The QSO text presented here may be used on air, The purpose of this text is to familiarize the reader with normal operating practice among CW operators. The example is by no means exhaustive nor is it meant to be understood as a rigid template. It is just one text variants out of many good ones. The QSO example points primarily to those using CW the traditional way, i.e. to those who are already familiar with the basics of ham radio and who have learned CW already. Those who are approaching CW via machine decoding may be interested to consult our hints about A1B operation. If you happen to be interested in QRP operation or if you are in contact with weak signal stations you may find these hints useful.
In this fictitious example an American station A (call sign AA1AA) seeks a CW contact and a Chinese station B (call sign BB1BB) is available for a contact. The CW text is in UPPER CASE, the identifying A: and B: are not transmitted on the air.
A: CQ CQ CQ DE AA1AA CQ CQ CQ DE AA1AA CQ CQ CQ DE AA1AA AA1AA AA1AA K
B: AA1AA AA1AA DE BB1BB BB1BB BB1BB KN
A: BB1BB BB1BB DE AA1AA = GM/GE ES TNX RST 559 55N = OP ALAN ALAN QTH AUGUSTA,ME AUGUSTA,ME = HW? BB1BB DE AA1AA KN
B: DE BB1BB = R SOLID CPI TNX = RST 569 56N QSB= NAME BIMING BIMING = QTH BEIJING BEIJING OK? KN
A: UFB DR BIMING = RIG FT1K ES QSK AMP 1 KW TO 5 EL YAGI = WX FOGGY TEMP 32F = GRID LOC FN54 HW? BB1BB DE AA1AA KN
B: AA1AA DE BB1BB = CONGRATS NICE SETUP HR 100W HM TO 2EL QUAD UP 25M = WX SUNNY BUT COOL MINUS 5 C = LOC OM89EV + K
A: DE AA1AA R SUM QSB BR FB CPI = GUESS BAND CHG TNX QSO ES PSE QSL VIA BURO HW? BK
B: YES QSL SURE VIA BURO = TAKE CARE ES CUAGN SN = GB ES 73 AA1AA DE BB1BB AR KN
A: TNX AGN 73 ES GL SK DE AA1AA
B: TU E