Question E1D10:
[97.211] Which amateur stations are eligible to be telecommand stations of space stations, subject to the privileges of the class of operator license held by the control operator of the station?  

Choices:  
A: Any amateur station approved by AMSAT  
B: Any amateur station so designated by the space station licensee  
C: Any amateur station so designated by the ITU  
D: All these choices are correct    

Correct Answer is  B: Any amateur station so designated by the space station licensee  

Correct answer: B — Any amateur station so designated by the space station licensee

1) Why this is correct
- FCC Part 97 states that telecommand of an amateur space station may be transmitted by any amateur station that the space station’s licensee designates, provided the control operator operates within their license privileges. This places authority with the licensee of the space station, not a third party.
- Key citation: 47 CFR §97.207(g) (space stations) specifies that telecommand may be performed by any amateur station the space station licensee designates.

2) Why the other choices are incorrect
- A: “Approved by AMSAT” — AMSAT is not a regulatory authority. Unless AMSAT is itself the licensee of that specific space station, it cannot confer eligibility by itself.
- C: “Designated by the ITU” — The ITU does not designate individual amateur telecommand stations; national regulations (FCC in the U.S.) and the space station’s licensee control this.
- D: “All these choices” — Incorrect because only the space station licensee has the authority to designate telecommand stations.

3) Useful rules of thumb (no formulas here)
- Authority: The space station licensee decides which amateur stations may send telecommands.
- License privileges: The control operator of the telecommand station must operate within their class privileges (frequency, mode, and power).
- Encoding: For space telecommand, use of codes/ciphers to obscure meaning is permitted for control purposes (per Part 97), unlike normal amateur communications.