The NATO standard for stock numbers (NSN) states that any of the thirteen characters of the NSN can be either numeric or alphabetic. Currently, NATO uses only numeric codes for the Group (NSG/FSG) Class (NSC/FSC) and NCB in the catalog. NATO Countries such as the USA use alphabetical characters in the NCB for Local Stock Numbers (LSN) such as LL, LB, LN and LK. These NSNs are typically not in the NATO Database but may exist in the NATO Country's NSN Database. Mostly, LSNs are only used locally and are not indexed into National or NATO databases. The unique identifier in the NIIN may also often be alphanumeric. A common pattern with the US Marine Corps is 01-C01-XXXX for NIINs and these are indexed in the NATO Catalog.
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