Log Your First WCA QSO

In 10 minutes from "app never opened" to your first logged WCA QSO (World Castles Award / Castles On The Air) incl. award counter update.

Prerequisites

• HAM-Tools installed + license activated
• Your callsign + locator set in Settings → Station
• The castle database (~20,500 refs) is preinstalled in the app bundle — no internet needed

Step 1 — Check the WCA Database

A snapshot of ~20,500 castles already ships in the app bundle, so you can start right away.

1. Open Settings → Data (⌘, → "Data" tab)
2. At the WCA Reference Database entry the status pill shows "ready" with the castle count
3. Own / more recent list? → CSV import as an override (the source has no clean auto-download; the bundled snapshot updates with the next app release)

Source

The castle data comes from the machine-readable GMA castle DB (cqgma.org): global WCA code (<DXCC>-NNNNN) + national COTA code + coordinates.

Step 2 — Create a WCA Log

1. Main window → QSO panel → click "Outdoor" → sub-tab "WCA" (castle icon). If no WCA log exists yet, the wizard opens.
2. Pick Activator / Hunter:
   • Activator — you activate a castle (required: your own castle)
   • Hunter — you chase active castles (castle comes per QSO)
3. Your own castle (Activator): type a name or HB- → auto-complete shows the matches (e.g. HB-00003); pick one
4. Click "Create" — the new log is active

Step 3 — Find an Active Castle (Hunter)

In the WCA Spots tab of the log you see the castle spots filtered from the DX cluster — WCA (like BOTA) has no dedicated spots API.

1. Set filters if you want: band, mode, program prefix (HB, DL, OK …)
2. Double-click a row → the castle reference is entered into the QSO form, and the frequency moves (if CAT is connected) to the spot frequency
3. Each spot is checked against the local castle DB — this prevents confusion with POTA refs (POTA is 4 digits, WCA mostly 5 digits)

More castle spots

The GMA cluster cqgma.org:7300 additionally carries COTA spots. You can add it in Settings → Cluster as another node.

Step 4 — Fill in the QSO Form

When the castle was taken from the spot, most fields are already filled:

Field	What happens
Call	From the spot
Frequency	From the spot (or CAT)
Band	Automatically from frequency
Mode	From the spot (CAT mode overrides if connected)
Their Castle	From the spot (e.g. HB-00003) — DB lookup shows the castle name
RST	Default values per mode (59 / 599 / 599)
Name, QTH, Locator	Auto-fill via QRZ/HamQTH after TAB in the call field

What you have to type: RST received (what you actually heard).

Step 5 — Log It

Press Return or click the "Log QSO" button.

What happens in the background:

1. The QSO is stored in Logs/<your-log>.htlog SQLite
2. A duplicate check runs (same call + band + mode → warning)
3. If real-time upload is active: QRZ.com / eQSL / Club Log / LoTW get the QSO immediately
4. The activation counter rises — the WCA rule requires ≥ 50 QSOs per castle (and operating ≤ 1 km from the castle). The app shows this as a hint, with no hard block.

Step 6 — Check the Award Status

1. In the logbook switch to the "Awards" tab → sub-tab "WCA"
2. You see:
   • Activator castles (+ QSOs)
   • Hunter castles (+ QSOs)
   • Castle-to-Castle (C2C) — QSOs between two castles
   • Programs (unique country prefixes like HB, DL, OK, …)

For the official WCA submission you export the QSO via ADIF (context bar → "Export ADIF") and send it by mail to the WCA group. The app writes MY_SIG=WCA/MY_WCA_REF; with multiple castles, one file per ref.

Multi-Castle Hopping (for Activators)

Activators who activate several castles on the same day use hopping. When creating the log (step 2, activator):

1. Fill the "Additional castles (hopping)" field as a comma list (e.g. HB-00003, DL-05412)
2. Live lookup shows each match with the castle name
3. Multi-ref split on export: the ADIF export writes one file per castle (HB9HJI@HB-00003 20260615.adi, each with a single MY_SIG_INFO)

Dual program

Is your castle inside a POTA park or WWFF area? In the WCA wizard you can also enter POTA/SOTA/WWFF/BOTA/LLOTA refs — each QSO then counts for all programs. An existing session of another program is tagged afterwards via "Edit cross-refs" (pencil button on the log).

Common Problems

Spot list is empty
→ Castle activations are rarer than POTA. Depending on the time of day there may be no castle spotted worldwide in the DX cluster. Adding the GMA cluster node (see above) helps.

"Castle not found" on manual entry
→ If the castle is new and not yet in the bundled snapshot, you can still type the reference — an orange hint line shows that the ref isn't in the local DB; it is saved anyway, just without a name suggestion. Import a current list via CSV if needed (Settings → Data).

Next Steps

• Set up the LoTW pipeline — so your WCA QSOs get confirmed too
• CAT setup — read frequency automatically instead of typing
• WCA module docs — all features in detail