9M TOTA: Malaysia Joins Towers On The Air with 33 Lookout Towers

There is a reason every city worth its salt has a viewing tower. You climb the stairs, the city unfolds below you, and for a moment you see the place the way the birds see it. Now imagine doing that with a radio in your backpack, a wire antenna clipped to the railing, and the whole of the 40 metre band opening up to Europe as the sun sets behind you.

That is the idea behind Towers On The Air (TOTA), and Malaysia now has its own directory in the program at https://tota.hamradio.my/, listing 33 lookout towers across Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, Labuan, and Sarawak, from the 421 m KL Tower down to forest canopy walkways in Sabah and a 32 m colonial-era chimney on Labuan.

If you already know SOTA (summits), POTA (parks), WWFF (forests), IOTA (islands) and LLOTA (lakes), then TOTA is the next one. It is the same idea, applied to lookout towers. You climb a registered tower, set up your radio, make contacts, and submit your log. Hunters work you from anywhere. Both sides earn points and diplomas.

Last updated: August 2026.

What Is TOTA?

TOTA (Towers On The Air) is an international amateur radio award program that encourages operators to activate lookout towers and to make contact with them. It was created in the Czech Republic by Ivan Holinka, OK2IH, and is administered at wwtota.com. The project launched on 1 August 2025 with the Czech Republic, and has since expanded to 16 countries across Europe, the Caribbean, and South America, with more being added as country coordinators come on board.

The program is built on the same activator-and-hunter model as SOTA and POTA:

• Activators travel to a registered lookout tower, set up their station on or within 200 m of the tower, make contacts, and upload their log to wwtota.com.
• Hunters contact activators from anywhere, no tower required. Your QSOs are validated automatically when the activator uploads their log.
• Awards (digital diplomas) are issued automatically based on points accumulated, with separate tracks for HF and VHF, activators and hunters, and yearly (Sprint) versus all-time totals.

TOTA is fully compatible with other outdoor radio programs. You can combine a TOTA activation with WWFF, GMA, SOTA, POTA, BOTA, WCA, and others; a single activation can count towards multiple programs if the tower happens to sit inside a park, on a summit, or near a lake.

As of August 2026, the global TOTA community has logged over 55,000 QSOs from more than 5,200 towers, with 900+ operators across 16 countries.

The Malaysia TOTA Website

The Malaysia TOTA site at https://tota.hamradio.my/ is the Malaysian directory for the program, built and maintained by 9M2PJU. It is a clean, mobile-friendly site with three main sections:

• Tower list, all 33 towers in a filterable, searchable table. Filter by region (West Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak, Labuan), by state, or by eligibility status (Active or Conditional). Each tower has its own detail page with coordinates, description, activation notes, and links to OpenStreetMap and Google Maps.
• Map, all 33 towers plotted on an interactive map, so you can find the one nearest to you or plan a tower-hopping trip.
• Rules and scoring, a mirror of the official TOTA rules, the eligibility criteria, activation requirements, scoring system, award thresholds, the 9MR-XXyy reference scheme, and the ADIF log format.

Each tower is marked as Active (fully eligible, ready to activate) or Conditional (eligible with caveats such as limited access, non-standard structure, or a viewing platform that is not a classic standalone tower). Check the tower’s notes before you head out; a Conditional rating means there is something you need to know before you activate.

The official program, rules, log uploads, the live cluster, awards and diplomas are all administered at wwtota.com. The Malaysia TOTA site is the directory and reference; wwtota.com is where you upload your log and claim your points.

The 33 Malaysian Towers

The reference list currently covers 12 states and federal territories, grouped into 4 regions. Here is a selection of the towers from the directory:

The towers are categorised as Active or Conditional. Conditional towers are not disqualified; they are eligible with caveats. Some are viewing platforms on top of buildings rather than standalone towers (SKYSCAPE at Menara JLand, The Shore Sky Tower), some are canopy walkway structures rather than traditional towers (RDC Canopy Towers, FRIM Forest Skywalk, Tree Top Tower, Kuching Sky Bridge), and one is a civic centre tower with limited operating space (Kuching Civic Centre). Read the notes on each tower’s detail page before you go.

Featured Towers

9MR-1401, Kuala Lumpur Tower (Menara KL)

The headline tower of the whole program. At 421 m, KL Tower is the 7th tallest telecommunication tower in the world, with a genuine public viewing platform at 276 m (indoor Observation Deck) and 300 m (open-air Sky Deck), plus a revolving restaurant. It satisfies TOTA rule 5’s exception: although it is primarily a telecommunication tower, it has a real, permanent, public viewing platform, which makes it eligible. Operating HF or VHF from 300 m above central Kuala Lumpur, with the whole city as your ground plane, is an activation that belongs on any ham’s bucket list.

9MR-0601, Kuantan 188 (Menara Kuantan 188)

A 188 m tower in Kuantan, Pahang, the second-tallest tower in the Malaysian list. A modern landmark on the East Coast, with a public viewing platform overlooking the South China Sea. A great target for an East Coast activation trip.

9MR-0401, Menara Taming Sari

A 110 m revolving gyro tower in Melaka, the only one of its kind in Malaysia. It rotates as it ascends, giving a 360-degree view of the historic city. A Melaka activation pairs well with the city’s UNESCO World Heritage status.

9MR-1003, Tun Mustapha Tower (Menara Tun Mustapha)

A 167 m, 30-storey tower in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, one of the most distinctive buildings in Borneo. A Sabah tower activation is a genuine DX target for Peninsular and overseas stations, the distance and the island nature of Borneo make it interesting on both HF and VHF.

9MR-1601, The Chimney, Labuan

A 32 m colonial-era brick chimney on Labuan Island, one of the most unusual structures in the list. It is a relic of the island’s coal-mining past, now a landmark and tourist site. A Labuan activation is also an island activation, so you can combine TOTA with IOTA in a single trip.

9MR-0801, Gunung Lang Lookout Towers

Two lookout towers at the Gunung Lang Recreational Park in Ipoh, Perak, set against the dramatic limestone karst hills that the region is famous for. An easy, scenic activation that pairs well with the area’s food and cave temples.

9MR-1201, Menara Tinjau

A hilltop lookout tower in Selangor, the kind of quiet, off-the-radar reference that is perfect for a first activation. No entry fee, no crowds, just a tower on a hill and a view of the Klang Valley.

Reference Criteria: What Makes a Valid TOTA Tower

TOTA’s eligibility rules are what keep the tower list meaningful. A structure must meet all five of the following conditions to be included:

1. Permanent structure fixed to the ground. Temporary structures are not eligible.
2. Man-made construction. Natural formations alone are not considered towers. An exception may apply where a natural feature includes a permanent viewing structure (a viewing platform, not merely a safety railing) intended for visitors.
3. Viewing function of the surrounding landscape. The structure must exist for people to look out from, not for some other primary purpose.
4. Public accessibility, permanently, seasonally, or occasionally. A tower that is permanently closed to the public is not eligible.
5. Independent structure with a viewing platform. Communication towers, radio masts, or water towers without a viewing platform are not considered towers.

Usually not eligible: natural viewpoints without construction, radio masts without a viewing platform, water towers without a viewing function, and temporary structures. Some structures may be accepted after individual evaluation by the TOTA team, which is how telecommunication towers with genuine public viewing decks (like KL Tower) qualify under the rule 5 exception.

The 33 Malaysian towers were each assessed against these five criteria. Towers that clearly meet all five are marked Active. Towers that meet the criteria but with caveats (non-standard structure, limited access, building-top rather than standalone) are marked Conditional, so activators know to check the notes before travelling.

Program Rules: Activation, Hunting, and Logging

Basic rules

• Contacts can be made on all amateur radio bands using any mode of operation.
• To be valid, the activator must transmit from the lookout tower or within 200 m of it.
• Contacts made via active terrestrial repeaters are not allowed. Contacts via amateur satellites are permitted.
• The QSO must include callsign, report, name, and QTH. It is recommended to give the name and reference of the lookout tower. Name and QTH are not required in CW, but the activator must include the tower reference in the log submitted to the website.
• Contacts with the same station may be repeated, but only from a different tower. The combination of Tower / Activator / Hunter must be unique.
• Contacts from newly built towers are also valid, provided they are added to the official list.
• TOTA activations may be combined with other programs (WWFF, GMA, SOTA, POTA, BOTA, WCA, and others).

Recommended operating

• 2 m calling frequency: 145.525 MHz
• 40 m portable segments: 7.032 / 7.118 MHz
• CW: “CQ TOTA”
• SSB / FM: “Towers On The Air call” or “TOTA call”

Scoring

Activator:

• To qualify as a valid activation (for the Special diploma), the minimum is:
  • VHF category: 3 valid QSOs
  • HF category: 13 valid QSOs
• A contact from an activated lookout tower = 1 activation point (Sprint and Alltime diplomas)
• Multiple activations of the same tower are allowed, but scoring requires a unique combination of Tower / Activator / Hunter
• On VHF only, the requirement is a unique combination of Tower / Activator / Hunter / Band
• A unique activation counts towards the Special diploma (number of different activated towers)

Hunter:

• 1 unique QSO (Tower / Activator / Hunter) = 1 point
• For the Special diploma: the number of different towers worked

Bonus contacts:

• Contact with the diploma issuer OK2IH or pilot station “TOWER” OL1TWR = 5 points (activators and hunters)
• Tower-to-Tower (R2R) contact = 3 points

Award categories and thresholds

Diplomas are awarded separately for HF and VHF, in the following categories:

• Activator (transmitting from the tower) and Hunter (calling the tower)
• In three variants: Sprint (yearly), Alltime (overall, no time limit), and Special (unique towers)

Activator thresholds:

Hunter thresholds:

Once a 500-point diploma is awarded in any category, new levels are added in multiples of 500.

R2R Awards (Tower to Tower)

Granted for unique contacts between two different towers, where both operators are transmitting from a tower. This is the TOTA equivalent of a summit-to-summit in SOTA or a lake-to-lake in LLOTA.

Only unique tower-to-tower combinations are counted. All contacts must be properly logged in the TOTA system.

The 9MR Reference Scheme

Malaysian towers use the 9MR-XXyy reference format, consistent with the international TOTA scheme:

• 9M – Malaysia ITU callsign prefix
• R – ToweR
• XX – State or Federal Territory code (01-16)
• yy – Sequential tower number within the state or territory, starting from 01

Numbering starts from 01 in each state or federal territory. For example, 9MR-1401 is the first tower in Kuala Lumpur (KL Tower), 9MR-1001 the first in Sabah (Signal Hill), 9MR-1601 the first on Labuan (The Chimney).

State and Federal Territory codes:

States with no towers yet (Kedah, Kelantan, Negeri Sembilan, Perlis, Terengganu, Putrajaya) simply have no references assigned. As new towers are identified and assessed, they will be added with the appropriate state code.

ADIF Log Format

The activator log must contain at least the following fields:

QSO_DATE            YYYYMMDD date when the QSO started
TIME_ON             HHMM or HHMMSS in UTC
BAND                QSO Band
MODE                QSO Mode
RST_SENT            signal report sent
RST_RCVD            signal report received
CALL                callsign of the other station
STATION_CALLSIGN    own callsign (used in QSO)
MY_SIG              my activity: TOTA
MY_SIG_INFO         my TOWER reference (e.g. 9MR-1401)

Optional fields:

SIG                 activity of the other station (TOTA, WWFF, GMA, SOTA, POTA, BOTA, WCA, ...)
SIG_INFO            TOWER reference number of the other station (for Tower-to-Tower)
OPERATOR            operator callsign

For logging, Fast Log Entry (FLE v3) and PoLo (Portable Logger) have been tested using the POTA setting, which supports the TOTA reference format. The resulting .adi file can be imported directly into the TOTA system at wwtota.com.

Who Can Participate?

Anyone with a valid amateur radio licence.

• Malaysian operators (9M2, 9W2, 9M4 callsigns) can activate towers. With 33 references across the country, there is likely one within a day’s drive.
• Operators worldwide can hunt Malaysian TOTA activations. If you hear a 9M station calling from a tower, work them, and your contact counts the moment their log goes up on wwtota.com.
• Equipment-wise, TOTA is friendly. A handheld on 2 m FM is enough to activate a tower locally (the VHF minimum is only 3 QSOs), while an HF transceiver and a wire antenna will get you the 13 QSOs needed for an HF activation. The 200 m operating zone means you do not always have to be at the very top, you can set up at the base or in the car park if it is within range.

Tips for Your First 9M TOTA Activation

• Start with an Active tower. Menara Taming Sari in Melaka, Menara Tinjau in Selangor, or the Gunung Lang towers in Perak are all straightforward first activations.
• Check the tower’s status and notes. Conditional towers have caveats. Read the detail page before you drive out.
• Check opening hours and entry fees. KL Tower, Kuantan 188, and Menara Taming Sari are commercial attractions with ticketed entry. Plan around their operating hours.
• VHF is the easy entry. The VHF activation minimum is only 3 QSOs. A 5 W handheld on 145.525 MHz from the top of a tower will easily work local stations, especially from a high one like KL Tower.
• HF needs 13 QSOs. Bring a wire antenna and a tuner. A 40 m band-loaded vertical or an end-fed wire thrown over a railing works well from an elevated site.
• Stay within 200 m of the tower. You do not have to be at the top, but you do have to be close. The reference is the tower, not the surrounding district.
• Log in ADIF with the SIG fields. MY_SIG=TOTA and MY_SIG_INFO=9MR-XXXX. Without those, the platform cannot match your QSOs to the tower.
• Upload to wwtota.com. The Malaysia TOTA site is the directory; wwtota.com is where logs are uploaded and diplomas are issued.
• Combine with other programs. If the tower is in a park (Penang Hill, Gunung Lang, FRIM), you may be able to claim POTA or WWFF at the same time. If it is on Labuan, you can claim IOTA. One trip, multiple programs.
• Have fun. You are on top of a tower with a radio and a view. That is already a good day.

Spread the Word

9M TOTA only works if people know about it. Tell your club members. Share the website in your WhatsApp and Telegram groups. Post your activations on Facebook, X, and the local club nets.

If you run a ham radio club in Malaysia, a tower activation day is a great club event. Pick a tower, send a few operators up, and run a field station for the afternoon. The 2 m FM calling frequency (145.525 MHz) makes it easy for club members to work each other from the tower and from home.

And if you know of a lookout tower in your state that is not on the list, get in touch. The list will grow as more towers are identified and assessed.

Let us put Malaysian towers on the air.

73, and good climbing.

9M2PJU

Sources and Further Reading

• Malaysia TOTA, directory, map and rules: https://tota.hamradio.my/
• Malaysia TOTA tower list: https://tota.hamradio.my/towers
• Malaysia TOTA rules and scoring: https://tota.hamradio.my/rules
• TOTA official programme (wwtota.com): https://wwtota.com/
• About 9M2PJU, Malaysian Amateur Radio Operator: https://hamradio.my/about-9m2pju-malaysian-amateur-radio-operator/