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T1E03

COMMISSION'S RULES · Control operator: eligibility, designating, privileges, duties, location, required; Control point; Control types: automatic, remote

T1E03§ 97.103(b)T1E →

Who must designate the station control operator?

  1. AThe station licensee
  2. BThe FCC
  3. CThe frequency coordinator
  4. DAny licensed operator
Why Under 97.103(b), the station licensee is responsible for the station's proper operation at all times and must designate who acts as control operator. The licensee can name themselves or another licensed amateur, but the choice of that person is the licensee's to make, and the licensee stays responsible for the station along with the control operator.
Watch out The FCC does not assign control operators to individual stations; it only sets the rules and grants licenses. Frequency coordinators deal with repeater channel assignments, not station personnel.
It's your station, so you pick the control operator. Licensee designates, licensee stays responsible.
HamSandwich explanation, first draft. The question and answers are the NCVEC text.
47 CFR 97.103(b) Station licensee responsibilities.

(a) The station licensee is responsible for the proper operation of the station in accordance with the FCC Rules. When the control operator is a different amateur operator than the station licensee, both persons are equally responsible for proper operation of the station.

(b) The station licensee must designate the station control operator. The FCC will presume that the station licensee is also the control operator, unless documentation to the contrary is in the station records.

(c) The station licensee must make the station and the station records available for inspection upon request by an FCC representative.

eCFR text as of 1 Sep 2026 · read on ecfr.gov
← T1E02 All of T1E T1E04 →

The rest of T1E

  1. T1E01 When may an amateur station transmit without a control operator?
  2. T1E02 Who may be the control operator of a station communicating through an amateur satellite or space station?
  3. T1E03 Who must designate the station control operator?
  4. T1E04 What determines the transmitting frequency privileges of an amateur station?
  5. T1E05 What is an amateur station's control point?
  6. T1E06 When, other than during an emergency, may a Technician class licensee be the control operator of a station op…
  7. T1E07 When the control operator is not the station licensee, who is responsible for the proper operation of the sta…
  8. T1E08 Which of the following is an example of automatic control?
  9. T1E09 Which amateur stations may be remotely controlled?
  10. T1E10 Which of the following is an example of remote control as defined in Part 97?
  11. T1E11 What is a control operator as defined in Part 97?
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