ITREASURED RESOURCES
A tale of strange call signs and even stranger operators
It started—as these things often do—with a busted rig, a cheap cup of gas station coffee, and a 3 a.m. band opening on 75 meters. That’s when I first heard it:
“QRZ, QRZ, this is N0CIA calling CQ on 3.965… come back if you’re not already on a list.”
I rubbed my eyes. Surely I’d misheard.
But no—next up was KA2ZZ, with a voice like a chainsaw chewing aluminum. Then WX4NSA jumped in and started reciting solar flare data like it was a grocery list. A few minutes later, WØLID joined the pile-up, asking if anyone had a spare crystal for his grandfather’s old toaster.
By dawn, I’d stumbled into the rarest net on the air: the Unassignables Net—a gathering of operators using fictional, forbidden, and FCC-rejected call signs. And they were proud of it.
Each operator had adopted a handle from the FCC’s no-go list: calls that would never be assigned, either due to policy, obscenity filters, agency overlap, or pure absurdity. But these weren’t pirates. No one was causing QRM. They were just… creative.
Over the years, I collected them like DX cards. Below is the best of the best—fictional but believable, and always ready for your next tall tale or satirical shack story.
📡 The Treasured Call Sign Directory – Fictional, Forbidden, and Funny
- Q1XY – Illegal prefix, clearly up to something
- A0AA – From the phantom “A0” region
- KA2ZZ – Too military for civilian ears
- N0CIA – We see what you did there
- WX4NSA – Weather net meets black budget
- N0IRS – Audit incoming
- WØLID – “I break squelch and friendships”
- KN4LOL – Vanity call gone meme
- W4OMG – Overly dramatic but fun
- K1FBI – What could possibly go wrong
- ZØBUG – May contain firmware
- K3LOL, KN4LID, AØZED – Hall-of-fame suffixes
- W1SKY, WAZNU, KX1TMI, ZØZED – Because the band is always open somewhere
Need a character call sign for your next ham radio cartoon? A net control that only exists in legend? Or just something to write on the back of a QSL card as a prank?
Welcome to the vault. You’ve got full privileges.
And remember: If you hear N0CIA calling… don’t answer too quickly. You might get monitored.
