Add Z8, Drop R1M

The Republic of South Sudan
Calls will now have Z8 prefixes
(Map courtesy CIA World Fact Book)

 South Sudan has finally been assigned a call sign block -- Z8A-Z8Z -- by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), according to the ARRL Letter. No word on why it took more than seven months since the country's independence before the call prefixes were assigned.

Heading north, the ARRL reports that Malyj Vysotskij Island, R1M, has been deleted from the DXCC list, effective February 17. This, the result of a new treaty between Finland and Russia that ends M-V Island's separate status. At press time, R1M remains on the Worked All Europe (WAE) list, so at least for now, it also remains on the CQ DX country list. Watch our web news page for updates.