[CW] Dissing the ARRL

Sat, 10 Jan 2004 12:51:31 -0600

The FCC still has the power to retest any licensee, at any time, for any
reason.  But the reality is they only do it if they have a reason - like a
compromised testing session or a corrrupt VE team, etc.

Jay
AD5PE
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2004 10:33 AM
Subject: Re: [CW] Dissing the ARRL

> In a message dated 1/8/2004 9:19:26 AM Eastern Standard Time,
[email protected] writes:
> >
> > This thread reminds me that, for awhile, the Conditional license was
> > available to people who lived more than 75 miles from a quarterly
examining
> > point.
>
> Before about 1953, it was 125 miles and the Novice and Tech were given in
FCC offices.
> Then FCC made Novice and Tech by-mail regardless of distance and the
Conditional limit was
> 75 miles. Somewhere in there (early '50s) FCC dropped the requirement that
Conditionals
> had to be retested if they moved to within the limit. Before then, a
Conditional had
> just 90 days to show up at an exam point and retest.
>
> In 1963 the limit became 175 miles and the number of quarterly exam points
increased to
> the point where almost all of the country was covered.
>
> > I had to do Conditional (1961), as I couldn't drive (poor vision). In
> > those days, there was some Conditional bashing. (boxtop license). The 75
> > mile limit made it easy to abuse the system, hence the 175 mile limit to
> > which you refer.
> >
> All kinds of stories were told but I know of none that can be proven 40
years later.
> One trick I've heard was to use the address of a relative who lived
outside the
> limit, get the license, then "move" once the license was in hand.
>
> I do recall that in the '70s, when the FCC eliminated the Conditional,
there was
> a lot of shouting by some who thought they'd have to be retested. But all
the
> FCC did was to reclassify Conditionals as Generals.
>
> 73 de Jim, N2EY
>
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