Amateur Radio Operator

In 1939, Michigan became the first state to offer distinctive license plates to amateur radio operators. In that year, many reserved plate configurations were made available to select groups of individuals. That practice didn''t continue in 1940, however, and the the series went on hiatus until 1954. In the United States, amateur radio call signs adhere to the following rules:

• four to six characters long
• all-alphabetic, except for one numeric digit in either the second or third position
• first character is A, K, N or W.

The numeric digit (Ø - 9) has traditionally identified the region of the country where the licensee resided when the call sign was originally issued (although FCC rules on this point have relaxed in the 2000s). Michigan is in zone 8.