Types of licenses in the UK
There are currently 5 types of radio amateur licenses issued throughout the UK (soon only 3).
They are:
Foundation: max. 10 W, all bands and modes (except 10m) up to and including 70cm. (M3 ABC)
Intermediate class B: 50W all bands above 30 MHz. (2E1 ABC)
Intermediate class A: 50W all bands. (2E0 ABC)
Full class B: 400W all bands above 30 MHz. (G6,7,8 ABC)(M1 ABC)
Full class A: 400W all bands. (all other G prefixes in conjunction with the 2 letter suffix and M0.5 ABC)….. simple isn’t it? :)To pass from group B to group A, it is necessary to pass the 5WPM test in telegraphy.
It is expected that in July at the WRC meeting in Geneva, the obligation to carry out tests from telegraphy (CW) will be removed. Once this happens, license group B will cease to exist in the UK and all radio amateurs will automatically be moved to group A.
Types of licenses in the US
There are currently 3 types of licenses issued in the US, but not long ago there were 6. So let's look at the remaining three:
Technician – 1500W max, 50MHz and above
General - like Technician, but HF rights are allocated, all bands except small areas which are allocated specifically for the Amateur Extra license group
Amateur Extra – like General but all bands without restrictions
Progression from the Technician license group to the General license group is ensured through a telegraphy test - 5WPM as in the UK.
You can find more information about licenses issued in the USA at this address: http://wireless.fcc.gov/services/amateur/about/operatorclass.html#technician
Oliver M3SDO