Aircraft Tail Number & Registration Decoder: Country Prefix Lookup

National Prefixes

Indexed sovereignty codes

Governing Framework

ICAO Annex 7

Chicago Convention nationality marks

Standard Structure

Prefix + Suffix

National ID followed by aircraft tail letters

Global Civil Aircraft Registry Directory

Showing all 28 prefixes

United States

Civil Authority: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

Tail Format: N followed by 1 to 5 alphanumeric characters (e.g. N12345, N123AA)

Example Tail: N101DU

The prefix N was assigned to the United States at the 1927 International Radiotelegraph Conference.

G-

United Kingdom

Civil Authority: Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)

Tail Format: G- followed by 4 letters (e.g. G-BOAC, G-XWBA)

Example Tail: G-XWBA

Historically stood for Great Britain. British Airways often selects registration suffix letters matching aircraft fleet types.

VH-

Australia

Civil Authority: Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA)

Tail Format: VH- followed by 3 letters (e.g. VH-OQA, VH-VGF)

Example Tail: VH-OQA

VH mark allocated to Australia in 1927. Qantas long-haul airframes customarily carry VH- prefixes.

C-

Canada

Civil Authority: Transport Canada (TC)

Tail Format: C-Fxxx or C-Gxxx followed by 3 letters (e.g. C-GHLM)

Example Tail: C-FNND

Vintage aircraft also use CF- prefix. Canadian registrations omit letters I and S to avoid confusion with digits 1 and 5.

F-

France

Civil Authority: Direction Générale de l'Aviation Civile (DGAC)

Tail Format: F- followed by 4 letters (e.g. F-GZCP, F-HRBA)

Example Tail: F-GZCP

Air France widebody aircraft regularly feature F-Gxxx or F-Hxxx registrations.

D-

Germany

Civil Authority: Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA)

Tail Format: D- followed by 4 letters, with first letter indicating weight category (e.g. D-ABYA where A denotes multi-engine jets over 20 metric tons)

Example Tail: D-AIXP

Lufthansa uses D-Axxx for mainline commercial aircraft, honoring Deutschland.

Japan

Civil Authority: Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB)

Tail Format: JA followed by 4 digits or alphanumeric characters (e.g. JA801A, JA737J)

Example Tail: JA801A

All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines register aircraft under the JA prefix.

9V-

Singapore

Civil Authority: Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS)

Tail Format: 9V- followed by 3 letters (e.g. 9V-SWA, 9V-SKK)

Example Tail: 9V-SWA

Singapore Airlines long-range A350 and A380 flagships carry the 9V- prefix.

B-

China

Civil Authority: Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC)

Tail Format: B- followed by 4 digits or letters (e.g. B-2047, B-18301)

Example Tail: B-2047

Also shared with Taiwan (Republic of China) and Hong Kong (B-Hxx/B-Lxx).

A6-

United Arab Emirates

Civil Authority: General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA)

Tail Format: A6- followed by 3 letters (e.g. A6-EEU, A6-EVI)

Example Tail: A6-EEU

Emirates and Etihad Airways base their massive widebody fleets under the A6- registry.

A7-

Qatar

Civil Authority: Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA)

Tail Format: A7- followed by 3 letters (e.g. A7-ALH, A7-BAL)

Example Tail: A7-ALH

Qatar Airways modern fleet of A350s, 777s, and 787s carry the A7- mark.

VT-

India

Civil Authority: Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)

Tail Format: VT- followed by 3 letters (e.g. VT-EXO, VT-ISN)

Example Tail: VT-EXO

VT originally stood for Victorian Territory or Viceroy Territory during British rule in 1929.

EI-

Ireland

Civil Authority: Irish Aviation Authority (IAA)

Tail Format: EI- followed by 3 letters (e.g. EI-DCL, EI-EDY)

Example Tail: EI-DCL

A huge portion of European low-cost fleets (including Ryanair) and leased commercial aircraft are registered in Ireland for tax and financing benefits.

PH-

Netherlands

Civil Authority: Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport (ILT)

Tail Format: PH- followed by 3 letters (e.g. PH-BVA, PH-AOA)

Example Tail: PH-BVA

PH stands for Pays-Bas or Pander (pioneer aviator). KLM fleet has operated with PH registrations since 1928.

HB-

Switzerland

Civil Authority: Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA)

Tail Format: HB- followed by 3 letters (e.g. HB-JHM, HB-JNA)

Example Tail: HB-JNA

HB signifies Helvetia / Confederation Helvetica.

I-

Italy

Civil Authority: Ente Nazionale per l'Aviazione Civile (ENAC)

Tail Format: I- followed by 4 letters (e.g. I-BIXN, I-DISA)

Example Tail: I-BIXN

Alitalia and ITA Airways register aircraft under the Italian I- prefix.

EC-

Spain

Civil Authority: Agencia Estatal de Seguridad Aérea (AESA)

Tail Format: EC- followed by 3 letters (e.g. EC-MUB, EC-NVR)

Example Tail: EC-MUB

EC denotes Espana Commercial. Used by Iberia, Vueling, and Air Europa.

ZK-

New Zealand

Civil Authority: Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand (CAA)

Tail Format: ZK- followed by 3 letters (e.g. ZK-OKM, ZK-NZC)

Example Tail: ZK-OKM

Air New Zealand long-haul Boeing 787 and 777 aircraft bear the ZK- registry.

South Korea

Civil Authority: Korea Office of Civil Aviation (KOCA)

Tail Format: HL followed by 4 digits (e.g. HL7638, HL8274)

Example Tail: HL7638

Korean Air and Asiana Airlines aircraft operate under the HL national mark.

ZS-

South Africa

Civil Authority: South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA)

Tail Format: ZS- followed by 3 letters (e.g. ZS-SND, ZS-SZD)

Example Tail: ZS-SND

Commercial aircraft use ZS-, while non-certified gliders and experimentals use ZU-.

PP-

Brazil

Civil Authority: Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil (ANAC)

Tail Format: PP-, PR-, PS-, or PT- followed by 3 letters (e.g. PR-GOL, PS-AEU)

Example Tail: PR-GOL

Brazil utilizes PP-, PR-, PT-, and the newly introduced PS- prefix series for modern airliners.

TC-

Turkey

Civil Authority: Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM)

Tail Format: TC- followed by 3 letters (e.g. TC-JJO, TC-LND)

Example Tail: TC-JJO

TC signifies Turkiye Cumhuriyeti (Republic of Turkey). Turkish Airlines operates hundreds of TC- registered jets.

OO-

Belgium

Civil Authority: Belgian Civil Aviation Authority (BCAA)

Tail Format: OO- followed by 3 letters (e.g. OO-SNC, OO-SFY)

Example Tail: OO-SNC

Brussels Airlines and cargo carriers out of Liege and Brussels operate under OO-.

SE-

Sweden

Civil Authority: Transportstyrelsen

Tail Format: SE- followed by 3 letters (e.g. SE-RSA, SE-RMC)

Example Tail: SE-RSA

Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) divides registrations across Sweden (SE-), Norway (LN-), and Denmark (OY-).

LN-

Norway

Civil Authority: Luftfartstilsynet

Tail Format: LN- followed by 3 letters (e.g. LN-FNB, LN-RKO)

Example Tail: LN-FNB

Norwegian Air Shuttle and SAS Norse registrations operate under LN-.

OY-

Denmark

Civil Authority: Trafikstyrelsen

Tail Format: OY- followed by 3 letters (e.g. OY-KBI, OY-VKS)

Example Tail: OY-KBI

Danish national mark for civil transports and charter operators.

HS-

Thailand

Civil Authority: Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT)

Tail Format: HS- followed by 3 letters (e.g. HS-TKY, HS-THB)

Example Tail: HS-TKY

Thai Airways and Bangkok Airways fleets operate with HS- registrations.

VN-

Vietnam

Civil Authority: Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV)

Tail Format: VN- followed by single letter and 3 digits or 4 digits (e.g. VN-A868, VN-A897)

Example Tail: VN-A868

Vietnam Airlines and VietJet Air airframes fly under VN-.

How Aircraft Tail Numbers Work

The Chicago Convention & ICAO

Under Article 20 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (1944), every aircraft engaged in international air navigation must display nationality and registration marks. Nationality prefixes are assigned by the ITU (International Telecommunication Union) and ratified by ICAO.

Offshore & Flag-of-Convenience Registries

Aviation leasing firms and corporate jet owners frequently register airframes in specialized jurisdictions such as Bermuda (VP-B, VQ-B), Ireland (EI-, EJ-), Isle of Man (M-), or Guernsey (2-), which offer favorable tax treaties, English common law asset protection, and standardized airworthiness certificates.

Custom & Sequential Vanity Tails

Airlines often reserve custom letter combinations that reflect their brand or fleet sequence. For example, British Airways registers aircraft with tail suffixes ending in "BA" (e.g., G-XWBA), while Singapore Airlines long-haul widebodies frequently carry "SK" suffixes (e.g., 9V-SKA).