Club history · VU2MLQ

8T1M Special Event Station

To mark the inauguration of the Malabar Amateur Radio & Scouting Society (MARSS, VU2MLQ), the club put 8T1M on the air — the first time an 8T prefix was allotted in India. The club later ran two more field days under the special callsign 8T4I.

8T1M 20128T4I 20178T4I 2018QSL via LoTW

Malabar Amateur Radio & Scouting Society VU2MLQ emblem with 8T1M callsign

8TPrefix allotted for the first time in India

4 daysKappad Beach, 27–30 May 2012

10–160 mCW · SSB · RTTY

2Stations on air at the same time

About the 8T1M special event station

MARSS (VU2MLQ) is India’s first radio headquarters for the International Radio Scouting Movement and disaster communications. To celebrate its inauguration, the society operated 8T1M — a special 8T-prefix callsign allotted for the first time in India by the WPC wing of the Ministry of Communications & IT.

The station first went on the air from the field-day site at Kappad Beach, a historic spot in Calicut on the south-west coast of India, for four days from 27 to 30 May 2012, before moving to the club headquarters. It was QRV from 10 to 160 metres on CW, SSB and RTTY, with two stations working different bands and modes at the same time. Contacts were confirmed through LoTW after the event.