"Firsts" on 144 MHz from South Africa Last updated 2023-11-27 This list is an attempt to assemble the "firsts" from South Africa with each of the countries (or "entities") on the DXCC list. Because the contacts span almost half a century (the earliest listed contact is in 1975!), many operators have died or otherwise left the scene. I am therefore under no illusion about the completeness or even correctness of the list. Received comments and additions will be gratefully received, and the list will be amended on an ongoing basis. I published a similar list for 50 MHz in 2000. That list has grown substantially over the years. In 2017, Lee Hanegraaf suggested that I publish a similar list for 144 MHz. I agreed, provided that "someone" would do the footwork. Lee offered his own list, which he had been compiling for some time. The result is shown below. Lee has done all the work. I have been keeping the list up to date, so please let me know if a new "first" is worked. There are a few uncertainties, and of course it is always possible that prior contacts could have taken place without our knowledge. Please let me know if you are aware of any errors or omissions. The publication of this list comes at an interesting time. After four years alone on the DXCC list for this band, ZS6OB was joined by ZS1LS, ZS4TX and ZS5LEE, all within a six-month period. ZS6JON joined them about a year and a half later. Most of these individuals seem to have worked all the common stuff, and are waiting for exotic expeditions to appear. During 2018, we passed the halfway mark, with half of all DXCC entities having been worked from South Africa on this band. It has been my policy to publish the earliest contact of which details are known, even where it is known that earlier contacts took place. Such cases are marked with "***" or "???". The key is shown at the bottom of this document. The intention is not to publish false claims, but rather to encourage the true claimants to come forward. "(DXv)" indicates that the claim has been verified with the DX station's operator or from the original log, to ensure that no other South African stations made it into that station's log before the claimed one. Clearly, it is possible in some cases that other stations may have been active previously from the country concerned. Please let me know if you spot discrepancies. I will continue to make intermittent updates as information is received, and publish the document at: http://zs6ez.org.za/lists/144zs1st.txt Chris R. Burger ZS6EZ Box 126 Rayton 1001 South Africa Country ZS stn Date UTC Mode Prop DX Station (operators in brackets) 1A SMOM ZS6OB 2014-12-29 13:05 JT65 EME 1A0C 3A Monaco ZS6OB 2010-03-01 20:47 JT65 EME 3A/DL8YHR 3B8 Mauritius ZS2GK 2010-05-18 09:07 JT65 EME 3B8EME (PE1L PA3CEE PE9DX) (DXv) 3B9 Rodrigues Island ZS6OB 2013-09-10 10:03 JT65 EME 3B9EME (PE1L PA3CEE PE9DX) 3DA Swaziland *** ZS5LEE 2005-06-16 11:18 JT65 EME 3DA0JR (ZS6JR) 3W Vietnam ZS6OB 2012-04-05 17:03 JT65 EME XV4HP (DL2NUD) 4J Azerbaijan ZS6JON 2014-06-16 01:33 JT65 EME 4K/UT6UA 4L Georgia ZS4TX 2018-07-14 13:26 JT65 EME 4L/RM8A (DXv) 4O Montenegro ZS6OB 2013-10-21 22:22 JT65 EME 4O3A 4S Sri Lanka ZS5LEE 2016-03-05 05:09 JT65 EME 4S7BBG 4U ITU HQ ZS6OB 2012-03-25 12:43 JT65 EME 4U1ITU 4W Timor Leste ZS4TX 2023-11-14 09:08 Q65 EME 4W8X 4X Israel ZS6JON 2013-05-19 20:08 JT65 EME 4X1DG 5B Cyprus ZS5LEE 2004-12-28 22:10 JT65 EME 5B8AD 5H Tanzania ZS6OB 2009-05-19 09:08 JT65 EME 5H1HP (DL2NUD) 5R Madagascar ZS6WB 2008-09-23 ??:?? ? MS 5R8EM (?) 5V Togo ZS6OB 2011-04-19 21:37 JT65 EME 5V7CC 5X Uganda ZS6OB 2012-05-26 10:09 JT65 EME 5X1EME (PE1L) (DXv) 5Z Kenya ZS6OB 2006-07-06 05:45 JT65 EME 5Z4EME (PE1L) 6W Senegal ZS6JON 2014-05-07 18:11 JT65 EME 6W/PE1L (DXv) 6Y Jamaica ZS4TX 2016-06-28 10:07 JT65 EME 6Y5AZ (AA7A WO7R N6CW) 7P Lesotho *** ZS6WB 1990-03-31 ??:?? SSB LoS 7P8EN (ZS4TX ZS6EZ) 7Q Malawi ZS6NK 2005-09-07 03:50 FSK441 MS 7Q7JE (ZS6JDE) 7X Algeria ZS6OB 2010-11-27 01:08 JT65 EME 7X2ARA 8P Barbados ZS6OB 2011-11-11 23:16 JT65 EME 8P9MS (DL2NUD DL9MS) 8Q Maldives ZS6OB 2010-03-25 17:29 JT65 EME 8Q7QQ (HB9QQ) 9A Croatia ZS6ALE 1994-12-10 16:30 CW EME 9A2CCY 9G Ghana ZS6OB 2013-04-24 21:13 JT65 EME 9G5EME (PE1L team) (DXv) 9H Malta ZS6ALE 1986-09-20 00:01 CW TEP 9H1BT 9J Zambia ZS6NK 2005-07-08 04:38 FKS441 MS 9J2JD (ZS6JDE) 9K Kuwait ZS5LEE 2016-04-17 21:16 JT65 EME 9K2YM 9M2 West Malasia ZS4TX 2017-11-02 15:07 JT65 EME 9M2/JG3TTO 9N Nepal ZS4TX 2018-10-26 20:10 JT65 EME 9N7AP (JA team) 9X Rwanda ZS6JON 2013-06-25 22:31 JT65 EME 9X0EME (PE1L team) (DXv) 9Y Trinidad & Tobago ZS4TX 2019-12-31 17:36 JT65 EME 9Y4D A2 Botswana *** ZS6WB 1991-06-21 ??:?? SSB Tropo A22BW (DK3BW) A4 Oman ZS6OB 2008-11-09 20:40 JT65 EME A43DLH A6 United Arab Emirates ZS6WB 2007-12-18 ??:?? ? EME A61Q Ant Antarctica ZS6OB 2009-07-25 11:06 JT65 EME 8J1AXA BV Taiwan ZS4TX 2017-04-27 06:41 JT65 EME BX4AP BY China ZS6OB 2009-10-02 17:34 JT65 EME BD4SY C2 Nauru ZS4TX 2020-02-05 14:22 JT65 EME C21MB (JH3AZC and team) C3 Andorra ZS6OB 2009-07-22 07:54 JT65 EME C37DXU C5 The Gambia ZS6ALE 1992-04-11 22:10 CW EME C53GS C6 Bahamas ZS6ALE 1985-02-26 19:24 CW EME WA1JXN/C6A C9 Mozambique *** ZS6NK 2006-07-17 04:53 FSK441 MS C91JE (ZS6JDE) CE Chile ZS6OB 2010-10-30 07:39 JT65 EME CE2/DK2ZF CE0 Easter Island ZS6OB 2010-10-11 17:04 JT65 EME CE0Y/DK2ZF CT Portugal ZS6ALE 2003-06-07 17:30 CW EME CT1DMK CT3 Madeira island ZS6JON 2017-02-08 18:40 JT65 EME CR3EME CU Azores ZS4TX 2017-05-06 17:14 JT65 EME CU3EQ CX Uruguay ZS6ALE 1991-11-25 22:12 CW EME CX9BT CY0 Sable Island ZS4TX 2023-03-21 14:12 Q65 EME CY0S CY9 St Paul Island ZS5LEE 2016-08-21 01:40 JT65 EME CY9C D2 Angola ZS6JON 2022-08-12 17:34 Q65 EME D2TX (ZS4TX) (DXv) D4 Cape Verde ZS6OB 2007-08-04 06:17 JT65 EME D44TD DL Germany ZS6ALE 1982-12-02 20:00 CW EME DK4XI DU Philipines ZS4TX 2017-11-01 14:04 JT65 EME DX7EME (DL8FBD team) E4 Palestine ZS6JON 2016-11-15 19:18 JT65 EME E44CM (PA2CHR PA3FYC) E7 Bosnia & Herzegovina ZS5LEE 2016-03-23 18:13 JT65 EME E77AR EA Spain ZS6ALE 1986-11-23 03:30 CW EME EA2LU EA6 Balearic Islands ZS6ALE 1993-02-05 23:30 CW EME EA6VQ EA8 Canary Islands ZS6OB 2013-06-15 18:36 JT65 EME EA8TJ EA9 Ceuta and Melilla ZS4TX 2019-03-15 16:22 JT65 EME EF9LZ (EA9LZ) EI Ireland ZS6ALE 1994-06-17 19:30 CW EME EI4DQ (DXv) EK Armenia ZS6ALE 1986-04-18 19:32 CW EME UG6AD ER Moldovia ZS6OB 2011-05-08 14:33 JT65 EME ER0UB ES Estonia ZS6ALE 2001-03-23 20:30 CW EME ES2RQ EU Belarus ZS6OB 2012-08-11 06:07 JT65 EME EW/UY5HF F France ZS6ALE 1982-10-09 03:00 CW EME F6CJG FG Guadeloupe ZS6OB 2012-04-13 10:17 JT65 EME FG4KH (F1DUZ) FH Mayotte ZS5LEE 2015-11-21 12:35 JT65 EME FH/DL1RPL FJ St Bartholomew ZS4TX 2020-02-16 05:37 JT65 EME FJ/WW2DX FK New Caledonia ZS6OB 2011-02-08 08:37 JT65 EME FK/DL2NUD FM Martinique ZS5LEE 2006-05-28 14:59 JT65 EME FM5CS FP St. Pierre & Miquelon ZS6JON 2013-09-15 00:51 JT65 EME FP/DJ4TC FR Reunion Island ZS6ALE 1994-10-29 01:28 CW EME FR5DN FS St Martin ZS6JON 2015-10-24 23:17 JT65 EME TO2EME (PE1L team) (DXv) FT/E Juan de Nova, Europa ZS6WB 2003-12-09 ??:?? ? MS TO4E FW Wallis & Futuna ZS6OB 2014-12-25 07:01 JT65 EME FW5JJ (TK5JJ) FY French Guiana ZS6OB 2010-02-25 21:13 JT65 EME FY/DL2NUD G England ZS6ALE 1984-04-07 18:00 CW EME G3POI (DXv) GD Isle of Man ZS6OB 2011-04-11 19:28 JT65 EME MD/DF2ZC GI Northern Ireland ZS5LEE 2004-07-24 21:46 JT65 EME MI0AYR GJ Jersey ZS6OB 2010-04-22 14:15 JT65 EME MJ/DF2ZC GM Scotland ZS6ALE 1986-02-22 19:06 CW EME GM4JJJ GW Wales ZS6ALE 1985-03-30 19:00 CW EME GW4CQT H4 Solomon Islands Rumoured--no details available HA Hungary ZS6ALE 1984-09-22 11:45 CW EME HG1W HB Switzerland ZS6AVL 1984-05-05 ??:?? CW EME HB9QQ HB0 Liechtenstein ZS6OB 2014-11-01 21:06 JT65 EME HB0/DM1CG HI Dominican Republic ZS5LEE 2005-07-10 16:01 JT65 EME HI3TEJ HL South Korea ZS6OB 2011-02-10 13:19 JT65 EME HL5QO HS Thailand ZS6OB 2008-02-17 10:38 JT65 EME HS0ZIL (DL2LAH) HV Vatican City ZS6OB 2015-08-28 20:03 JT65 EME HV0A HZ Saudi Arabia ZS6OB 2014-08-11 19:41 JT65 EME 7Z1HB (DE1ZHB) I Italy ZS6ALE 1982-12-04 01:00 CW EME I6WJB IS0 Sardinia ZS6OB 2009-05-01 21:13 JT65 EME IS0/DH7FB J2 Djibouti ZS4TX 2022-10-30 17:30 JT65 EME J28MD J8 St Vincent ZS5LEE 2016-03-23 01:02 JT65 EME J8/WW2DX JA Japan ZS6ALE 1982-12-04 21:00 CW EME JA6DR JD1 Ogasawara ZS6OB 2009-08-13 00:37 JT65 EME JD1BNF (JO1LVZ) JT Mongolia ZS4TX 2016-07-22 23:00 JT65 EME JT0YTX (RA9YTX) JW Svalbard ZS6OB 2008-06-08 14:12 JT65 EME JW5E JX Jan Mayen ZS6ALE 1994-10-29 00:57 CW EME JX7DFA (LA7DFA) K USA ZS6ASO 1979-11-28 22:15 CW EME K1WHS (DXv) KH0 Northern Marianas ZS4TX 2019-05-05 05:26 JT65 EME KH0/W2AZ KH2 Guam *** ZS6NK 2004-02-22 07:00 JT65 EME KG6DX KH6 Hawaiian Islands ZS6ALE 1984-02-18 18:16 CW EME KH6/K6MYC KL Alaska ZS6ALE 1988-02-24 13:40 CW EME KL7X KP4 Puerto Rico ZS6ALE 1988-12-18 20:30 CW EME WP4G LA Norway ZS6ALE 1986-04-18 19:58 CW EME LA1TN LU Argentina ZS6ALE 1988-08-26 23:00 CW EME LU7DZ LX Luxembourg ZS6JON 2015-04-24 11:29 JT65 EME LX/PA2CHR LY Lithuania ZS6NK 2003-09-12 03:30 JT65 EME LY2BAW LZ Bulgaria ZS6ALE 1986-04-19 22:06 CW EME LZ2US OE Austria ZS6ALE 1989-07-21 20:30 CW EME OE3JPC OH Finland ZS6ALE 1982-12-01 19:00 CW EME OH7PI OH0 Aland Island ZS6WB 2007-12-15 ??:?? ? EME OH8K/OH0 OJ0 Market Reef ZS6JON 2015-05-11 04:05 JT65 EME OJ0B OK Czech Republic ??? ZS5LEE 2004-07-02 10:39 JT65 EME OK2DL OM Slovakia ??? ZS5LEE 2005-07-10 09:55 JT65 EME OM3WBC ON Belgium ZS6ALE 1985-03-31 21:00 CW EME ON4RB OX Greenland ZS6OB 2012-08-09 00:18 JT65 EME OX3LX (OZ1DJJ) OY Faroe Islands ZS6OB 2009-03-11 20:43 JT65 EME OY4TN OZ Denmark ZS6ALE 1982-12-05 02:00 CW EME OZ1EME P4 Aruba ZS5LEE 2016-04-30 06:37 JT65 EME P40MB (DM1AC DF7KF) PA Netherlands ZS6ALE 1984-07-22 07:30 CW EME PA2VST PJ2 Curacao ZS1LS 2011-04-18 05:15 JT65 EME PJ2/PE1L (DXv) PJ4 Bonaire ZS6OB 2011-04-08 18:20 JT65 EME PJ4X (DXv) PJ6 Saba ZS6JON 2018-04-19 14:14 JT65 EME PJ6E (DM1AC) PJ7 St Maarten ZS6OB 2011-06-28 10:43 JT65 EME PJ7EME (K6MYC) PY Brazil ZS5LEE 2005-07-16 22:32 JT65 EME ZZ2RED PZ Suriname ZS6OB 2014-11-28 18:41 JT65 EME PZ5EME (DL4WO) RA1 European Russia ZS6ALE 1982-09-06 19:00 CW EME UA1ZCL RA2 Kaliningrad ZS4TX 2018-06-12 12:54 JT65 EME RA2FGG RA9 Asiatic Russia ZS5LEE 2004-06-22 16:35 JT65 EME UA9SL RI1 Franz Josef Land ZS4TX 2017-10-08 00:56 JT65 EME RI1F S5 Slovenia ZS6ALE 1994-06-18 21:54 CW EME S57BW S7 Seychelles ZS1LS 2015-03-26 13:03 JT65 EME S79EME (DJ4TC DL1RPL DL2NUD) S9 Sao Tome & Principe ZS5HV 2016-10-08 17:19 JT65 EME S9YY SM Sweden ZS6ALE 1982-09-11 05:00 CW EME SM7BAE SP Poland ZS6ALE 1986-11-22 02:30 CW EME SP5CJT SV Greece ZS6DN 1979-02-16 17:20 CW TEP SV1AB SV5 Dodecanese Islands ZS6JON 2013-08-24 06:33 JT65 EME J45EME (DL8YHR DM1CG) SV9 Crete ZS6OB 2007-04-08 11:17 JT65 EME SV9GPV ST Sudan ZS5LEE 2005-02-14 19:10 JT65 EME ST2RS (ZL1RS) T7 San Marino ZS6OB 2010-04-20 18:07 JT65 EME T70A T8 Palau ZS6JON 2017-10-12 ??:?? JT65 EME T8EM (JH3AZC JP3EXR) TA Turkey ZS6JON 2013-09-20 20:19 JT65 EME TA3/PE1L (DXv) TF Iceland ZS6OB 2011-05-11 18:11 JT65 EME TF3CY TG Guatemala ZS4TX 2018-02-24 21:22 JT65 EME TD9FYC (PA3FYC) (DXv) TI Costa Rica ZS5LEE 2016-10-04 17:20 JT65 EME TI2SW TK Corsica ZS5LEE 2006-07-06 17:20 JT65 EME TK5JJ TR Gabon ZS4TX 2018-08-30 05:27 JT65 EME TR8CA UJ Uzbekistan ZS5LEE 2008-08-24 05:29 JT65 EME UK/DL9LBH UN Kazakhstan ZS6OB 2009-05-31 15:19 JT65 EME UN6PD UT Ukraine ZS6ALE 1994-10-29 08:16 CW EME UT5ER V2 Antigua ZS4TX 2018-03-09 05:34 JT65 EME V26PD (N2IEN) V3 Belize ZS4TX 2017-11-28 23:48 JT65 EME V31EME (DG8NCO) V5 Namibia *** ZR1DQ 1978-11-22 20:17 SSB Tropo ZS3B (Later ZS1ABM--Silent Key 2004) V6 Micronesia ZS5LEE 2016-11-12 14:12 JT65 EME V6EME (JH3AZC JA5EEU) VE Canada ZS6ALE 1982-06-20 14:10 CW EME VE7BQH VK Australia ZS6ALE 2003-04-13 14:28 CW EME VK2KU VK9X Christmas Island ZS5LEE 2005-09-15 20:18 JT65 EME VK9XMO (VK7MO) VP2E Anguilla ZS4TX 2019-04-12 17:46 JT65 EME VP2EMB (PA2CHR and PA3FYC) VP8 Falkland Islands ZS6OB 2015-03-17 08:53 JT65 EME VP8DQE (K5QE) VP9 Bermuda ZS6OB 2012-07-16 07:42 JT65 EME VP9I XE Mexico ZS5LEE 2005-08-27 07:48 JT65 EME XE2AT XT Burkina Faso ZS5HV 2016-10-24 02:04 JT65 EME XT2AFT (DL2NUD) YB Indonesia ZS4TX 2017-06-04 17:07 JT65 EME YC2MDU YL Latvia ZS5LEE 2005-07-15 19:27 JT65 EME YL2OK YO Romania ZS6ALE 1997-02-27 22:30 CW EME YO2AMU YU Serbia ZS6ALE 1984-12-07 21:34 CW EME YU3WV Z2 Zimbabwe ZS6BNT 1975-05-05 10:00 CW Tropo ZE1DX (now ZS6CCY) (DXv) Z3 Macedonia ZS6ALE 1997-11-15 17:00 CW EME Z30B Z6 Kosovo ZS4TX 2018-04-22 14:50 JT65 EME Z66EME (DG8NCO) ZA Albania ZS6JON 2014-05-31 12:57 JT65 EME ZA/PA2CHR ZB Gibraltar ZS4TX 2023-04-14 08:27 Q65 EME ZB2BU ZC4 Sovereign bases Cyprus ZS4TX 2022-11-11 21:00 JT65 EME ZC4RH (G4WXJ) ZD7 St Helena ZS3CVB 2018-10-07 19:45 FM Tropo ZD7GWM ZL New Zealand ZS6ALE 1992-12-13 20:00 CW EME ZL1BUU ZP Paraguay ZS6OB 2012-05-05 21:15 JT65 EME ZP9EH [181 countries, not including ZS] Deleted: OK Czechoslovakia ZS6ALE 1982-11-28 20:00 CW EME OK1MBS PJ9 Dutch Antilles (South) ZS6OB 2007-06-09 06:31 JT65 EME PJ4EME (PE1L PA3CNX)(DXv) Y2 East Germany ZS6ALE 1982-09-12 06:00 CW EME Y22MME [3 countries] Key: *** means the claimed QSO might not be the first. ??? means the claimed QSO is definitely not the first--info needed! DXv means the claim was verified with DX (non-ZS) station's operator as the first ZS worked by that station Leading South African stations ------------------------------ 50 ZS6OB Jan Pienaar 45 ZS6ALE Kobie Furstenburg (Silent Key) 27 ZS4TX Bernie van der Walt [Also participated in two "firsts" from the DX side (7P and D2)] 24 ZS5LEE Lee Hanegraaf 16 ZS6JON John Sygo 5 ZS6NK Paul Smit ZS6WB Hal Lund 2 ZS1LS Allan Saul ZS5HV Hugo van Zyl 1 ZR1DQ Deon Erwin (now ZS1ZL) ZS2GK Glenn Kraut ZS3CVB Cobus van Baalen ZS6ASO Gary Howarth (Silent Key) ZS6AVL Kees van der Linden (Silent Key) ZS6BNT Dave Woodhall ZS6DN Dave Larsen (Silent Key 2014-02-26) The first known EME contact on this band in South Africa was between Kobie Furstenburg ZS6ALE (SK) and Kees van der Linden ZS6AVL (SK) on 1982-11-07 at 02:27z on CW. Chronology ---------- Here is an estimate of the number of countries worked per year, and the running total of countries worked. There were probably some contacts with the neighbouring states in the early days, so the trend is probably not accurate before 1980. Year New Total Who? <1980 5 5 ZR1DQ, ZS6ASO, ZS6BNT, ZS6DN and ZS to ZS 1982 11 16 ZS6ALE (11) 1984 6 22 ZS6ALE (5), ZS6AVL 1985 3 25 ZS6ALE (3) 1986 7 32 ZS6ALE (7) 1987 32 ZS6ALE 1988 3 35 ZS6ALE (3) 1989 1 36 ZS6ALE 1990 1 37 ZS6WB 1991 2 39 ZS6ALE, ZS6WB 1992 2 41 ZS6ALE (2) 1993 1 42 ZS6ALE 1994 6 48 ZS6ALE (6) 1995 48 1996 48 1997 2 50 ZS6ALE (2) 1998 50 1999 50 2000 50 2001 1 51 ZS6ALE 2002 51 2003 4 55 ZS6ALE (2), ZS6NK, ZS6WB 2004 5 60 ZS5LEE (4), ZS6NK 2005 10 70 ZS5LEE (8), ZS6NK (2) 2006 4 74 ZS5LEE (2), ZS6NK, ZS6OB 2007 5 79 ZS6OB (3), ZS6WB (2) 2008 5 84 ZS6OB (3), ZS5LEE, ZS6WB 2009 8 92 ZS6OB 2010 9 101 ZS6OB (8), ZS2GK 2011 10 111 ZS6OB (9), ZS1LS 2012 8 119 ZS6OB 2013 9 128 ZS6JON (5), ZS6OB (4) 2014 8 136 ZS6OB (5), ZS6JON (3) 2015 7 143 ZS6JON (3), ZS6OB (2), ZS1LS, ZS5LEE 2016 13 156 ZS5LEE (8), ZS4TX (2), ZS5HV (2), ZS6JON 2017 9 165 ZS4TX (7), ZS6JON (2) 2018 7 172 ZS4TX (6), ZS6JON (1) 2019 3 175 ZS4TX (3) 2020 3 178 ZS4TX (3) 2021 178 2022 3 181 ZS4TX (2), ZS6JON 2023 3 183 ZS4TX (3) Thanks for contributions ------------------------ Lee Hanegraaf ZS5LEE contributed the original list in 2017-12. ZS6NK extracted log entries from ZS6ALE's paper logs. PA9RX (ex PE1L), ZS4TX, ZS6CCY and ZS6WB responded to email queries. ZS4TX provided some early history and is providing ongoing updates on DXpedition activity. [end]