# Pilots don't say "Roger Wilco," arggh

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [May 21, 2007, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904 "2007-05-21T07:31:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 12\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Miscue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8491ac/32.png) [@Miscue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miscue)\
**Post date:** [May 28, 2007, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/21 "2007-05-28T18:35:22Z")

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[QUOTE=MsRobyn]  
I understand that “roger wilco” is redundant and isn’t used in proper terminology.

However, it is common enough that a Google search for “roger wilco” in quotation marks returned 206,000 hits. So, as a term, it’s out there, and I felt that the report would be incomplete without it.

If it bothers you that much, I will inquire about changing it.

Robin  
[/QUOTE]

And ‘conversate’ pulls up 173,000 hits.

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**Author:** ![balok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@balok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/balok)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/22 "2007-06-05T17:14:43Z")

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[QUOTE=Miscue]  
And ‘conversate’ pulls up 173,000 hits.  
[/QUOTE]

“Irregardless” pulls up 608,000.

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**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/23 "2007-06-05T21:18:29Z")

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[QUOTE=Common Tater]  
“Roger, Wilco, Over And Out” is the classic movie phrase I suppose, that nobody would ever actually say. One unit I served with, one of the maintenance test pilots’ first name was Roger, a feature that he used for the merriment of all fairly often.  
[/quote]

Was he ever partnered with a guy named Captain Oveur?

> [@](#):
>
> What the hell _is_ the etymology of “roger” I wonder.

described in the original article, which this thread discusses.  
[http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mroger.htm](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mroger.htm)

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**Author:** ![ASAKMOTSD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@ASAKMOTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASAKMOTSD)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/24 "2007-06-05T21:30:30Z")

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I was in the airport on Sunday & thought of this thread when I heard one of the gate personnel on a radio say “Roger, Wilco, & Out!” :smack:

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**Author:** ![Cryptoderk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cryptoderk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cryptoderk)\
**Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/25 "2007-06-06T09:52:04Z")

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Also, the title of that page (as in \<title\>) is completely wrong.

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**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\
**Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/26 "2007-06-06T14:54:01Z")

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[QUOTE=MsRobyn]  
I understand that “roger wilco” is redundant and isn’t used in proper terminology.

However, it is common enough that a Google search for “roger wilco” in quotation marks returned 206,000 hits. So, as a term, it’s out there, and I felt that the report would be incomplete without it.

If it bothers you that much, I will inquire about changing it.

Robin  
[/QUOTE]

“Roger Wilco redundant” returns 11,400 hits…

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**Author:** ![twopiecesofeight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5e9695/32.png) [@twopiecesofeight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twopiecesofeight)\
**Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/27 "2007-06-06T15:54:28Z")

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Given Johnny Depp’s latest film, did anyone else read the thread title as “Pirates don’t say ‘Roger Wilco,’ arrrrrrggggggghhhhhhh”?

I got nothin’

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**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\
**Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/28 "2007-06-07T23:26:38Z")

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[QUOTE=Cryptoderk]  
Also, the title of that page (as in \<title\>) is completely wrong.  
[/QUOTE]

I guess I’m being dense, but what’s wrong about it? The title of the page is \<\< Why do pilots say “roger” on the radio? \>\> … so, why is that wrong?

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**Author:** ![Cryptoderk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cryptoderk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cryptoderk)\
**Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/29 "2007-06-07T23:37:48Z")

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[QUOTE=C K Dexter Haven]  
I guess I’m being dense, but what’s wrong about it? The title of the page is \<\< Why do pilots say “roger” on the radio? \>\> … so, why is that wrong?  
[/QUOTE]

The title in the title bar… or if you look at the source of that page:

```auto

<html>

<head>
<meta name="description" content="Straight Dope Staff Report: eeeeeeee">
<meta name="GENERATOR" content="Microsoft FrontPage 5.0">
<meta name="keywords" content="sdmailbag">
<title>Straight Dope Staff Report: What's the origin of the movie director's pseudonym Alan Smithee?</title>

```

see what I mean yet?

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**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\
**Post date:** [June 8, 2007, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/30 "2007-06-08T01:44:40Z")

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Ah, thanks. OK, we’ll get 'er fixed, thanks for catching it.

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**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\
**Post date:** [June 8, 2007, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/31 "2007-06-08T02:06:27Z")

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[QUOTE=balok]  
“Irregardless” pulls up 608,000.  
[/QUOTE]

And “loose weight” as a phrase pulls up 963,000. Augh.

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**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\
**Post date:** [June 8, 2007, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pilots-dont-say-roger-wilco-arggh/404904/32 "2007-06-08T10:17:36Z")

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Fixed.

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