The Grid and Prefix Award Program (GAPA)….

The Grid and Prefix Award Program (GAPA)( www.gapawards.com/index.html ) is proud to present the most detailed and comprehensive Digital Awards Program available today.

This series is offered to both Radio Amateurs and SWL Operators. Awards offered by GAPA fall into two major categories based on call sign prefixes and grid square locations.

Popular digital modes such as FT, JT, RTTY and PSK can be used to earn individual awards and as award endorsements. The program also encourages the use of other modes like T10, Throb, SSTV and Hell. Contacts can be confirmed through use of LOTW, eQSL, QRZ or direct QSLs. Awards are based on operator contacts, not an operator’s location.

The Prefix Award is earned by working digital mode stations with different prefixes from around the world. A basic award begins with submission of 50 to 400 unique prefixes based on the mode used. Additional endorsements then can be added for different bands, modes and continents worked.

Grid square awards begin with a basic award that requires 50 to 300 unique grid square locators depending on the mode used. Additional endorsement can be added for band, mode and continent worked.

A separate portion of the GAPA Program is based on confirming a specified number of unique grid square locators within a specific political entity or subdivision that are used to earn a certificate bar. These bars can be for individual countries or specific US States or Provinces and Districts within Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and Japan. There are many ‘one-grid-countries’, such as Heard Island, Aruba, or Guam; however, many larger and more populated countries require multiple grids such as 20 grids for Brazil or 10 grids for Poland. The GAPA Program provides attractive collector sheets where the bars can be affixed.

Amateurs that collect all the bars associated with a collector’s sheet qualify for GAPA’s top achievement, our series of Pinnacle Awards. Some of the awards include working 100 countries (DXCC), all US States, all Provinces of Canada and Districts of Japan. Amateurs that complete a Pinnacle Award are also recognized online with the GAPA OnLine Digital Award Record (OLAR).

We invite you take to a look at the GAPA Program’s Certificate Family Tree page http://www.gapawards.com/grid/awards_tree.html to examine the certificates offered and see some examples of certificates with their band and continent endorsement stickers. GAPA has a group on the GroupsIO site at https://groups.io/g/GAPA.

For further information contact Ernie Mills WM2U or Rich Kennedy K3VAT. Email addresses for both are found on the gapawards.com or qrz.com websites.