Ham Has QSO With Rare DX, Or Maybe Not

By WBØRUR, on the scene

FRENCH LICK, Louisiana – The thrill of the catch has led to the agony of confusion for one local ham radio operator.

Lambert Fontenot – who lives in rural Flatbush Parish – was excited when he recently worked what he thought was a rare DX station on 20 meter SSB. Unfortunately, even after 2 hours of monitoring, he could never quite copy the call sign correctly.

“Oh, I worked him without any problem. He was 5×9 into southern Louisiana. But it was a special event callsign,” says Fontenot. “And I wasn’t really expecting so many letters and numbers. Before it was all said and done, I had about 13 or 14 characters written down on my Big Chief tablet. And I know that can’t be right.”

Fontenot says the call sign began with three letters…followed by 4 or 5 numbers…and finished with 3 or 4 more letters.

Some European countries have begun allowing longer and longer call signs for special event activations. For example, recent events and SES call signs include:

• FIFA Soccer Championships:  GO2013KICK
• Marconi Trans-Atlantic Communications Anniversary:  UR599HERE
• 45th Anniversary of The Beatles’ Abbey Road Album:  PAUL1969NOTDEAD

For his part, Fontenot says he’ll continue to search for information on the special event, which may be a key to unlocking the call sign.

“It had something to do with a memorial, anniversary or birthday. I think. And the call sign may have included a ‘/PAZ’ at the end,” says the befuddled ham operator. “I have no idea what that means.”

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