Military time uses a 24-hour clock instead of the familiar 12 hour AM/PM civilian clock.

Military time is similar to civilian time during the morning hours (Midnight to Noon). After Noon, military time continues to increment the hour digit, whereas civilian time starts over.

To convert military time after Noon to civilian time, subtract 12. For example, 1800 hours becomes 6:00pm.

To convert civilian time after Noon to military time, add 12. For example, 5:00pm becomes 1700 hours.

Military time is also pronounced differently than civilian time. 9:00am in civilian time is 0900 in military time, and it is pronounced oh-nine-hundred. A military person would refer to 7:00pm civilian time as nineteen hundred hours in military time.

Military Time Chart

This chart can help you to convert between civilian time and military time:

Civilian Time Military Time
1:00am 0100
2:00am 0200
3:00am 0300
4:00am 0400
5:00am 0500
6:00am 0600
7:00am 0700
8:00am 0800
9:00am 0900
10:00am 1000
11:00am 1100
Noon 1200
1:00pm 1300
2:00pm 1400
3:00pm 1500
4:00pm 1600
5:00pm 1700
6:00pm 1800
7:00pm 1900
8:00pm 2000
9:00pm 2100
10:00pm 2200
11:00pm 2300
Midnight 2400

Military Time Zones

The military also utilizes the military alphabet to designate military time zones.

When a military person says “Zulu Time”, they are referring to the time in Greenwich England, or Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

If you are in Denver and you have a a meeting at “seventeen hundred hours zulu time”, you had better be at your meeting at “ten hundred hours” local time!

Letter Phonetic City GMT Offset
A Alpha Paris GMT +1
B Bravo Athens GMT +2
C Charlie Moscow GMT +3
D Delta Kabul GMT +4
E Echo New Delhi GMT +5
F Foxtrot Rangoon GMT +6
G Golf Bangkok GMT +7
H Hotel Beijing GMT +8
I India Tokyo GMT +9
K Kilo Brisbane GMT +10
L Lima Sydney GMT +11
M Mike Kamchatka GMT +12
N November Azores GMT -1
O Oscar Rio De Janiero GMT -2
P Papa Buenos Aires GMT -3
Q Quebec Halifax GMT -4
R Rome New York GMT -5
S Sierra Chicago GMT -6
T Tango Denver GMT -7
U Uniform San Francisco GMT -8
V Victor Anchorage GMT -9
W Whiskey Hawaii GMT -10
X Xray Wellington GMT -11
Y Yankee Fiji GMT -12
Z Zulu Greenwich GMT
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