What is 10 4 Good Buddy? Ten-four is a cop code. It means good to go, all right, see you there, the like. Good buddy was added on by truckers who pick up on jargon by listening to their scanners. So in ten four good buddy, it’s like one truck driver saying to another okay, or right, or whatever it is in the affirmative. Getting back to “good buddy" in the ’70s, when the CB craze was catching on, every wannabe had one. It was also a way a trucker knew whether the person he spoke to on the radio was a fellow trucker or a poser. Using “good buddy" was a ■■■■ giveaway.
What is Good Buddy in 10 4 Good buddies?
Good buddy. In the 1970s, this was the stereotypical term for a friend or acquaintance on the CB airwaves. Now the term “buddy” can be used similarly to “good buddy”. Good numbers. Well wishes to a fellow driver. Buddy is most commonly used as an informal word for a friend.
What are The Ten-Codes
The ten codes or ten signals are words used as stand-ins for common phrases in radio communication. Charles Hopper, a communications director with the Illinois State Police, developed them in 1937 to combat the problem of the first syllables or words of transmission being cut off or misunderstood.
Preceding every code with “ten” gave the sometimes slow equipment time to warm up and improved the likelihood that a listener would understand the important part of a message. The codes also allowed for brevity and standardization in radio message traffic.
The codes were expanded by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-International (APCO) in 1974 and used by law enforcement agencies and civilian CB radio users. Over time, differing meanings for the codes came about in different agencies and jurisdictions, undoing the codes’ usefulness as a concise and standardized system.
The problem came to a head in 2005 during rescue operations after Hurricane Katrina. After several inter-agency communication problems, the United States Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) discouraged using ten codes. Today, the federal government recommends replacing them with plain, everyday language. Here’s the official APCO list.
Code : Roger That
In the days of the telegraph, the Morse code letter R (dot-dash-dot) was sometimes used to indicate “received” or “message received/understood.” When radio voice communication began to replace telegraphs, Roger, the codeword assigned to the letter R in the Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet (the radio alphabet used by all branches of the United States military from 1941 to 1956), took on the same role.
Contrary to what Hollywood would have you think, Roger only means “the last transmission received/understood” and does not also mean or imply “I will comply.” Wilco (Will Comply) is the code used if the speaker intends to convey a “message received and will comply.” Given that, the phrase Roger Wilco, which you so often hear in the movies, is redundant and not used since Wilco alone covers all the bases and acknowledges receipt of a message and states intent to comply.’
Code : Mayday
Mayday is an international code word used to signal life-threatening emergencies. It was originated in 1923 by Frederick Stanley Mockford, a senior radio officer at London’s Croydon Airport. He was tasked with creating a unique and easily understandable emergency code word. Most of the air traffic at Croydon was either coming from or going to Le Bourget Airport in Paris, so Mockford chose mayday because of its similarity to the French maider (“come help me”).
Because it is an emergency signal, plenty of rules govern the use and format of a mayday call. A mayday call can only be made when life or craft is in imminent danger of death or destruction (and, as with fake 9-1-1 calls, fake mayday calls are considered serious crimes. In the U.S., making a fake distress call is a federal crime that can carry large fines and jail time), and once one is made, no other messages can be transmitted except to assist in the emergency.
The correct format for a Mayday call is:
- “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday.” The call is always given three times in a row to keep it from being mistaken for a similar-sounding phrase or to distinguish an actual distress signal from a message about a mayday call.
- “This is ____.” The vessel name is repeated three times, followed by a call sign if available.
- “Mayday. [vessel name].”
- “My position is ____.” The position is given in latitude-longitude coordinates, bearing, and distance from a fixed point.
- “I am _____.” The type of emergency, e.g. fire or sinking.
- “I require immediate assistance.”
- “I have _____.” The number of people on board, their condition, and any other pertinent information, e.g. abandoning life rafts.
- “Over.”
Some radio instructors suggest the mnemonic MIPDANIO for learning mayday signal format: Mayday, Identify, Position, Distress, Assistance, Number of the crew, Information, Over.
What is the Origin of 10 4 Good Buddy?
This phrase originates from the North American “CB” culture of the 1970s that was highly popularized by Hollywood films, commonly in road comedies like Cannonball Run and Smokey and the Bandit.
CB (Citizen’s Band) radios were widely used in the heavy trucking industry, creating a niche user community, thus developing a unique camaraderie akin to today’s online gaming community. True friendships are made where individuals may never meet in real life.
“Ten-four (10–4)” is borrowed from the ordered and disciplined police radio voice procedure. As a code, it denotes acknowledgement of a previous statement. “Good buddy” is a very familiar and endearing term conjuring southern American hospitality. The confluence of the two statements creates a deliberately ironic expression at once officious and informal.
American police departments use the Ten-codes (officially the Ten Signals) for clarity and brevity in radio communications. They were originally developed in 1937 and have been revised and extended several times since. Ten-four is a universal acknowledgement code (as in OK), going back to the original development of the code, and indicates both receipt and acknowledgement of the previous message. It is a combined “Rodger" and “Wilco".
With the advent of CB radio for civilian use, many of the ten codes were adopted by CB users and later modified by popular usage. 10-4 retains its original meaning and usage, but its reverse, or 4-10, is now a request for acknowledgement.
“Good buddy" is a polite form of address that does not require repeating the “handle” or radio nickname of the person addressed. Please remember that CB is an open-channel environment where several people may be on the channel simultaneously.
Therefore “10-4, good buddy" is the rough equivalent of saying “Rodger, Wilco, sir" and is considerably more clear and concise over an open channel.
Translation: Channel Break, Channel 19 I-480, eastbound, Traffic Police at the eastern end of the Cuyahoga Valley bridge, acknowledge?
“10-4, good buddy. Shuttlecraft Galileo, into the sun, and backing down. You’re clean and green into the sunset.”
Translation: Rodger, sir. SG acknowledges. I’m approaching the trap, slowing as appropriate. There is nothing for you to worry about ahead on the westbound side.
“10-4, good buddy. (handle), out.”
Translation: Rodger, and thanks. This is (handle), over and out. The channel is now clear for other users.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does the phrase 10 4 Good Buddy mean?
“10–4” means “affirmative” or “yes” or “correct,” and “good buddy” is an informal, friendly way of addressing another driver or trucker. This phrase can be used outside of trucking since the general public understands the slang through a song released in 1970.
CONCLUSION
If I sum this Article up in some lines, 10 4 good buddy is a code mostly used by cops; it means good to go. Cops use it when they catch criminals or some major serial killers. It means that they are now good to go. Good buddy was added on by truckers who pick up on jargon by listening to their scanners. So in ten four good buddies, it’s like one truck driver saying to another okay, or right, or whatever it is in the affirmative.
Truckers felt that Hollywood had hijacked the phrase “good buddy" and showed their disdain for it by giving it its new, negative connotation. It was also a way a trucker knew whether the person he spoke to on the radio was a fellow trucker or a poser.