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Is this call sign available?
Check any AM, FM, LPFM or TV call sign against the FCC's station records: who holds it, whether it was just released, and what the FCC's call sign rules allow.
No idea yet? Browse every spare K and W call sign.
WLSY
LMS shows it available, but a ship uses it
No broadcast station holds WLSY, so the FCC's LMS search will show it as available. But WLSY is the call sign of an FCC-licensed ship (compulsory equipped: cargo, passenger, commercial), license active through June 9, 2035. Expect the request to be refused or changed later.
Why: Four-letter K and W combinations assigned to ships or other radio services are not available to broadcast stations, with or without -FM, -TV or -DT (47 CFR 73.3550(k); the FCC kept this word for word when it last amended the section in 2024). The FCC's original call sign system flagged ship calls (FCC 98-324, paragraph 14); today's LMS search doesn't check ships, so it may let you reserve one that the FCC can later change (47 CFR 73.3550(g)).
Ship licenses with this call sign
| Call sign | Type | License | Dates | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WLSY | Ship (compulsory equipped: cargo, passenger, commercial) | Active | granted May 6, 2025, expires June 9, 2035 | FCC record |
- K call signs go to stations west of the Mississippi River, W call signs east (47 CFR 73.3550(e)).
- Checked against FCC-licensed ships and shortwave stations, which the FCC's own LMS search doesn't check. Federal ships (NOAA, Military Sealift Command) get their call signs from NTIA and aren't in any FCC file, so they can't be checked here (47 CFR 73.3550(k)).
Looking for ideas? See every spare WL call sign or browse all prefixes.
FCC LMS station records as of October 16, 2026. Reserve call signs in LMS, which has the final word.
How broadcast call signs work
New AM, FM and TV call signs are four letters, starting with K west of the Mississippi River and W east of it, with -FM, -TV or -LP (LPFM) added when needed; LPTV stations use -LD and Class A TV -CD. A station asks for its call in the FCC's LMS once it has a construction permit, first come, first served.
There is no waiting period: when a station changes its call sign, the old one can be reserved by anyone as soon as the change takes effect. Stations under common control can share a base call across services (KXXX and KXXX-FM); otherwise using another station's base call in a different service needs that station's consent. FM and TV translators get call signs assigned in order (K or W, the channel, two letters) and can't pick them.
Four-letter K and W calls also go to ships, mostly large commercial ships, and a call assigned to a ship can't be used by a broadcast station. The FCC's original online call sign system warned you about ship calls; today's LMS search only checks broadcast stations and will call a ship's call "available". This check includes every FCC ship license with a four-letter call, and the FCC's list of international shortwave stations (WWCR, WRMI, KNLS and others), and warns you in amber. Federal ships (NOAA, the Military Sealift Command) get their calls from NTIA and aren't in FCC records, so confirm in LMS before you file.
Sources
- 47 CFR 73.3550: requests in LMS, K/W and the Mississippi, four letters and suffixes, shared and secondary calls, ship calls.
- 47 CFR 74.791 and 74.1283: LPTV, Class A and translator call signs.
- FCC 98-324 (1998), paragraph 16: a changed call sign is available to others once the change is effective.
- Station data: the FCC's LMS public database (facility records and call sign requests), updated every morning.
- Shortwave: the FCC's High Frequency Stations list of FCC-authorized international broadcast stations (47 CFR Part 73 Subpart F).
- Ship data: the FCC's ULS ship licenses (weekly file). Ship types per the ULS radio service codes.
Not a product of the FCC. Need a call sign reserved, or a station filed? Nexus Broadcast does FCC filings and engineering.