[CW] New RadioTelegraph Operator License

[Richard Knoppow]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "D.J.J. Ring, Jr." <n1ea at arrl.net>
To: "CW Reflector" <cw at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Tuesday, May 21, 2013 11:42 PM
Subject: Re: [CW] New RadioTelegraph Operator License


> They also test English at 20 wpm and code groups at 16 
> wpm, one full minute
> without error out of five minutes sent.
>
> I had FCC Engineer-in-Charge make me send 25 wpm on the 
> hand key as
> required but he kept me sending for nearly the full five 
> minutes.  Years
> later I found out he did not know Morse.  Boy did he make 
> me sweat.
>
> 73
>
> David N1EA

     Its interesting to compare this to the requirements 
listed in _The Radio Manual_ 2nd edition (1929)   by 
Sterling and Kruse.
The Radio Commission (pre-FCC) had several classes of 
commercial licenses. The highest, called the Commercial 
Extra First Class required the candidate to send and receive 
30 WPM  in Continental Morse and 25 WPM in American Morse 
in   five letter code groups.  The First Class license 
required 25 WPM plain language  and 20 WPM code groups in 
Continental Morse.
     There was also a Second Class ticket with 16 WPM groups 
and 20 WPM plain language.
     The First Class and Extra First Class were based mostly 
on operating experience and employment and had the same 
written examination as the Second Class license.
     These licenses evidently also allowed the holder to 
operate broadcast transmitters although there was a separate 
class of broadcast licenses, the higher level ones still 
requiring code tests.  The highest level amateur license had 
the same code requirement as the Second Class Telegraph 
license.
     In the biographical material on Ted MacElroy he says 
that he learned American Morse first and worked for Western 
Union for quite some time before getting a job with RCA 
Communications where he had to learn Continental Morse. The 
Radiomarine stations he used both because the order wires 
used American Morse while Continental code was used on the 
air.  I suppose if you use this stuff all day every day to 
make a living you get good at it.
     BTW, I don't have anything with the requirements for an 
aeronautical endorsement in it at hand but my memory was the 
code speed was 35 WPM.


--
Richard Knoppow
Los Angeles
WB6KBL
dickburk at ix.netcom.com