For ( native ??) English speaker

[Jane]

Not sure if this is a proper forum but I think someone can help.
I would like to register in one radio amateurs forum but there is
a  question to  prevent automated form submissions by spambots.
The question is:
Which country is "VK"


What is the answer?
Is that an English idiom or what?
Does anyone know ?
Thanks

[orin]

One would assume that they are asking "Which country uses the amateur radio callsign prefix 'VK'?", to which the answer would be Australia.

[Andy Watson]

Is that an English idiom or what?

No. Remember it's a radio ham clique. VK is probably a call sign. Wiki says VK = Australia.

[radiomog]

As already pointed out,

VK is the Basic Amateur Radio Operator Callsign Prefix for Australia


somewhat complete list here:

http://www.arrl.org/files/file/dxcclist.txt

[vk6zgo]

Is that an English idiom or what?

No. Remember it's a radio ham clique. VK is probably a call sign. Wiki says VK = Australia.

Not really a "clique"----VK is one of the call prefixes allocated to Australia by International agreement.
"AX" is another,but it is normally only used for special occasions.

Prefixes are often used loosely when referring to all amateurs from a particular country.

For instance,YB is a common Indonesian prefix,so Indonesian Stations are often called "Yankee Bravos" (phonetic alphabet) in general conversation.

[Stonent]

In the US, radio and tv stations use K or W and amateur radio operators do as well.

If I recall, K was the west coast and W was the east coast.

That's why you'll see WNBC in New York and KNBC in California.

In the Dallas/Fort Worth area in Texas, we have WFAA (a TV station), WRR, WBAP (radio stations) and all the rest that I can recall are K. I guess since we're in sort of the middle we have them both. (Though far more K)

The W stations are typically older ones here.

[vk6zgo]

In the US, radio and tv stations use K or W and amateur radio operators do as well.

If I recall, K was the west coast and W was the east coast.

That's why you'll see WNBC in New York and KNBC in California.

In the Dallas/Fort Worth area in Texas, we have WFAA (a TV station), WRR, WBAP (radio stations) and all the rest that I can recall are K. I guess since we're in sort of the middle we have them both. (Though far more K)

The W stations are typically older ones here.

Yeah,a lot of older hams refer to the USÄ as "W land"

[radiomog]

USA broadcasting

W= East of the Mississippi River
K= West of the Mississippi River

[Jane]

Thank you ALL . Australia was the correct answer

[German_EE]

So, why would Australia be assigned VK rather than (say) AU or AT?

Well, the story I heard was that the IARU delegate given the task was a German fellow and he used VK as there are Viele Kängurus (many kangaroos) in Australia.

[atferrari]

Well, the story I heard was that the IARU delegate given the task was a German fellow and he used VK as there are Viele Kängurus (many kangaroos) in Australia.

Probably not true but funny   

[German_EE]

So, you tell me why Australia uses VK?

[Stonent]

USA broadcasting

W= East of the Mississippi River
K= West of the Mississippi River

Yes that's that I remember.

[Howardlong]

So, you tell me why Australia uses VK?

At the 1912 International Radiotelegraph Convention, British colonies were given callsigns beginning V. There's a list at that time here http://earlyradiohistory.us/1913call.htm

Although it's been altered since then, most significantly at the 1927 convention, this was the basis of the international callsign prefix.

And on another nerdy point, ICAO also adopted the Convention's standard for aircraft prefixes too, so even today there is a strong correlation between aircraft registration prefixes and radio callsigns.

[GreyWoolfe]

The USA uses W, A, N and K for ham radio prefixes.  Nothing else can be said about that.