Automatic Link Establishment, commonly known as
ALE, is the worldwide
de facto standard for digitally initiating and sustaining
HF radio communications. ALE is a feature in an HF communications radio transceiver system, that enables the radio station to make contact, or initiate a
circuit, between itself and another HF radio station or network of stations. The purpose is to provide a reliable rapid method of calling and connecting during constantly changing HF ionospheric propagation, reception interference, and shared spectrum use of busy or congested HF channels.