The FCC erroneously issued call sign “WB4MZ0” (numeral zero) on December 5, 1994 to the Wedixie Amateur Radio Club in Marietta, Georgia. Somebody typed it wrong into the FCC’s database. The club’s call sign trustee, David Budner WA4PUB, perhaps didn’t notice it? The club never brought it up to the FCC.
Four-and-a-half years went by. The FCC’s database continued to grow. And WB4MZ0 remained an active call sign!
In mid-1999, the FCC prepared to elevate its ULS database as the “system of record” for all call signs. That’s when somebody (perhaps a database administrator?) discovered the error.
The FCC researched it and they discovered “WB4MZO” (letter) had not yet been assigned. On July 21, 1999 they canceled WB4MZ0 and issued WB4MZO to the club.
Twenty-six days later, on August 16, 1999, the FCC declared its ULS database the “system of record.” Its underlying software now handles all call signs. No one manually types an amateur call sign.
If you download the ULS files, you’ll see five relational database records for WB4MZ0. And you’ll see nine relational database records for WB4MZO.
Wedixie Amateur Radio Club disbanded and canceled its call sign on February 22, 2024. The “O” (letter) call sign became available for vanity assignment on February 23, 2026. If you know any elmers in Marietta, ask them for more details about it!
Ed, KU4HO announces a last minute work trip / surprise mini-DXpedition to Pago Pago, American Samoa. My current plan is to focus on 20m. I will jump around, but I don’t have a good idea of how to forecast propagation for that location. I’ll mainly operate SSB and FT8, but intend to attempt some CW. […] This post appeared first on: DX-World Want to know more about it? Read More
[NEWS] – for DX-World readers by Barry, KD6XU. My call YJ0BP was issued yesterday. I’ve set up the equipment and done some tests and everything’s good. I’m leaving for New Zealand (ZL) though and won’t be back until the 9th of September. So I’m really not going to be doing anything on air until then. […] This post appeared first on: DX-World Want to know more about it? Read More
As discussed in Part One of my WRTC (World Radiosport Team Championship) 2026 UK experience, I attended as a volunteer at event headquarters. I arrived at the venue on Tuesday afternoon, and the volunteer team sprang into action. We ended up staying up until around midnight, preparing for everyone’s arrival the next day.
We woke up bright and early Wednesday morning to check in all of the attendees (competitors, referees, spectators, etc.). As the first of the competitors started arriving around 9 am, I quickly realized we’d need to store much more luggage than we initially thought. As with almost every hotel, check in to the individual hotel rooms wasn’t allowed until 3 pm. That meant we needed to hold not only the typical amount of luggage that everyone would have for a week of travel, but also an entire station’s worth of equipment for every set of competitors.
Despite our serious Tetris-playing efforts, the storage room for luggage overflowed, and we ended up lining one of the walls in the main check-in room with suitcases.
(Image/KE8LQR)
After a full day of getting event attendees registered and checked in, we all went to dinner. Afterward, some of us got ready for the Ham Widows Ball, a lesser-known tradition at the WRTC. It was started by the partner of an active contester who realized that many XYLs were being dragged along to the WRTC every few years without any way to get to know each other. He started the Ham Widows Ball to give the XYLs a way to enjoy the event even if they weren’t interested in amateur radio. The ball is always held on the first night of the WRTC, allowing attendees to become acquainted and then take part in the excursions and late-night chats for the rest of the week together.
While I’m not exactly the target audience of the Ham Widows Ball, I did decide to attend (plenty of women with amateur radio licenses do) and had a great time. After the ball, I headed out to the common area and spent the rest of the evening chatting with those who were still there before heading to bed.
The evenings at the WRTC are somewhat similar to the Contest Super Suite at Dayton. After dinner, everyone gathers together and spends the rest of the evening chatting until around midnight or 1 am. Unlike the Super Suite where many of the same people attend year after year with only slight variations, the group at the WRTC is different every time it’s held.
All of the volunteers woke up on Thursday knowing it would be a jam-packed day. We started by checking in a few more attendees before directing the approproate people to the competitors and referees meeting. While that was taking place, we were starting to get everyone organized onto shuttles for the excursions they had booked. The excursions during the event are a great way to fit some sightseeing into an otherwise schedule-packed trip. There were options to visit various cities and Bletchley Park, home of the RSGB National Radio Centre and location where the Enigma WWII codebreakers served. On Thursday evening, we had the opening ceremony, which was one of the highlights of the week. It was followed by the opening dinner/banquet. We ended the night with a musical demonstration that incorporated Morse code.
(Image/Lukas Bartkus, LY7J)
Friday was just as busy. You could feel the excitement and tension building. Everyone was shuttled to their sites so they could set up and test their equipment, making sure any issues were resolved before the contest started on Saturday. Later in the afternoon, everyone came back for one last night of socializing before the contest. The energy and anticipation levels were very high. After a few hours of chatting with everyone we all headed to bed so we would be well rested for the next day and for the contest!
In part three of my WRTC series, I’ll be covering the contest portion of the week, so be sure to stay tuned to OnAllBands!
Look out for an upcoming activity by Ji, DS1TUW (also JJ0XMT ) from Ogasawara. According to his QRZ page he will activate the following SOTA, POTA & WWFF. SOTA: JA/TK-024 Chuousan. JA/TK-030 Mikazukiyama. POTA: JP-0015 Ogasawara National Park. JP-1288 Ogamiyama Prefectural Park. WWFF: JAFF-0018 Ogasawara National Park. JAFF-0098 Ogasawarashoto (Ogasawara Islands). QSL via LoTW, OQRS, or direct via DS1TUW. This post appeared first on: DX-World Want to know more about it? Read More
Masa, JM1LBO will again be active from Pohnpei (OC-010), Federated States of Micronesia (F.S.M) as V63SC during October 22-26, 2026. QRV on 80-2m; FT8 & SSB. QSL via LoTW, eQSL or direct to homecall. This post appeared first on: DX-World Want to know more about it? Read More
Billy, F4GJE (also 6W1RD) lets DX-World know that he’ll be active from The Gambia using his new callsign C5H during December 27, 2026 to January 3, 2027. QRV on 40-6m; SSB, FT8, FT4 using a vertical antenna and a long-wire (EFHW). Power approx 300W. QSL via F4GJE. Logs also uploaded daily to LoTW, QRZ, Club […] This post appeared first on: DX-World Want to know more about it? Read More
Taka, JA8COE will again be active from Yagishiri Island AS-147 during September 4-7, 2026. QRV on HF+6M; CW, SSB, FT8. Focus on NA / SA. QSL via H/c, Club Log OQRS. See here for previous trips / pictures. This post appeared first on: DX-World Want to know more about it? Read More
The activity will take place on the 20 and 40-meter bands, VHF, and UHF, including connections through the LART Lusophone Network, as well as on the DMR Digital Network via Talkgroup 268 and Talkgroup 91 on the BrandMeister platform. More information is available on the AIRA website.
A atividade ocorrerá nas bandas de 20 e 40 metros, VHF e UHF, incluindo ligações pela Rede Lusófona LART, bem como na Rede Digital DMR pelo Talkgroup 268 e Talkgroup 91 na plataforma BrandMeister. Mais informações no site da AIRA.
Harald DF2WO will again be active from Praia, Santiago Island, AF-005 as D44TWO during September 1-15, 2026. QRV on 160-6m; FT8, SSB & CW. More info here NOTE: Harold is also often QRV from Burkina Faso (as XT2AW) and Rwanda (as 9X2AW). This post appeared first on: DX-World Want to know more about it? Read More
