"Firsts" on 50 MHz from South Africa Last updated 2023-12-08 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 three quarters of a century (the earliest listed contact is in 1947), 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 inputs will be gratefully received, and amended on an ongoing basis. I published a first version in 2000-05, based on inputs from ZS6AXT, ZS6WB and others. The first version was a trial run to solicit more definite inputs. Some such inputs did arrive, and many claims have subsequently been updated. More than five dozen new countries have been worked from South Africa for the first time, including many that were previously not allowed on 50 MHz and even a few that did not exist before. These recent claims are obviously a lot more likely to have been accurate. The advent of digital EME has opened a new world of possibilties. In general, such contacts are marked as EME, to distinguish them from traditional ionospheric contacts. 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. I've had insight mainly into contacts by ZS6WB, ZS6AXT, ZS6BMS and ZS6PJS, so their callsigns are likely to predominate. The intention is not to publish false claims, but rather to encourage the true claimants to come forward. There are notes with several entries. In some cases, the existence of a contact has been claimed verbally or in writing, but no date or other information is available. In other cases, contacts are known to have taken place in previous solar cycles, but no information is to hand. Any help with any of these contacts will be especially appreciated. "(DXv)" indicates that the claim has been verified with the DX station's operator or from the original log, to ensure that no other ZS 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. In the case of the former Yugoslavia, the DXCC start dates for the newly-formed countries are noted. Contacts with YU2, 3, 4 and 5 stations prior to the start dates count as Yugoslavia. No contacts are known to have taken place with YU4 and YU5 stations prior to their prefix changes (to T9 and Z3 respectively). Finally, several countries are known to have produced contacts before legal licencing was introduced. These rogue contacts can only be identified with cooperation from the DX end, and replaced with their legitimate counterparts. Known suspect contacts have been marked as such. In cases where an official start date is known (e.g. Spain), the start date is listed and only contacts after that date are shown. I will continue to make intermittent updates as information is received, and publish the document at the URL listed below: http://zs6ez.org.za/lists/50zs1st.txt Perhaps one fact deserves to be emphasised: The amazing level of achievement of the leading individuals. If one takes into account that this list includes every country known to have been worked from South Africa, and that in several cases the countries were not worked from Gauteng at all, the fact that two stations (ZS6WB and ZS6AXT) missed no more than 15 of the total countries worked via the ionosphere must surely rate as remarkable! ZS4TX started on EME in 2014. He worked 16 of the 19 "firsts" from South Africa between 2015 and 2022. Chris R. Burger ZS6EZ Box 126 Rayton 1001 South Africa Country ZS stn Date UTC DX Station (operators in brackets) 1A SMOM ZS6WB 1990-04-28 11:01 SSB 1A0KM (Op. I0JX) 3A Monaco ZS6PJS 2000-07-04 16:21 CW 3A/OH2BC 3B8 Mauritius ZS6AYE 2013-05-03 14:44 SSB 3B3DB 3B9 Rodrigues Island ZS6AYE 2015-03-14 13:18 SSB 3B9FR 3C Equatorial Guinea ZS6AXT 1998-10-07 19:10 3C5I (Op. KB2WF) (DXv) 3D Fiji *** ZS6AXT 1991-03-29 20:21 3D2PO 3DA Swaziland ZS6WB 1988-12-31 05:00 SSB 3DA0/ZS6BCR (ZS6EZ) (DXv) Footnote 1 3V Tunisia ZS6WB 2000-11-15 17:56 SSB TS7N 4L Georgia ZS6AXT 2002-03-13 10:20 4L5O 4O Montenegro ZS6NK 2011-10-16 18:19 CW 4O4A (DXv) 4U ITU HQ Geneva ZS6WB 1991-03-10 11:30 SSB 4U1ITU (Op. G3SDL) (DXv) 4W Timor Leste ZS4TX 2023-11-20 13:22 Q65 4W8X EME by WSJT 4X Israel ??? ZS6WB 1991-02-07 18:01 SSB 4X1IF 5A Libya ZS6PJS 2000-08-31 17:06 SSB 5A1A (DXv) 5B Cyprus ZS6LN 1979-03-02 16:35 SSB 5B4AZ 5H Tanzania *** ZS6WB 1990-04-29 06:07 CW 5H1HK (Op. JE3MAS) 5N Nigeria *** ZS6AXT 1989-03-25 14:10 KH6HSS/5N0 5R Madagascar ZS6WB 2000-10-21 18:?? SSB 5R8FU 5T Mauritania ZS4TX 2019-07-04 09:04 5T5PA (PA5X) (DXv) Footnote 9 5V Togo ??? ZS6WB 1991-09-28 16:15 SSB 5V7JG (Op. F2JD) 5W Western Samoa ZS6WB 1992-04-19 20:29 SSB 5W1KF (Op. ZL2TPY) 5X Uganda ZS6KO 1959-04-15 ??:?? VQ5FS 5Z Kenya *** ZS6XJ 1982-03-04 19:39 5Z4CS (Op. JE1JKL) Footnote 6 7P Lesotho *** ZS6WB 1990-04-22 05:40 SSB 7P8EN (Op. ZS4TX) (DXv) Footnote 1 7Q Malawi *** ZS6WB 1990-09-10 19:09 CW 7Q7JA (Check date 90-04?) 7X Algeria *** ZS6WB 1989-08-30 17:20 SSB FD1NLQ/7X 8R Guyana ZS6AXT 1991-10-28 16:18 G4SMC/8R1 9A Croatia ZS6WB 1991-08-11 18:10 YU2EZA Start date 1991-06-26 9G Ghana ZS6AXT 2000-03-27 20:40 9G5ZW (Op. OK2ZW) 9H Malta ZS6WB 1988-03-09 17:32 SSB 9H1BT 9J Zambia *** ZS6AXT 1991-09-26 15:12 9J2HN (Op. JK1UWY) 9K Kuwait *** ZS6AXT 1992-03-30 14:58 9K2ZR (Op. WA8MOA) 9Q DRC ZS6WB 1989-10-14 19:34 SSB 9Q5EE (Op. WA9INK) 9U Burundi ZS6PJS 2000-03-05 16:43 CW 9U5D (Op. SM5DIC) 9X Rwanda ZS6AXT 1991-10-05 19:22 9X5NH (Op. DK5SY) A2 Botswana ZS6WB 1987-07-18 13:35 SSB A22KZ (Op. G4EKZ/ZS4TX/ZS6EZ)(DXv) Footnote 1 A3 Tonga ZS4TX 2019-09-28 04:32 A35JT (Op. VK group) EME by WSJT A4 Oman ZS6AXT 2000-11-03 16:20 A45ZN A6 UAE ZS6AXT 1999-02-22 18:50 A61AH A7 Qatar ZS6NK 2002-10-30 15:49 SSB A71AW A9 Bahrain ZS6NK 2011-03-11 19:17 CW A92IO (Op. G3SDL) (DXv) Ant Antarctic ZS6NK 2013-11-26 04:26 JT65a VK0JJJ (Op. VK6JJJ) EME by WSJT AP Pakistan ZS6AXT 1999-03-28 12:06 AP2WAP BV Taiwan ZR1L 2000-04-29 09:30 BV2DP (Op. DXv) BY China ZS6AYE 2014-03-18 10:58 BA8AT C2 Nauru ZS4TX 2018-09-29 21:24 C21GJ (Op. W7GJ) (DXv) C3 Andorra ZS6PJS 2000-05-08 15:39 SSB C31HK C9 Mozambique ZS6WB 1993-07-17 04:45 SSB C93BB (Op. ZR6REV) CE Chile ??? ZS6AXT 1991-04-26 14:32 CE8ABF CN Morocco *** ZS6WB 1990-10-26 13:37 CW CN2CW CP Bolivia ??? ZS6AXT 1991-04-27 12:55 CP6BY QSOs in cycle 21 CT Portugal *** ZS6WB 1988-09-14 16:49 CT1LN Footnote 5 CT3 Madeira ZS6BMS 1989-11-15 19:21 W6JKV/CT3 CU Azores *** ZS6WB 1990-09-29 17:22 SSB CU1EZ CX Uruguay ZS6XJ 1982-04-25 13:23 CX8BE D2 Angola ZS6NK 2023-03-08 20:48 FT8 D2UY Ionospheric by WSJT D4 Cape Verde ZS6AYE 1990-08-03 19:15 ZS6AYE D6 Comores ZS6WB 1991-03-10 19:12 SSB D68KN (Op. JG4CLV) DL Germany ZS6BMS 1990-04-26 16:20 DF5LQ Footnote 10 DU Philippines ZS6AYE 2013-10-11 13:40 DU7/PA0HIP E3 Eritrea ZS6WB 2001-10-30 19:07 SSB E30NA (Op. DL5NAM) E5 North Cook Islands ZS6NK 2016-07-22 18:36 JT65a E51WL EME by WSJT E5 South Cook Islands ZS6AYE 2014-03-11 19:32 E51CG E7 Bosnia-Herzegovina ZS6BTE 2000-04-04 17:30 T97V EA Spain ZS6WB 1992-07-12 15:37 EH3ADW (DXv) Start date 1992-07-10 EA6 Balearic Islands ZS6WB 1992-08-28 17:02 EH6ET (DXv) Start date 1992-07-10 EA8 Canary Islands ZS6WB 1998-10-16 19:21 EH8BPX (DXv) Start date 1992-07-10 EA9 Ceuta and Melilla ZS6PT 1992-10-11<12:00 EH9IB (DXv) Start date 1992-07-10 EI Ireland ??? ZS6LN 1980-04-04 11:10 EI6AS EK Armenia ZS6AXT 1998-04-06 10:19 EK6AD ER Moldova ZS6EZ 1999-05-16 14:40 CW ER1AAZ ES Estonia ZS6LN 1992-05-13 14:42 ES6QB ET Ethiopia ZS6AXT 2000-10-09 17:57 ET3VSC EU Belarus ZS6AXT 1999-03-17 11:41 EU5R EY Tajikistan ZS6AXT 2000-03-07 11:45 EY8CQ F France ZS6WB 1988-04-21 14:30 F5GZ FG Guadeloupe ZS4TX 2023-03-31 15:23 FG8OJ Ionospheric by WSJT FH Mayotte ZS4TX 2022-09-08 00:52 TO7GJ EME by WSJT FK New Caledonia ZS6NK 2014-02-17 17:14 JT65a FK8CP EME by WSJT FM Martinique ZS4S 1991-11-23 14:28 FM5WD FO/A Austral ZS4TX 2021-10-16 13:10 FO/W7GJ EME by WSJT FO/M Marquesas Islands ZS4TX 2021-11-01 12:24 TX7MB (Op. W7GJ) EME by WSJT FR Reunion *** ZS6WB 1991-10-15 15:03 CW FR5QT FT/E Europa and Juan de Nova ZS6WB 2003-12-04 06:44 FSK441 TO4E FT/T Tromelin Island ZS6AYE 2014-11-03 19:02 FT4FA FW Wallis and Futuna ZS4TX 2015-08-31 18:54 FW5JJ (Op. TK5JJ) EME by WSJT G England ZS1B 1947-11-06 12:30 G5BY GD Isle of Man ZS6BMS 1989-02-25 12:16 GD3AHV GI Northern Ireland ZS6XJ 1989-02-22 11:36 GI8YDZ GJ Jersey ZS6XJ 1988-08-28 17:17 GJ4ICD GM Scotland ZS6WB 1988-10-18 11:51 GM3WOJ GU Guernsey ZS4NS 1989-03-26 12:33 GU2FRO GW Wales ZS4TX/6 1988-10-08 16:05 GW4EAI HA Hungary ZS6NK 2006-12-27 11:41 JT65a HA3UU EME by WSJT Footnote 7 HB Switzerland ??? ZS6XJ 1990-03-18 13:36 HB9SJV (DXv) Footnote 5 HB0 Liechtenstein ZS6PJS 2000-08-31 17:12 CW HB0/DF0FA HL Korea ZS6AYE 2014-04-10 11:04 HL2IFR HR Honduras ZS6NK 2013-12-21 04:14 JT65a HR9BFS EME by WSJT HV Vatican ZS6PJS 1998-11-06 13:05 SSB HV5PUL HZ Saudi Arabia *** ZS6WB 1990-10-13 17:21 CW HZ1AB (some doubt about legality) I Italy ZS6LN 1990-04-01 14:26 I0AKP IS0 Sardinia ZS6WB 1990-06-11 16:03 IM0/IK2GSO J2 Djibouti ZS6EZ 2000-10-07 18:14 CW J28NH (DXv) J6 St Lucia ZS4TX 2020-06-28 17:22 J68HZ (Op. K9HZ) EME by WSJT JA Japan ZS1SW 1958-05-15 10:25 JA1AXE JD1 Ogasawara ZS4TX 2022-07-02 08:35 JD1BQI EME by WSJT JT Mongolia ZS4TX 2017-05-25 11:30 JT5DX (Op. 9A5K) EME by WSJT JW Svalbard ZS4TX 2017-07-01 20:30 JW7QIA (Op. LA7QIA) EME by WSJT JX Jan Mayen ZS6NK 2002-02-26 12:11 SSB JX7DFA (Op. LA7DFA) JY Jordan ZS6WB 1998-09-06 15:41 SSB JY9NE (Op. N3FNE) K USA ??? ZS6LN 1980-11-05 16:10 K8EFS QSOs in cycle 19? KH0 Northern Marianas ZS6NK 2005-05-16 14:28 JT65a KH0/KH2K (Op. JA1JRU) EME by WSJT KH2 Guam ZS6NK 2005-01-02 01:14 JT65a KG6DX EME by WSJT KH6 Hawaii ??? ZS6LN 1981-04-14 07:20 KH6JJL QSOs in cycle 19? KL Alaska ZS6NK 2004-11-26 00:15 JT65a NL7Z EME by WSJT KP2 US Virgin Islands ZS6BMS 1989-11-15 15:58 KP2A KP4 Puerto Rico ZS5AV 1991-04-28 13:39 KP4EID LA Norway ZS6LN 1989-02-25 11:07 LA8WF LU Argentina ??? ZS6LN 1981-04-11 15:35 LU6HFI (possible earlier with LU3EX) LX Luxembourg ZS6BMS 1990-03-03 12:51 LX1SI LY Lithuania ZS6WB 1999-07-05 16:37 SSB LY2BA LZ Bulgaria ZS6PJS 1998-04-09 14:33 CW LZ1DP OA Peru ZS6NK 2013-10-29 07:14 JT65a OA4TT EME by WSJT OD Lebanon ??? ZS6WB 1992-03-06 16:38 SSB OD5SK OE Austria ZS6WB 1990-02-15 12:03 OE6AHD OH Finland *** ZS6WB 1989-02-25 10:55 OH1YP OH0 Aland Islands ZS6NK 2005-08-27 01:16 JT65a OH0/SM5HJZ EME by WSJT Footnote 3 OJ0 Market Reef ZS4TX 2022-07-03 08:40 OJ0MR EME by WSJT OK Czech Republic ZS6EZ 1998-10-10 16:44 CW OK1FFD OM Slovakia ZS6AXT 1999-06-03 16:13 OM1TL ON Belgium ZS6AXT 1990-02-27 16:57 ON4KST OX Greenland ZS6NK 2005-03-28 02:15 JT65a OX3LX (Op. OZ1DJJ) EME by WSJT OY Faroe Islands *** ZS6WB 1991-08-07 17:21 SSB OY/G4PIQ OZ Denmark ZS6AXT 1990-02-24 10:11 OZ4VV (DXv) PA Holland ZS6HS 1947 PA0UN PJ2 Curacao ZS6NK 2019-03-17 20:44 JT65a PJ2T (Op. KB7Q) EME by WSJT PJ4 Bonaire ZS4TX 2023-03-23 15:21 PJ4MM Ionospheric by WSJT PY Brazil ZS1EK 1991-04-06 11:39 PY5CC (DXv) QSOs in cycle 21? PY0F Fernando de Noronha ZS6AXT 1991-04-28 11:59 PY0FF PY0T Trinidade ZS6NK 2002-03-03 17:15 SSB PW0T (Op. PY5CC) RA1 European Russia ZS6AXT 2000-02-20 10:34 RN6HW S0 West Sahara ZS6WB 1991-03-29 15:23 SSB S01A Footnote 1 S5 Slovenia ZS6WB 1991-07-21 16:26 YU3AN Start date 1991-06-26 S7 Seychelles ZS6WB 1989-03-27 16:37 CW S79M (Op. JI3ERV) S9 Sao Tome ZS6PJS 2000-03-02 19:41 SSB S92AT (Op?) SM Sweden ZS6BMS 1989-03-19 12:28 SM7BAE SP Poland ZS6AXT 1998-08-28 18:45 SP4MPB SU Egypt ZS1T 1947 MD5KW (Op. G5KW) SV Greece ZS6XJ 1980-05-12 21:14 SZ2DH (Op. SV1DH)(DXv) SV5 Dodecanese Islands ??? ZS6AXT/WB 1998-08-29 16:51 SV5BYR SV9 Crete ZS6PJS 1993-10-14 16:32 SSB SV9ANJ SV/A Mount Athos ZS4TX/6 2014-10-26 17:58 SV2ASP/A T7 San Marino ZS6BMS 1989-02-25 16:22 T77C T8 Palau ZS6NK 2016-08-20 22:20 JT65a T8GJ (Op. W7GJ) EME by WSJT TA Turkey ZS6WB 1989-09-29 17:06 TA4/G3SDL (DXv) TJ Cameroon ZS6WB 1998-09-27 18:39 SSB TJ1GD (Op. Dariusz "Darek" Godawa SP??) TK Corsica ZS6NK 2013-03-16 12:56 SSB TK1CX Footnote 8 TL Central African Rep ZS6XJ 1991-02-18 19:41 TL8MB (Op. F1JKK) (DXv) TR Gabon ??? ZS6WB 1989-03-07 19:55 SSB TR8CA TT Chad ZS6WB 2000-11-19 20:04 SSB TT8DX TU Cote d'Ivoire ??? ZS6WB 1991-04-05 13:43 CW TU2MA TY Benin ZS4TX/6 2014-09-19 19:12 TY1AA TZ Mali ZS6NK 2023-03-01 14:19 FT8 TZ1CE (Op. DK1CE) Ionospheric by WSJT UJ Uzbekistan ZS6WB 2001-02-25 10:41 SSB UK9AA (DXv) UN Kazakhstan ZS6WB 1992-04-06 12:00 CW UL7GCC UT Ukraine ZS6PJS 1998-05-05 14:36 SSB UR5ZEL V2 Antigua ZS6BMS 1989-11-15 16:01 V29OA (Op. W7LUU) V5 Namibia ??? ZS6WB 1986-12-28 03:10 SSB ZS3Z (Op. ZS6EZ) (DXv) QSOs in cycle 19 V6 Micronesia ZS4TX 2015-08-29 16:24 V6M (Op. W7GJ) EME by WSJT V8 Brunei ZS4TX 2019-02-13 15:12 V84SAA EME by WSJT VE Canada ??? ZS6GX 1947-11-13 ??:?? VE1AYL VK Australia ??? ZS6LN 1981-05-15 09:22 VK6RO Footnote 4 VK9X Christmas Island ZS6AXT 1991-04-04 07:15 VK9X/VK6BFV VP8 Falklands ZR5ADQ 2000-04-16 13:52 VP8DBL (Op. G3WOS) (DXv) VR Hong Kong ZR5ADQ 2001-03-24 14:?? VR2XMT VU India ZS6AXT 2002-02-21 15:06 VU2LO XE Mexico ZS4TX 2019-08-02 14:54 XE2OR EME by WSJT XT Burkina Faso ZS6NK 2023-10-22 14:39 FT8 XT2AW (Op. DF2WO) WSJT YA Afghanistan ZS6BTE 2012-10-21 12:45 T6LG (Op. LZ1CNN) YB Indonesia *** ZS6WB 1989-04-04 07:05 SSB YC2EMK YI Iraq ZS6NK 2002-09-04 15:20 CW YI9OM YK Syria ZS6WB 2001-02-11 18:50 SSB YK9A (Op. N7RO) (DXv) Footnote 1 YL Latvia ZS6PJS 1999-10-16 16:09 SSB YL2JN YO Romania *** ZS6AXT 1990-09-21 19:19 YO2IS YU Yugoslavia ZS6WB 1991-03-10 12:00 YU3EA (Now S56A) YV Venezuela *** ZS6WB 1991-04-27 12:41 SSB YV4DDK QSOs in cycle 21 Z2 Zimbabwe *** ZS6BMS 1989-04-01 16:48 Z23JO QSOs in cycle 21 Z3 Macedonia ZS6AXT 1998-10-17 16:32 Z31JA Z6 Kosovo ZS6NK 2022-04-26 16:39 FT8 Z61DX (DXv) Z8 South Sudan ZS6NK 2013-03-11 19:19 SSB Z81D (Op. YI1DZ) (DXv) ZA Albania ZS6WB 1991-10-05 11:21 SSB ZA1A (Op. OH2BH) (DXv) Footnote 1 ZB Gibraltar ZS6WB 1979-10-16 17:10 ZB2BL ZC4 British Cyprus ZS6XJ 1989-08-25 18:22 SSB ZC4MK (Op. G0KOM) (DXv) Footnote 1 ZD7 St Helena ZS6XJ 1982-04-06 19:33 ZD7BW ZD8 Ascension ZS6XJ 1982-04-06 21:50 ZD8TC ZK3 Tokelau ZS4TX 2019-10-08 12:34 ZK3A (Op. International Group) EME by WSJT ZL New Zealand ZS6NK 2002-09-02 05:55 JT65a ZL3TY EME by WSJT ZL7 Chatham Islands ZS4TX 2021-02-14 06:40 ZL7DX EME by WSJT ZP Paraguay ZS6WB 1991-04-27 14:11 SSB ZP6XDW (DXv) QSOs in cycle 21 ZS8 Marion ZS2BE 1989-12-08 17:04 SSB ZS8MI (Op. ZS6PT) (DXv) Footnote 1 [198 countries, not including ZS] Deleted: -------- OK Czechoslovakia *** ZS6AXT/WB 1992-02-04 13:40 OK2PZW PJ8 Netherlands Antilles ZS6WB 1991-11-23 13:52 PJ7/W6JKV ZS0 Penguin Islands ZS6WB 1990-12-02 00:00 SSB ZS9Z/ZS1 (Op. ZS6EZ) (DXv) Footnote 1 ZS9 Walvis Bay *** ZS6AXT 1990-09-29 18:41 ZS9A (later V51C, now Silent Key) [4 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 Leading South African stations ------------------------------ 57 ZS6WB Hal Lund (see note) 37 ZS6NK (ex ZS6PJS) Paul Smit 29 ZS6AXT Ivo Chladek (Silent Key) (see note) 22 ZS4TX Bernie van der Walt (3 of these as ZS4TX/6) 10 ZS6XJ Leroy Dale 9 ZS6BMS Arnold Mynett (ex G3HBS, now EA8BLL) ZS6LN Jack de Villiers (Silent Key) 8 ZS6AYE Braam Devenier 3 ZS6EZ Chris R. Burger 2 ZR5ADQ Mike Parker ZS6BTE Ian Roberts 1 ZR1L Chris F. Muller ZS1B Denis Richardson (Silent Key) ZS1EK Bill Dewey ZS1SW Albert Solomon (Silent Key) ZS2BE Hannes Vorster (Silent Key) ZS4NS Nico Schoonwinkel ZS4S Dave Jones (now ZS5DJ) ZS5AV Craig Smith (Silent Key 2008) ZS6GX ? ZS6KO Bill Ingleson (Silent Key 2014) ZS6PT Petr Sykora (now ZL1CX) Note: ZS6AXT and ZS6WB worked two "firsts" (OK and SV5) in close succession, and it is not known who actually made the first contact. These countries are not included in their personal totals as shown. Chronology ---------- 50 MHz had a slow start. Because of its use for television in some parts of the world and its adjacency to TV bands in other countries, many countries did not allow access to 50 MHz until well after 2000. The chronology below shows clearly how the limited activity grew over the decades. From the 1980s, the influence of the solar cycles became evident. From about 2015, the use of EME has reared its ugly head. For the next few years, at least until we get a decent solar cycle again, EME is likely to provide the only new additions to this list. Year New Total Stations 1947 5 5 ZS1B, ZS1T, ZS6GX, ZS6HS 1958 1 6 ZS1SW 1959 1 7 ZS6KO 1979 2 9 ZS6LN, ZS6WB 1980 3 12 ZS6LN (2), ZS6XJ 1981 3 15 ZS6LN 1982 4 19 ZS6XJ 1986 1 20 ZS6WB 1987 1 21 ZS6WB 1988 7 28 ZS6WB (5), ZS4TX/6, ZS6XJ 1989 21 49 ZS6WB (8), ZS6BMS (7), ZS6XJ (2), ZS2BE, ZS4NS, ZS6AXT, ZS6LN 1990 18 67 ZS6WB (9), ZS6AXT (4), ZS6BMS (2), ZS6AYE, ZS6LN, ZS6XJ 1991 27 94 ZS6WB (14), ZS6AXT (7), ZS1EK, ZS4S, ZS5AV, ZS6XJ 1992 9 103 ZS6WB (5), ZS6AXT (2), ZS6LN 1993 2 105 ZS6PJS, ZS6WB 1998 12 117 ZS6AXT (4), ZS6PJS (3), ZS6WB (3), ZS6EZ 1999 7 124 ZS6AXT (4), ZS6EZ, ZS6PJS, ZS6WB 2000 18 142 ZS6PJS (6), ZS6AXT (5), ZS6WB (3), ZR1L, ZR5ADQ, ZS6EZ, ZS6BTE 2001 4 146 ZS6WB (3), ZR5ADQ 2002 7 153 ZS6NK (5), ZS6AXT (2) 2003 1 154 ZS6WB 2004 1 155 ZS6NK 2005 4 159 ZS6NK (4) 2006 1 160 ZS6NK 2011 2 162 ZS6NK (2) 2012 1 163 ZS6BTE 2013 7 170 ZS6NK (5), ZS6AYE (2) 2014 7 177 ZS6AYE (4), ZS4TX/6 (2), ZS6NK 2015 3 180 ZS4TX (2), ZS6AYE 2016 2 182 ZS6NK (2) 2017 2 184 ZS4TX (2) 2018 1 185 ZS4TX 2019 3 188 ZS4TX (2), ZS6NK 2020 1 189 ZS4TX 2021 3 192 ZS4TX (3) 2022 4 196 ZS4TX (3), ZS6NK 2023 6 202 ZS4TX (3), ZS6NK (3) Thanks for contributions (in alphabetical order): ------------------------------------------------- G0KOM (ex ZC4MK), G3HBW (ex ZS6BMS), G3SDL (4U1ITU, A92IO, TA4/G3SDL), G3WOS (ex VP8DBL), HB9AOF, JI1CQA, JE1JKL, KB2WF (3C5I), ON9BGP, S56A, ZS4NS, ZS4TX, ZS5DJ, ZS6AXT, ZS6AYE, ZS6WB, ZS6XJ. ZS6NK (formerly ZS6PJS) has done considerable research in old magazines and in the late ZS6LN's QSL collection, unearthing quite a few new ones in the process. He continues to advise me of finds from various sources. Thanks, Paul! Footnotes: ---------- 1: First ever known 50 MHz QSO, world-wide, with this country! 2: ZR6VE (later ZS6VER, now ZS6DX) has claimed contacts with 4J, 4L, 7X, 9K, A7, A9, D2, EU, HB0, HZ, RA2, RA9, UJ, UN and VQ9. He was licenced during the lull between cycles 22 and 23. All of these countries would have been firsts from ZS for this solar cycle, and only four of the 15 countries had ever been worked from South Africa. At least four of these countries might well prove to be world firsts. Unfortunately, despite at least a dozen requests, Rudi has not produced dates, times or callsigns for these contacts, to allow us to show the necessary respect... 3: ZS6YA (now ZS6Y) claimed a much earlier contact with OH0. Unfortunately, no further information could be obtained despite several requests. 4: In 2000, information came to light (via VK3OT) about contacts between VK3FA and ZS6 stations in cycle 19. Once dates, times and callsigns have been found, the new claim will be included in the list. 5: CT1CO is known to have been heard regularly in ZS6 in the late Fifties. HB9BZ is known to have worked many ZS6 stations in the same period. Stations active in ZS6 included ZS6AJH (later ZS6AK, SK <2022), ZS6APS (SK 2017), ZS6ASO (SK), ZS6AVK, ZS6AVP (SK), ZS6ET (SK <1980), ZS6IO (SK 1997-06), ZS6JW (SK 2018) and ZS6KO (SK 2014). Anyone who can provide some dates and times, or some clarity on the legality of the European stations, please let me know! 6: JE1JKL reports that there were some contacts before his, notably between 5Z4YV and unknown ZS stations. Further information would be appreciated. 7: ZS6AXT worked HA6ZB on 2001-03-13 at 14:28, but it is most unlikely that this station's 50 MHz operation was legal. 8: In 2013-11, DXCC deleted all credits with Corsika (TK) before March 2013, on the basis that 50 MHz was legally activated on this date. Several South African DXCC members' totals were reduced as a result. The original "first" listed was between ZS6WB and TK/PA0ERA on 1989-08-02 at 16:15. 9: First ever known EME QSO on 50 MHz from this country. 10: ZS6WB worked DL8HCZ on 1989-02-23 at 11:26. However, the DARC states that no 50 MHz operation was permitted before 1990-04-01. They regard the listed contact as the first from Germany. [end]