Code name A code name or cryptonym is a word or name used , sometimes clandestinely , to refer to another name , word , project or person . Code names are often used for military purposes , or in espionage . They may also be used in industry to protect secret projects and the like from business rivals , or to give names to projects whose marketing name has not yet been determined . Military origins . During World War I , code names common to the Allies referring to nations , cities , geographical features , military units , military operations , diplomatic meetings , places , and individual persons were agreed upon , adapting pre - war naming procedures in use by the governments concerned . In the British case code names were administered and controlled by the Inter - Services Security Board ( ISSB ) staffed by the War Office with the word list generated and randomised by GC & CS ( later GCHQ ) . This procedure was coordinated with the United States when America entered the war . Random lists of code names were issued to users in alphabetical blocks of ten words and were selected as required . Code words became available for re - use after six months and unused allocations could be re - assigned at discretion and according to need . Judicious selection from the available allocation could result in clever meanings and result in an aptronym or backronym , although policy was to select words that had no obviously deducible connection with what they were supposed to be concealing . Those for the major conference meetings had a partial naming sequence referring to devices or instruments which had an ordinal number as part of their meaning , e . g . , the third meeting was " TRIDENT " . Joseph Stalin , whose last name means " man of steel " , was given the code name " GLYPTIC " , meaning " an image carved out of stone " . German code names . Ewen Montagu , a British Naval intelligence officer , discloses in " Beyond Top Secret Ultra " that during World War II , Nazi Germany habitually used " ad hoc " code names as nicknames which often openly revealed or strongly hinted at their content or function . List of German names : Conversely , Operation Wacht am Rhein ( Watch on the Rhine ) was deliberately named to suggest the opposite of its purpose — a defensive " watch " as opposed to a massive blitzkrieg operation , just as was Operation Weserübung ( Weser - exercise ) , which signified the plans to invade Norway and Denmark in April 1940 . By comparison , as a result of the German practice and relative ease of deciphering some element of its content in the post - War period , the British Ministry of Supply adopted the Rainbow Codes system which randomly combined a color and a noun ( from a list ) to create the name for projects . Though memorable , the names were unrelated to content . Code names of other powers . Britain and the United States developed the security policy of assigning code names intended to give no such clues to the uninitiated . For example , the British counter measures against the V - 2 was called " Operation Crossbow " . The atomic bomb project centered in New Mexico was called the Manhattan Project , derived from the Manhattan Engineer District which managed the program . The code name for the American A - 12 / SR - 71 spy plane project , producing the fastest , highest - flying aircraft in the world , was " Oxcart " . The American group that planned that country ' s first ICBM was called the Teapot Committee . Although the word could stand for a menace to shipping ( in this case , that of Japan ) , the American code name for the attack on the subtropical island of Okinawa in World War II was " Operation Iceberg " . The Soviet Union ' s project to base missiles in Cuba was named " Operation Anadyr " after their closest bomber base to the US ( just across the Bering Strait from Nome , Alaska ) . The names of colors are generally avoided in American practice to avoid confusion with meteorological reporting practices . Britain , in contrast , made deliberately non - meaningful use of them , through the system of rainbow codes . Aircraft recognition reporting names . Although German and Italian aircraft were not given code names by their Allied opponents , in 1942 , Captain Frank T . McCoy , an intelligence officer of the USAAF , invented a system for the identification of Japanese military aircraft . Initially using short , " hillbilly " boy ' s names such as " Pete " , " Jake " , and " Rufe " , the system was later extended to include girl ' s names and names of trees and birds , and became widely used by the Allies throughout the Pacific theater of war . This type of naming scheme differs from the other use of code names in that it does not have to be kept secret , but is a means of identification where the official nomenclature is unknown or uncertain . The policy of recognition reporting names was continued into the Cold War for Soviet , other Warsaw Pact , and Communist Chinese aircraft . Although this was started by the Air Standards Co - ordinating Committee ( ASCC ) formed by the United States , UK , Canada , Australia , and New Zealand , it was extended throughout NATO as the NATO reporting name for aircraft , rockets and missiles . These names were considered by the Soviets as being like a nickname given to one ' s unit by the opponents in a battle , such as the U . S . Marines were called by the Germans in France " Devil Dogs " , which they appreciated as a feather in their cap . The Soviets did not like the Sukhoi Su - 25 getting the code name " Frogfoot " . However , some names were appropriate , such as " Condor " for the Antonov An - 124 . Code names were adopted by the following process . Aerial or space reconnaissance would note a new aircraft at a Warsaw Pact airbase . The intelligence units would then assign it a code name consisting of the official abbreviation of the base , then a letter , for example , " Ram - A " , signifying an aircraft sighted at Ramenskoye Airport . Missiles were given designations like " TT - 5 " , for the fifth rocket seen at Tyura - Tam . When more information resulted in knowing a bit about what a missile was used for , it would be given a designation like " SS - 6 " , for the sixth surface - to - surface missile design reported . Finally , when either an aircraft or a missile was able to be photographed with a hand - held camera , instead of a reconnaissance aircraft , it was given a name like " Flanker " or " Scud " — always an English word , as international pilots worldwide are required to learn English . The Soviet manufacturer or designation has nothing to do with it , and can even be mistaken by the Allies . Jet - powered aircraft received two - syllable names like Foxbat , while propeller aircraft were designated with short names like Bull ) . Fighter names began with an " F " , bombers with a " B " , cargo aircraft with a " C " . Training aircraft and reconnaissance aircraft were grouped under the word " miscellaneous " , and received " M " . The same convention applies to missiles , with air - launched ground attack missiles beginning with the letter " K " and surface - to - surface missiles ( ranging from intercontinental ballistic missiles to antitank rockets ) with the letter " S " , air - to - air missiles " A " , and surface - to - air missiles " G " . Military operations since Churchill . Throughout the Second World War , the British allocation practice favored one - word code names ( Jubilee , Frankton ) . That of the Americans favored longer compound words , although the name Overlord was personally chosen by Winston Churchill himself . Many examples of both types can be cited , as can exceptions . Presently , British forces tend to use one - word names , presumably in keeping with their post - World War II policy of reserving single words for operations and two - word names for exercises . British operation code names are usually randomly generated by a computer and rarely reveal its components or any political implications unlike the American names ( e . g . , the 2003 invasion of Iraq was called " Operation Telic " compared to Americans ' " Operation Iraqi Freedom " , obviously chosen for propaganda rather than secrecy ) . Americans prefer two - word names , whereas the Canadians and Australians use either . The French military currently prefer names drawn from nature ( such as colors or the names of animals ) , for instance " Opération Daguet " ( " brocket deer " ) or " Opération Baliste " ( " Triggerfish " ) . The CIA uses alphabetical prefixes to designate the part of the agency supporting an operation . In many cases with the United States , the first word of the name has to do with the intent of the program . Programs with ' have ' as the first word , such as Have Blue for the stealth fighter development , are developmental programs , not meant to produce a production aircraft . Programs that start with Senior , such as Senior Trend for the F - 117 , are for aircraft in testing meant to enter production . In the United States code names are commonly set entirely in upper case . This is not done in other countries , though for the UK in British documents the code name is in upper case while operation is shortened to OP e . g . , " Op . TELIC " . This presents an opportunity for a bit of public - relations ( Operation Just Cause ) , or for controversy over the naming choice ( Operation Infinite Justice , renamed Operation Enduring Freedom ) . Computers are now used to aid in the selection . And further , there is a distinction between the " secret " names during former wars and the " published " names of recent ones . Operation Desert Shield was what the build - up in Saudi Arabia was blatantly referred to in the press , before war was declared . During this time , " Desert Storm " was secret . When the war broke out , the name Operation Desert Storm — but not the tactical details — was also broken to the press . Another reason for the use of code names and code phrases in the military is that they transmit with a lower level of cumulative errors over a walkie - talkie or radio link than actual names . Project code name . A project code name is a code name ( usually a single word , short phrase or acronym ) which is given to a project being developed by industry , academia , government , and other concerns . Project code names are typically used for several reasons : Different organizations have different policies regarding the use and publication of project code names . Some companies take great pains to " never " discuss or disclose project code names outside of the company ( other than with outside entities who have a need to know , and typically are bound with a non - disclosure agreement ) . Other companies never use them in official or formal communications , but widely disseminate project code names through informal channels ( often in an attempt to create a marketing buzz for the project ) . Still others ( such as Microsoft ) discuss code names publicly , and routinely use project code names on beta releases and such , but remove them from final product ( s ) . At the other end of the spectrum , Apple Computer includes the project code names for Mac OS X as part of the official name of the final product , a practice that was started in 2002 with Mac OS X v10 . 2 " Jaguar " .