Call signs in the United Kingdom

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Call signs in United Kingdom include a three letter country code, and a series of letters and numbers. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Call signs are regulated internationally by the ITU as well as nationally in the UK by the Office of Communications (Ofcom). [4] It regulates amateur radio in the country as an independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, with responsibilities across television, radio, telecommunications and wireless communications services. It assigns call signs, issues amateur radio licences, allots frequency spectrum, and monitors the radio waves. Ofcom is no longer responsible for setting and conducting amateur radio exams, which are now run by the Radio Society of Great Britain on their behalf. [5]

The Radio Society of Great Britain [6] (RSGB) is the United Kingdom's recognised national society for amateur radio operators. The society's former patron was Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and it represents the interests of the UK's licensed radio amateurs.

Call sign blocks for telecommunication

The International Telecommunication Union has assigned the United Kingdom the following call sign blocks for all radio communication, broadcasting or transmission: [7]

Call sign blockPrincipal use
GAA–GZZdomestic
MAA–MZZdomestic
VPA–VQZOceanic islands, Antarctica
VSA–VSZ
ZBA–ZJZ Gibraltar, Middle East, south Atlantic
ZNA–ZOZ
ZQA–ZQZ
2AA–2ZZdomestic

While not directly related to call signs, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) further has divided all countries assigned amateur radio prefixes into three regions; the United Kingdom is located in ITU Region 1.

Assignments

These are callsigns of BBC Regional transmitters in the years prior to World War II.

Country prefixCall signLocation
GBRG5XX 2 Droitwich
GBRG5SC Westerglen
GBRG5NO Newcastle upon Tyne
GBRG2EH Edinburgh
GBRG5PY Plymouth
GBRG5SX Swansea
GBRG5GB Droitwich
GBRG2BD Redmoss
GBRG5NO Stagshaw
GBRG2BE Lisnagarvey
GBRG2LO 1London
GBRG2LS Leeds
GBRG5PY Plymouth
GBRG5WA 3 Washford
GBRG2LO 1 Brookmans Park
GBRG6BM Clevedon
GBRG2ZY Moorside Edge
GBRG6FL Sheffield
GBRG6BM Bournemouth
GBRG2DE Dundee
GBRG5SC Glasgow
GBRG6KH Kingston upon Hull
GBRG6ST Stoke on Trent
GBRG5NG Nottingham
GBRG5IT Birmingham
GBRG6LV Liverpool

Call sign assignments for amateur radio

Amateur radio or ham radio call signs are unique identifiers for the 75,000 licensed operators. [8] Ofcom allots the individual call signs to the amateurs it licences. Call signs are the property of Ofcom even when assigned. [9]

Prefixes + letters in suffixLicence class
M3 + 3 LettersFoundation Licence
M6 + 3 LettersFoundation Licence
M7 + 3 LettersFoundation Licence
2E0 + 3 LettersIntermediate Licence
2E1 + 3 LettersIntermediate Licence
G1 + 3 lettersFull Licence
G2 + 2 or 3 lettersFull Licence
G3 + 2 or 3 lettersFull Licence
G4 + 2 or 3 lettersFull Licence
G5 + 2 lettersFull Licence
G6 + 2 or 3 lettersFull Licence
G7 + 3 lettersFull Licence
G8 + 2 or 3 lettersFull Licence
G0 + 3 lettersFull Licence
M0 + 3 lettersFull Licence
M1 + 3 lettersFull Licence
M5 + 2 or 3 lettersFull Licence
G + 1 number + 1 letterContest callsign
M + 1 number + 1 letterContest callsign

Callsigns in the G9 series are commercial licences, issued for experimental purposes and these may not be used on the amateur bands (except in the case of a contest callsign).

Regional two-letter prefixes are assigned according to the following table: [10]

Map showing regional indicators. UK amateur radio regional locators.svg
Map showing regional indicators.
RegionRegional
infixes		G-prefixM-prefixIntermediate LicenceG-club prefixM-club prefixSpecial event
England—,
E, X		GM2EGXMXGB
GuernseyU, PGUMU2UGPMPGB
Isle of ManD, TGDMD2DGTMTGB
JerseyJ, HGJMJ2JGHMHGB
Northern IrelandI, NGIMI2IGNMNGB
ScotlandM, SGMMM2MGSMSGB
WalesW, CGWMW2WGCMCGB

Overseas call sign assignments

Prefix [11] DXCC Entity
VP2E Anguilla
VP2M Montserrat
VP2V British Virgin Islands
VP5 Turks & Caicos
VP6 Pitcairn Island
VR6Pitcairn Island (prior to 1 May 1998)
VP6D Ducie Island (Pitcairn group)
VP8/F Falkland Islands
VP8/G South Georgia Island
VP8/O South Orkney Islands
VP8/SA South Sandwich Island
VP8/SH South Shetland Islands
VP8 Antarctica
VP9 Bermuda
VQ9 Chagos (Indian Ocean)
ZB, ZG Gibraltar
ZC4UK Sovereign Base Areas on Cyprus
ZD7 St Helena
ZD8 Ascension Island
ZD9 Tristan Da Cunha
ZF Cayman Islands

Special event call signs

Ofcom reserves the right to issue temporary special event call signs to licensed amateurs holding a full licence. [12]

Special event call signs are issued with a 'GB' prefix, but others like GQ, GO, GR, MQ, GA, MO, and 2O have been issued in special cases. Ofcom also allows numerals in special event call sign suffixes. For instance GB75RD was a special event sign for the 75th anniversary of the Reading and District Amateur radio club. [13] More recently Ofcom have agreed to what was a very special arrangement for the use of the Special Event Station call sign Gx100RSGB during 2013 to mark the 100th anniversary of the RSGB (where "x" is replaced by the secondary location identifier, M, W, I, D, U, and J, etc. (but never with B) to form the typical 'GB' prefix for other special events.)

Exceptionally, call signs taking the form 'GB3xx' are usually allocated to repeaters whilst beacons usually take the 'GB3xxx' form.

The GR prefix has now been allocated, as of 2017, as a special event prefix alongside "GB", as the callsign GR2HQ has been in use under a Notice of Variation (NoV) since 2011. The prefix GR has now been allocated in the special event callsign range rather than an NoV. For reference, GR2HQ is the UK multiplier station in the Headquarters section (country-on-country national societies head-to-head section) of the annual IARU HF Championship Contest. [14]

To celebrate the wedding of HRH Prince Harry and Miss Meghan Markle, the RSGB agreed with Ofcom an NoV to authorise the temporary use of the Regional Secondary Locator 'R' after the United Kingdom call sign prefix. Successful applicants were able to use the modifier between 19–21 May 2018.

Reciprocal agreements

Holders of licences in countries signed up to CEPT TR 61-01 [15] operate with their home call sign prefixed with an M/ plus the additional country identifier when necessary (e.g. MM, MI, MW etc.). Holders of licences in countries signed up to CEPT TR 61-02 [16] can operate for 3 months before needing a Great Britain call sign as issued by Ofcom.

See also

Related Research Articles

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) allocates call sign prefixes for radio and television stations of all types. They also form the basis for, but may not exactly match, aircraft registration identifiers. These prefixes are agreed upon internationally, and are a form of country code. A call sign can be any number of letters and numerals but each country must only use call signs that begin with the characters allocated for use in that country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Amateur Radio Union</span> International confederation of organizations for amateur radio operators

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) is an international confederation of national organisations that allows a forum for common matters of concern to amateur radio operators worldwide, and collectively represents matters to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The International Amateur Radio Union was founded in 1925 and, as of July 2021, it is composed of 172 national member societies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radio Society of Great Britain</span>

The Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) is the United Kingdom's recognised national society for amateur radio operators. The society was founded in 1913 as the London Wireless Club, making it one of the oldest organisations of its kind in the world. Through its work, it represents the interests of the UK's 80,000 licensed radio amateurs in the United Kingdom and certain dependent territories of the United Kingdom at the International Amateur Radio Union, acting as a medium for communication between the licensed operators and the UK government.

In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigned by a government agency, informally adopted by individuals or organizations, or even cryptographically encoded to disguise a station's identity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amateur radio international operation</span> Operating an amateur radio station in another country

Amateur radio international reciprocal operating agreements permit amateur radio operators (hams) from one country to operate a station whilst traveling in another without the need to obtain additional licenses or permits.

Call signs in New Zealand are no longer generally used to identify broadcast stations. However, New Zealand's radio stations were once known by their call signs and would usually broadcast their call signs as a number followed by X, Y, or Z, and another letter. Call signs are regulated internationally by the ITU and nationally by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), formerly the Ministry of Economic Development. The ministry is also responsible for providing policy advice to Government on the allocation of New Zealand's radio spectrum to support, efficient, reliable and responsive wireless telecommunications and broadcasting infrastructure.

Call signs in India are unique identifiers for telecommunications and broadcasting in India. The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology regulates call signs nationally, and the International Telecommunication Union regulates call signs internationally.

Amateur radio or ham radio is practised by more than 22,000 licensed users in India. The first amateur radio operator was licensed in 1921, and by the mid-1930s, there were around 20 amateur radio operators in India. Amateur radio operators played an important part in the Indian independence movement with the establishment of illegal pro-independence radio stations in the 1940s. The three decades after India's independence saw only slow growth in the number of operators until the then Prime Minister of India and amateur radio operator, Rajiv Gandhi (VU2RG), waived the import duty on wireless equipment in 1984. Since then, numbers have picked up, and as of 2007, there were more than 16,000 operators in the country. Amateur radio operators have played a vital role during disasters and national emergencies such as earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones, floods, and bomb blasts, by providing voluntary emergency communications in the affected areas.

Call signs in Australia are allocated by the Australian Communications and Media Authority and are unique for each broadcast station. The use of callsigns on-air in both radio and television in Australia is optional, so many stations used other on-air identifications. Australian broadcast stations officially have the prefix VL- and originally all callsigns used that format, but since Australia has no nearby neighbours, this prefix is no longer used except in an international context.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amateur radio</span> Use of radio frequency spectra for non-commercial purposes

Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emergency communications. The term "amateur" is used to specify "a duly authorized person interested in radioelectric practice with a purely personal aim and without pecuniary interest"; and to differentiate it from commercial broadcasting, public safety, or professional two-way radio services.

Call signs in the Middle East are unique identifiers for telecommunications and broadcasting in the Middle East. Call signs are regulated internationally by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and nationally by local government and international agencies in Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, The Palestinian Authority, occupied territories and other nations or DXCC entities.

Amateur radio call signs in Africa are codes used to identify all radio communications, broadcasts and transmissions. The International Telecommunication Union assigns Africa as ITU region #1. It has assigned call signs prefix blocks to countries including 77 DXCC entities in and off-shore of Africa. Western Sahara is not a DXCC entity but uses SØ as a prefix.

Amateur radio call signs are allocated to amateur radio operators around the world. The call signs are used to legally identify the station or operator, with some countries requiring the station call sign to always be used and others allowing the operator call sign instead.

Call signs in Mexico are unique identifiers for telecommunications, radio communication, radio broadcasting and transmission. They are regulated internationally by the ITU as well as nationally by the Federal Telecommunications Institute, which regulates broadcast stations, wireless telecommunications and spectrum use.

Call signs in Korea are unique identifiers for telecommunications and broadcasting on the Korean peninsula. Call signs are regulated internationally by the ITU as well as nationally in South Korea by the Korea Communications Commission in the Ministry of Information and Communication. Not much is known outside of North Korea how amateur radio is regulated, although a foreign amateur was asked to appear before the "Radio Regulation Board" in 2002. Also, North Korea's Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries recently issued an operating permit, which was countermanded by the Ministry of Telecommunications and Posts.

Call signs in Asia are rarely used to identify broadcast stations. In most Asian countries, broadcast stations use other forms of identification. Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan are exceptions to this rule. Amateur radio stations in India, Pakistan, Korea and Japan are allocated call-signs.

Call signs in Europe are not formally used for broadcast stations.

Call signs in Canada are official identifiers issued to the country's radio and television stations. Assignments for broadcasting stations are made by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), while amateur stations receive their call signs from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. Conventional radio and television broadcasting stations assignments are generally three, four or five letters long and almost exclusively use "C" call signs; with a few exceptions noted below, the "V" calls are restricted to specialized uses such as amateur radio.

Call signs in Antarctica include a three letter region code and a series of numbers and letters.

Call signs in Barbados include a three letter country code, and a series of letters and numbers.

References

  1. ↑ Hepburn, William. "Call signs". Dx Info Centre. Dx Info Centre. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  2. ↑ "International Call Sign Series". ARRL.org. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  3. ↑ "Callsign database by QRZ". QRZ.com. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  4. ↑ Ofcom – Office of Communications
  5. ↑ "Ofcom Licensing services". Archived from the original on 12 May 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  6. ↑ Radio Society of Great Britain
  7. ↑ International Telecommunication Union country call sign assignments Archived 6 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ Number of UK licensed amateurs
  9. ↑ "Transfer of amateur radio call signs" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 July 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  10. ↑ "Amateur Terms" (PDF). OFCOM. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 March 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
  11. ↑ "AC6V call sign information". Archived from the original on 27 June 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  12. ↑ "Applying for a Special Event Station". Archived from the original on 13 March 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  13. ↑ "GB75RD". QRZ.COM.
  14. ↑ "IARU HF Championship Contest rules". ARRL.org.
  15. ↑ "Recommendation T/R 61-01" (PDF). erodocdb.dk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  16. ↑ "Recommendation T/R 61-02" (PDF). erodocdb.dk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
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