Dear all,
what is the proper CEPT prefix for Italy? I have seen I//P and I//P.
mni tnx fer info!
73 de Martin, DK3IT
Servus Martin,
einfach I/DK3IT/p aber zusätzliche Kennzeichnung der Regio ist auch möglich.
Anbei der Link von DARC:
https://www.darc.de/fileadmin/filemounts/referate/ausland/CEPT-Laenderliste_2015.pdf
Viel Spaß und hoffe wir hören uns
73, Mario DJ2MX
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Danke!
Last year operating portable in Italy for three weeks I signed I/NK6A.
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The complete official list of prefixes to use under CEPT rules is here:
http://www.erodocdb.dk/Docs/doc98/official/pdf/TR6101.PDF
Yes, I/DK3IT/P would be correct, but there is no obligation to use the /P suffix.
73,
Walt (G3NYY)
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… and the document is still referred to as Recommendation T/R 61-01. I used I5/G4OIG/P in Tuscany and SV8/G4OIG/P on the Greek Ionian Islands and no-one ever queried the use of the regional indicator. Indeed where countries have regional indicators for use by its nationals, it seems to me to be appropriate for visitors to use them as well. At least on VHF, it gives some clue as to where the visiting amateur is operating from.
Agree Gerald. I was advised by a local to use the prefix EA3 rather than EA (which is what the CEPT document advises). In this sense T/R 61-01 is a little lacking.
I quite agree. When I visited Crete on three occasions I used SV9/G3NYY. It’s even more important there, because Crete is a separate DXCC entity from Greece! The same applies to SV5 (Dodecanese Islands), EA8 (Canary Islands) and EA9 (Ceuta & Melilla).
Incidentally, Gibraltar (ZB2) and Malta (9H) are still not on the CEPT list, so you need to apply to the local administration for a licence before you can legally operate there. Likewise for Andorra, San Marino and Vatican City!
73,
Walt (G3NYY)
I/DK3IT/P without doubt, the funny is that your call sign ends with IT 
/p not mandatory but suggested for sota, as many chasers add it automatically on the log
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- ZB2 - note that visitors’ operating privileges are somewhat limited
- C3 Andorra - no SOTA yet (although we have a list of summits). No /P for visitors anyway I believe
- T7 San Marino - no SOTA yet. There is at least one summit IIRC. Waiting for local interest…?
- HV Vatican city - no SOTA. I don’t recall running an analysis for this one, but doubt there are any potential SOTA summits.
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I would assume that the cept document Recommendation T/R 61-01 is official reference, and any other source that contradicts it is lacking.
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Hi Einar, Recommendation T/R 61-01 is lacking any guidance on the use of regional locators for visitors (hence my comment above). Local advice may or may not be misguided, but isn’t lacking.
Sorry if I wasn’t clear
I do not find T/R 61-01 ambigious It certainly is very detailed regarding use of prefixes in USA. I am going to the south of Spain next month. I plan to follow T/R 61-01 and use the prefix EA instead of EA7 that is much more common.
73 Einar
Nice find, I’ve not seen that before.
Just goes to show how clear and unambiguous the process is Andy. 
I would define a document as lacking as one that requires another document to explain how to use it and doesn’t even include a direct link to that other document.
First, please bear in mind that this is my first post on this blog and I started with SOTA just recently.
This FAQ from the official cept.org site is really new to me and before I did 11 activations in EA3, I researched about this topic.
I finally came to the conclusion that using the EA prefix alone should be correct, since when I can select between two options, I usually choose the easier/shorter one 
Apart of the official T/R 61-01 document, I also consulted the URE (Unión de Radioaficionados Españoles) page at Licensing and basic info for visitor hams - Unión de Radioaficionados Españoles which states in the SEAD section:
Callsign to be used by visitors: EA + district + own callsign (EA/F1ZZZ) or EA + district + own callsign (EA4/F1ZZZ).
Please note that the discription is twice the same, but the examples EA/F1ZZZ vs. EA4/F1ZZZ make it clear to me.
I understand that both prefixes seem fine, but according the CEPT FAQ, the longer prefix should be preferred. Maybe somebody from Spain can give his/her opinion?
Hi Stefan,
It is good to hear from you on the reflector. My view has always been that if the national authority for radio has split the country into areas, then the location reference should be used on air. Before operating in Italy I asked a good friend of mine who lives there for his opinion and he advised that I should use I5 for where I would be located. In the document that Andy has found, the recommendation that we should use the national prefix and any secondary locator (if any) then a forward slash followed by the home callsign is clear, but the document also states that it is only intended as a guide. It is therefore extremely unlikely that any action would be taken by the authorities, but of course you do leave yourself open to criticism on air by the “band police”. 
73, Gerald G4OIG
Hi Gerald,
Thanks for your feedback and your view on that topic!
Since I was only QRV when doing SOTA, specifying the summit reference is much more precise than the location in the prefix and one could even argue that this information in the prefix therefore is redundant. 
Fortunately, I had no “contact” with the “band police” that could have counted for one more contact that I desperately was looking for, after I realized that I had forgotten my coax cable for HF, so I had to rely on my 2m FM HT, which took some time…
To be honest, as of now, I still don’t know if I should use the longer EA3 prefix in the future.
73, Stephan HB9EAJ
It doesn’t matter to the Spanish authorities. Use whichever. I like to include the number as it often helps indicate you are activating something less often on the air for SOTA like EA9 for example.
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