The present disclosure relates generally to a system and method for asynchronous busy-tone multiple access with acknowledgement for ad hoc wireless networks. In one example, a method for use in an ad hoc network using a tone emitted by a receiving node includes receiving a first portion of a packet from a sending node, where the first portion of the packet contains a destination address of the packet. A tone is emitted by the receiving node if the receiving node determines that the received destination address matches an address of the receiving node. The receiving node receives a second portion of the packet containing a request for transmitting data from the sending node to the receiving node, and the tone is emitted for at least a predefined period of time after receiving the request.