DXCC DELETED Island Raisa R1BIG DXpedition to Maly Vysotsky

[IK0ZCW]

Located in North West Russia, this uninhabited island had been leased to Finland in 1963. A contract was signed by Soviet Union for fifty years. This period expired in 2012.
Many international DX-peditions were here : 4J1FS (1988), 4J1FM, 4J1FW (1992), etc. The first DXpeditions were organized in joint venture with Russians and some Americans and even with one Mexican.
The Finnish Radio Amateur League had to wait 18 years until the political atmosphere was suitable to make the first DX-pedition to the island. In 1988 Martti OH2BH led the first DX-pedition and since this moment the island got its DXCC entity status.
After 2012 at the end of the lease contract Maly Vysotsky island has become just a Russian territory and therefore LOST its DXCC status, but there are still traces of former DXpeditions and I was very glad to be QRV from this legendary place, despite the fact that I could no longer use its former unique DXCC prefix "4J1"

YL Raisa