Block TWO

Amateur Radio Operating Procedures

Learning how to Operate Your Station

The exciting part of amateur radio starts when you actually flip the switch and start talking with another ham, perhaps located on the other side of the globe. It's necessary to know the techniques and protocol that are used in contacting other stations.

A significant amount of Technician Class operators use the 2-meter band for their operation. Even though the 2-meter band is relatively short range, it is possible to make contact over large distances by using repeaters. Watch the following video to discover more about this range of frequencies used in amateur radio and how we can extend the normal range of operation.

Exam Preparation - Subelement T1 (cont)

The first step is to watch the following video covering more of the questions from Subelement T1.

Now cover the same questions yourself by reading them either aloud or quietly. The key is to read the question carefully, then pay particular attention to the highlighted correct answer.

T1C - Operator licensing: operator classes; sequential and vanity call sign systems; international communications; reciprocal operation; places where the Amateur Radio Service is regulated by the FCC; name and address on FCC license database; license term; renewal; grace period

T1C01 (D) [97.9(a), 97.17(a)]

For which license classes are new licenses currently available from the FCC?

A. Novice, Technician, General, Advanced

B. Technician, Technician Plus, General, Advanced

C. Novice, Technician Plus, General, Advanced

D. Technician, General, Amateur Extra

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T1C02 (D) [97.19]

Who may select a desired call sign under the vanity call sign rules?

A. Only a licensed amateur with a General or Amateur Extra class license

B. Only a licensed amateur with an Amateur Extra class license

C. Only a licensed amateur who has been licensed continuously for more than 10 years

D. Any licensed amateur

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T1C03 (A) [97.117]

What types of international communications is an FCC-licensed amateur radio station permitted to make?

A. Communications incidental to the purposes of the Amateur Radio Service and remarks of a personal character

B. Communications incidental to conducting business or remarks of a personal nature

C. Only communications incidental to contest exchanges, all other communications are prohibited

D. Any communications that would be permitted by an international broadcast station

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T1C04 (A) [97.107]

When are you allowed to operate your amateur station in a foreign country?

A. When the foreign country authorizes it

B. When there is a mutual agreement allowing third party communications

C. When authorization permits amateur communications in a foreign language

D. When you are communicating with non-licensed individuals in another country

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T1C05 (A)

Which of the following is a valid call sign for a Technician class amateur radio station?

A. K1XXX

B. KA1X

C. W1XX

D. All of these choices are correct

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T1C06 (D) [97.5(a)(2)]

From which of the following locations may an FCC-licensed amateur station transmit?

A. From within any country that belongs to the International Telecommunications Union

B. From within any country that is a member of the United Nations 

C. From anywhere within International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Regions 2 and 3

D. From any vessel or craft located in international waters and documented or registered in the United States

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T1C07 (B) [97.23]

What may result when correspondence from the FCC is returned as undeliverable because the grantee failed to provide and maintain a correct mailing address with the FCC?

A. Fine or imprisonment

B. Revocation of the station license or suspension of the operator license

C. Require the licensee to be re-examined

D. A reduction of one rank in operator class

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T1C08 (C) [97.25]

What is the normal term for an FCC-issued primary station/operator amateur radio license grant?

A. Five years

B. Life

C. Ten years

D. Twenty years

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T1C09 (A) [97.21(a)(b)]

What is the grace period following the expiration of an amateur license within which the license may be renewed?

A. Two years

B. Three years

C. Five years

D. Ten years 

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T1C10 (C) [97.5a]

How soon after passing the examination for your first amateur radio license may you operate a transmitter on an Amateur Radio Service frequency? 

A. Immediately

B. 30 days after the test date

C. As soon as your operator/station license grant appears in the FCC�s license database

D. You must wait until you receive your license in the mail from the FCC

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T1C11 (A) [97.21(b)]

If your license has expired and is still within the allowable grace period, may you continue to operate a transmitter on Amateur Radio Service frequencies?

A. No, transmitting is not allowed until the FCC license database shows that the license has been renewed

B. Yes, but only if you identify using the suffix GP

C. Yes, but only during authorized nets

D. Yes, for up to two years

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Let's take a little break and watch the following video that gives a decent overview of the total nature of Amateur Radio.

T1D - Authorized and prohibited transmission: communications with other countries; music; exchange of information with other services; indecent language; compensation for use of station; retransmission of other amateur signals; codes and ciphers; sale of equipment; unidentified transmissions; one-way transmission

T1D01 (A) [97.111(a)(1)]

With which countries are FCC-licensed amateur radio stations prohibited from exchanging communications?

A. Any country whose administration has notified the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) that it objects to such communications

B. Any country whose administration has notified the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) that it objects to such communications

C. Any country engaged in hostilities with another country

D. Any country in violation of the War Powers Act of 1934

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T1D02 (B) [97.113(b),97.111(b)]

Under which of the following circumstances may an amateur radio station make one-way transmissions?

A. Under no circumstances

B. When transmitting code practice, information bulletins, or transmissions necessary to provide emergency communications

C. At any time, as long as no music is transmitted

D. At any time, as long as the material being transmitted did not originate from a commercial broadcast station

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T1D03 (C) [97.211(b), 97.215(b), 97.114(a)(4)]

When is it permissible to transmit messages encoded to hide their meaning?

A. Only during contests

B. Only when operating mobile

C. Only when transmitting control commands to space stations or radio control craft

D. Only when frequencies above 1280 MHz are used

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T1D04 (A) [97.113(a)(4), 97.113(c)]

Under what conditions is an amateur station authorized to transmit music using a phone emission?

A. When incidental to an authorized retransmission of manned spacecraft communications

B. When the music produces no spurious emissions

C. When the purpose is to interfere with an illegal transmission

D. When the music is transmitted above 1280 MHz

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T1D05 (A) [97.113(a)(3)(ii)]

When may amateur radio operators use their stations to notify other amateurs of the availability of equipment for sale or trade?

A. When the equipment is normally used in an amateur station and such activity is not conducted on a regular basis

B. When the asking price is $100.00 or less

C. When the asking price is less than its appraised value

D. When the equipment is not the personal property of either the station licensee or the control operator or their close relatives

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T1D06 (B) [97.113(a)(4)]

What, if any, are the restrictions concerning transmission of language that may be considered indecent or obscene?

A. The FCC maintains a list of words that are not permitted to be used on amateur frequencies

B. Any such language is prohibited

C. The ITU maintains a list of words that are not permitted to be used on amateur frequencies

D. There is no such prohibition 

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T1D07 (B) [97.113(d)]

What types of amateur stations can automatically retransmit the signals of other amateur stations?

A. Auxiliary, beacon, or Earth stations

B. Repeater, auxiliary, or space stations

C. Beacon, repeater, or space stations

D. Earth, repeater, or space stations

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T1D08 (B) [97.113(a)(3)(iii)]

In which of the following circumstances may the control operator of an amateur station receive compensation for operating that station? 

A. When the communication is related to the sale of amateur equipment by the control operator's employer

B. When the communication is incidental to classroom instruction at an educational institution

C. When the communication is made to obtain emergency information for a local broadcast station

D. All of these choices are correct

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T1D09 (A) [97.113(5)(b)]

Under which of the following circumstances are amateur stations authorized to transmit signals related to broadcasting, program production, or news gathering, assuming no other means is available?

A. Only where such communications directly relate to the immediate safety of human life or protection of property

B. Only when broadcasting communications to or from the space shuttle

C. Only where noncommercial programming is gathered and supplied exclusively to the National Public Radio network 

D. Only when using amateur repeaters linked to the internet

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T1D10 (D) [97.3(a)(10)]

What is the meaning of the term �broadcasting� in the FCC rules for the Amateur Radio Service?

A. Two-way transmissions by amateur stations

B. Transmission of music

C. Transmission of messages directed only to amateur operators

D. Transmissions intended for reception by the general public

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T1D11 (D) [97.119(a)]

When may an amateur station transmit without on-the-air identification?

A. When the transmissions are of a brief nature to make station adjustments

B. When the transmissions are unmodulated

C. When the transmitted power level is below 1 watt

D. When transmitting signals to control model craft

Let's take another short break and see how Ham Radio functions during an emergency and how students can be part of that process.

T1E - Control operator and control types: control operator required; eligibility; designation of control operator; privileges and duties; control point; local, automatic and remote control; location of control operator 

T1E01 (D) [97.7(a)]

When is an amateur station permitted to transmit without a control operator?

A. When using automatic control, such as in the case of a repeater

B. When the station licensee is away and another licensed amateur is using the station

C. When the transmitting station is an auxiliary station

D. Never

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T1E02 (D) [97.301, 97.207(c)]

Who may be the control operator of a station communicating through an amateur satellite or space station?

A. Only an Amateur Extra class operator

B. A General class or higher licensee who has a satellite operator certification

C. Only an Amateur Extra class operator who is also an AMSAT member

D. Any amateur whose license privileges allow them to transmit on the satellite uplink frequency

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T1E03 (A) [97.103(b)]

Who must designate the station control operator?

A. The station licensee

B. The FCC

C. The frequency coordinator

D. The ITU

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T1E04 (D) [97.103(b)]

What determines the transmitting privileges of an amateur station?

A. The frequency authorized by the frequency coordinator

B. The frequencies printed on the license grant

C. The highest class of operator license held by anyone on the premises

D. The class of operator license held by the control operator

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T1E05 (C) [97.3(a)(14)]

What is an amateur station control point?

A. The location of the station�s transmitting antenna

B. The location of the station transmitting apparatus 

C. The location at which the control operator function is performed

D. The mailing address of the station licensee

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T1E06 (A) [97.301]

When, under normal circumstances, may a Technician class licensee be the control operator of a station operating in an exclusive Amateur Extra class operator segment of the amateur bands?

A. At no time

B. When operating a special event station

C. As part of a multi-operator contest team

D. When using a club station whose trustee is an Amateur Extra class operator licensee

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T1E07 (D) [97.103(a)]

When the control operator is not the station licensee, who is responsible for the proper operation of the station?

A. All licensed amateurs who are present at the operation

B. Only the station licensee

C. Only the control operator

D. The control operator and the station licensee are equally responsible

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T1E08 (A) [97.3(a)(6), 97.205(d)]

Which of the following is an example of automatic control?

A. Repeater operation

B. Controlling the station over the internet

C. Using a computer or other device to send CW automatically

D. Using a computer or other device to identify automatically

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T1E09 (D) [97.109(c)]

Which of the following is true of remote control operation?

A. The control operator must be at the control point

B. A control operator is required at all times

C. The control operator indirectly manipulates the controls

D. All these choices are correct

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T1E10 (B) [97.3(a)(39)]

Which of the following is an example of remote control as defined in Part 97?

A. Repeater operation

B. Operating the station over the internet

C. Controlling a model aircraft, boat, or car by amateur radio

D. All of these choices are correct

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T1E11 (D) [97.103(a)]

Who does the FCC presume to be the control operator of an amateur station, unless documentation to the contrary is in the station records?

A. The station custodian

B. The third-party participant

C. The person operating the station equipment

D. The station licensee

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