, the United Kingdom and United States) and two non-NATO countries (Australia and New Zealand).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Hollings |first=Alex |date=2022-01-24 |title=Where Do NATO Aircraft Names Come From? |url=https://nationalinterest.org/blog/reboot/where-do-nato-aircraft-names-come-199619 |access-date=2024-03-02 |website=The National Interest |language=en}}</ref>

When the system was introduced in the 1950s, reporting names also implicitly designated potentially hostile aircraft. However, since the end of the Cold War, some NATO air forces have operated various aircraft types with reporting names (e.g., "Fulcrum" for [[Mikoyan MiG-29]]).