Taking my deceased fathers callsign.

[blue4x4ford]

I'm wondering if it is possible for me to take up my fathers callsign? He's been dead for about ten years, and I've recently been getting involved with ham radio and seems like it would be a good idea to keep his name going. According to the records I've searched, his advanced operator class expired 2020-06-20 so I see no issue in that matter. What should my next step be? Thank you for your time.

 

[GTR8000]

Vanity FAQ

.faq {border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 10px 10px 25px 10px; margin-bottom: 50px;} .faq .faq-q, .faq .faq-a { font-size: 1.75em; font-weight: bold; padding: 5px; } .faq-question, .faq-answer {padding: 25px; } The following are answers to frequently asked questions about communications...

www.fcc.gov

 

[TexTAC]

I don’t know how to go about it, but I spoke to a father and son last week on the 2 meter band and the son had acquired the grandfather’s callsign from the FCC. Grandfather passed away last year. The callsign was N5WIR if you want to track him down.

 

[RaleighGuy]

I'm wondering if it is possible for me to take up my fathers callsign? He's been dead for about ten years, and I've recently been getting involved with ham radio and seems like it would be a good idea to keep his name going. According to the records I've searched, his advanced operator class expired 2020-06-20 so I see no issue in that matter. What should my next step be? Thank you for your time.

Check the FCC if it is available, if it is and you currently hold an ADVANCED license you can apply for the vanity callsign. The two keys are you must hold an advanced license and the callsign must be available and not reused by the FCC. Start by checking availability here:

License Search

 

[blue4x4ford]

So this is what I saw when I searched, I guess he re applied right before he died, but that was over ten years ago. What is confusing, is it says active, but it also says the expiration date, which has passed a year ago.

 

[prcguy]

I think you are fortunate that he renewed the license and its expired but probably in a grace period so nobody else can apply for it right now. If you meet the qualifications for that call sign you should be able to notify the FCC with proof of your fathers passing to get the license freed up and then apply for a vanity call with his call sign when it becomes available.

So this is what I saw when I searched, I guess he re applied right before he died, but that was over ten years ago. What is confusing, is it says active, but it also says the expiration date, which has passed a year ago.

 

[GlobalNorth]

Go earn that license and go after it when it becomes available. I've known sons and grandsons who've worn the same Fire or Police badge as their dads and grand-dads. To have your father's call sign continue on with you is a very high honor to your dad.

Do it.

 

[GlobalNorth]

Here's the nuts and bolts of it:

The license of the former holder now deceased must show a status of expired or cancelled in the licensee database. See Section 97.31(a). This is accomplished by submitting a request that includes a death certificate or obituary that shows the person named in the operator/primary station license grant has died. Such a request may be submitted as a pleading associated with the deceased licensee's license and sent to:
FCC
1270 Fairfield Road
Gettysburg, PA 17325-7245

 

[W9WSS]

Here is an excellent site to check out if you can't get your late Dad's callsign; AE7Q.com

If no one has taken it, you should have no problem as long as your license class qualifies for the callsign. In my case, I've had W9WSS since 2017. I was K9WSS from 2005 to 2017, WA9YHX from 1968 or 1969 to 2005. I had a Novice Class when I was first licensed in 1967, and my daughter-in-law took WA9YHX after I went to my first vanity callsign.

 

[K4EET]

Check the FCC if it is available, if it is and you currently hold an ADVANCED license you can apply for the vanity callsign. The two keys are you must hold an advanced license and the callsign must be available and not reused by the FCC. <snip>

Unless something changed with the FCC's process to get his deceased father's callsign, I don't believe that he has to hold the same class license. If he is not already an Advanced Class licensee, he could never make Advanced Class since that class license has met the sunset. What I always knew as being part of this process was that you have to hold any class license that was eligible for the callsign's format. That makes since because if his father had passed when he held a Novice Class license, what you are saying would mean @blue4x4ford would need to be a Novice Class licensee. Somebody please correct me if I am wrong about this.

73, Dave K4EET

 

[alcahuete]

Unless something changed with the FCC's process to get his deceased father's callsign, I don't believe that he has to hold the same class license. If he is not already an Advanced Class licensee, he could never make Advanced Class since that class license has met the sunset. What I always knew as being part of this process was that you have to hold any class license that was eligible for the callsign's format. That makes since because if his father had passed when he held a Novice Class license, what you are saying would mean @blue4x4ford would need to be a Novice Class licensee. Somebody please correct me if I am wrong about this.

73, Dave K4EET

You aren't wrong. You just have to be eligible for the call sign's format, like you say. If you want W1AW, for example, you have to hold an Extra.

 

[AK9R]

What I always knew as being part of this process was that you have to hold any class license that was eligible for the callsign's format.

You just have to be eligible for the call sign's format, like you say.

You are both correct.

According to the FCC Amateur Radio Sequential Call Sign System, 2x2 callsigns beginning with K, N, or W are Group B which is only available to Advanced class license holders or above.

If the OP's father had a 2x2 callsign beginning with K, N, or W, and since, new Advanced class licenses are no longer being issued, the OP would have to test all the way up to Amateur Extra in order to be eligible for his father's call sign.

However, if the OP's father held a Group C or Group D call sign, he only needs to obtain his Technician class license to be eligible for his father's call sign.

 

[blue4x4ford]

Thank you for all of your information, it has helped tremendously on what path i should take. His call sign did start with a K, so amateur extra will be what I have to shoot for. Which I take it wont be an easy task. In the mean time, is there a time frame on how long you have to have a call sign before you can change it? I have no class issued to me, so i would need to start fresh with a technician and work my way up. I assume I would need to pick a call sign as soon as I pass my first class, so i take it i should roll with that one until I am more advanced and can apply for my fathers call sign. Again, thank you all for your information, even though i mostly use this website for my scanners, I had no doubt you all would be helpful over on this side

You are both correct.

According to the FCC Amateur Radio Sequential Call Sign System, 2x2 callsigns beginning with K, N, or W are Group B which is only available to Advanced class license holders or above.

If the OP's father had a 2x2 callsign beginning with K, N, or W, and since, new Advanced class licenses are no longer being issued, the OP would have to test all the way up to Amateur Extra in order to be eligible for his father's call sign.

However, if the OP's father held a Group C or Group D call sign, he only needs to obtain his Technician class license to be eligible for his father's call sign.

 

[alcahuete]

His call sign did start with a K, so amateur extra will be what I have to shoot for.

Has nothing to do with starting with a K. All amateur call signs start with either A, K, N, or W. What is important is the format of the call. If you list the call sign, it would be much easier for us to tell you what you need. If it was indeed a 2x2 call sign, i.e. AA6AA, then yes, you would need to get Extra class.

 

[ko6jw_2]

Simply put, you cannot request a call sign for your very first license. You will be assigned one in the current sequence. Then you can request a vanity callsign. The license class issues have already been discussed. When you upgrade you can request a new callsign or not.
Some people don't want to change. When I upgraded from Technician to Advanced I requested a new 2x2 callsign. When I upgraded to Extra I did not and subsequently got a vanity callsign. I had always wanted an "A" callsign.

Maybe you will go straight to Extra. It's not that hard now that you don't need to do 20 WPM code. If you know a little algebra and can memorize a few formulas you can do it.

The one year grace period on your father's license is almost gone. Therefore, you will need to request it as a vanity callsign.

 

[AK9R]

His call sign did start with a K, so amateur extra will be what I have to shoot for.

But, what was the format of the callsign? Amateur radio callsigns can be 2x3, 1x3, 2x2, 1x2, or 2x1. Was it two letters, then a number, then two more letters? For example, KO6JW above is a 2x2 callsign and he got it while he held an Advanced license.

When you get your Technician license, you will be issued a callsign from the sequential system. Technicians are eligible for a Group C (1x3) or Group D (2x3) callsign. The FCC will issue you the next available callsign in the sequential system. Since you live in Missouri, the number in your FCC-issued callsign will be a 0 (zero). In "zero-land", as well call it (CO, IA, KS, MN, MO, ND, NE, and SD), the Group C callsigns have all been issued using the sequential system, so you'll get the next-available Group D callsign (most recent one issued was KF0FXZ).

As a Technician, you'll be able to apply for any available Group C or Group D callsign as a vanity callsign.

When you upgrade to General, you can keep the callsign you got as a Technician or you can request an automatic callsign change through the sequential system. But, Generals also get Group C or Group D callsigns, so you might as well keep your Technician callsign. As a General, you'll be able to apply for any available Group C or Group D callsign as a vanity callsign.

When you upgrade to Extra, you can keep the callsign you got as a Technician or General or you can request an automatic callsign change through the sequential system. Extras are eligible for any Group A, Group B, Group C, or Group D callsign. As a General, you'll be able to apply for any available Group A, Group B, Group C, or Group D callsign as a vanity callsign.

The rules for requesting a vanity callsign as a close relative of a deceased former member can be found here: Request Types: By Close Relative Of Former Holder Now Deceased

 

[n5ims]

And if you hurry prior to it being automatically released (when someone could quickly grab it) and you qualify for that class call sign you should have priority for getting it. This priority is in two ways. First, you can (by showing it's held by someone that's deceased) control when it is released for reassignment (but only if this is prior to the expiration of the grace period). Second, as a close relative of the former holder now deceased you can claim priority for having their old call sign assigned to you if you follow the process linked to above. Good luck getting his old call sign. It's a great way to honor him! Just remember that your priority can only be used until that call sign is assigned to another person. Once that happens you will have no claim on it (at least until it is freed up again for some reason, but that may be quite a long time).

 

[blue4x4ford]

Has nothing to do with starting with a K. All amateur call signs start with either A, K, N, or W. What is important is the format of the call. If you list the call sign, it would be much easier for us to tell you what you need. If it was indeed a 2x2 call sign, i.e. AA6AA, then yes, you would need to get Extra class.

KD0IW

 

[K4EET]

KD0IW

Looking that callsign up at:

RadioQTH - Available Calls

one finds this:

Sooooooo... You have just one year left to claim it but don't wait until the last minute to start the process.

73, Dave K4EET

 

[alcahuete]

KD0IW

Yep, need an Extra class license for that call. That's a 2x2. As mentioned above, you have a year to do it.