What Are Q Codes?
The Q code is a standardised collection of three-letter message encoding, all starting with the letter "Q", initially developed for commercial radiotelegraph communication, and later adopted by other radio services, especially amateur radio.
Although Q codes were created when radio used Morse code exclusively, they continued to be employed after the introduction of voice transmissions. To avoid confusion, transmitter call signs have often been limited to restrict ones starting with "Q" or having an embedded three-letter Q sequence.
Q Codes are not just limited to amateur radio use infact all military and non-military communication uses them and the distribution for them is as follows:
QAA-QNZ reserved for aeronautical use;
QOA-QOZ reserved for maritime use, and
QRA-QUZ for all services.
The following table reviews a sample of the all-services Q codes adopted by the 1912 Convention:
First Twelve Q Codes Listed in the 1912 International Radiotelegraph Convention Regulations
| Abbreviation | Question | Answer or Notice. |
|---|---|---|
| QRA | What ship or coast station is that? | This is ____. |
| QRB | What is your distance? | My distance is ____. |
| QRC | What is your true bearing? | My true bearing is ____ degrees. |
| QRD | Where are you bound for? | I am bound for ____. |
| QRF | Where are you bound from? | I am bound from ____. |
| QRG | What line do you belong to? | I belong to the ____ Line. |
| QRH | What is your wave length in meters? | My wave length is ____ meters. |
| QRJ | How many words have you to send? | I have ____ words to send. |
| QRK | How do you receive me? | I am receiving well. |
| QRL | Are you receiving badly? Shall I send 20 ...-. for adjustment? | I am receiving badly. Send 20 ...-. for adjustment. |
| QRM | Are you being interfered with? | I am being interfered with. |
| QRN | Are the atmospherics strong? | Atmospherics are very strong. |
QSL?
