FLC OF AN EMBRAER E120 RESPONDED TO ANOTHER COMPANY ACFT CALL SIGN WITHOUT KNOWING IT UNTIL HRS AFTER THE FLT. BOTH COMPANY ACFT WERE COMING NEAR THE SAME TIME FROM A SIMILAR DIRECTION AND TO THE SAME DEST.

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RETURNING FROM A CONTINUOUS DUTY OVERNIGHT; WE WERE OPERATING AS FLT ACR X FROM COLUMBUS; MS; TO ATLANTA; GA. I WAS PF. ABOUT 80 MI FROM LA GRANGE VOR; CTR CLRED US TO CROSS 30 MI SW OF LA GRANGE AT 11000 FT. APPROX 40 MI W OF LA GRANGE; WE ACCEPTED A HDOF FROM ZTL TO CSG APCH. THE FO CHKED ON WITH CSG APCH. CSG APCH RESPONDED WITH A FURTHER DSCNT TO 8000 FT. AROUND THE TIME WE WERE APCHING THE LA GRANGE VOR; WE HEARD CSG APCH MAKE SEVERAL UNSUCCESSFUL CALLS TO A COMPANY FLT ACR Y. AFTER THE CTLR'S THIRD OR FOURTH ATTEMPT; I CALLED ACR Y ON THE COMPANY RADIO. I TOLD THEM CSG APCH WAS LOOKING FOR THEM. LESS THAN 1 MIN LATER; THEY RPTED UPON CSG APCH AND RECEIVED CLRNC TO CROSS THE HONIE INTXN AT 8000 FT. WHEN ACR Y CHKED IN WITH CSG; THEY MENTIONED THAT CTR WAS TRYING TO CONTACT US. I WAS NOT CONCERNED ABOUT THIS BECAUSE WE HAD BEEN IN CONTACT WITH APCH THE WHOLE TIME. I DID NOT FEEL THERE WAS ANY REASON TO CONTACT CTR AGAIN; AND THE APCH CTLR MADE NO MENTION OF A FREQ CHANGE AT ALL. WHEN ACR Y CHKED ON WITH APCH; THE CTLR HAD TO REPEAT THE XING RESTR FOR THEM. WHEN THE CTLR ISSUED THE CLRNC THE SECOND TIME; THERE WAS ENOUGH FRUSTRATION IN THE CTLR'S VOICE THAT BOTH THE FO AND MYSELF NOTICED; AND COMMENTED ON IT. THAT IS THE ONLY TIME HIS VOICE SEEMED TO BE STRESSED AT ALL. WE WERE IN HIS AIRSPACE FOR 15-20 MINS AND HE NEVER MENTIONED ANY WRONG DOING BY ANYONE AT ALL. THE BASE STANDARDS MGR FOR OUR COMPANY HAS INFORMED ME. THE PROB SEEMS TO BE IN THE HDOF BTWN ZTL AND CSG APCH. THAT HDOF WAS MEANT FOR ACR Y. SOMEHOW ACR Y MISSED THE CLRNC WHILE WE RESPONDED TO IT. THE RADIO FREQ WAS NOT BUSY. THE FO AND MYSELF ONLY REMEMBER OURSELVES; ACR Y AND 1 OTHER ACFT (GA TYPE) ON THE FREQ. I ALSO FIND IT STRANGE THAT NOTHING WAS EVER SAID OVER THE RADIO. THE CTLR NEVER INDICATED ANY KIND OF PROB WITH WHERE; WHEN AND HOW WE CHKED ON TO APCH. AFTER ACR Y CHKED ON TO APCH; I WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSION ALL WAS WELL. I DID NOT HEAR ANYTHING FURTHER UNTIL AFTER XX30 THAT NIGHT WHEN MY FO PHONED ME AT HOME. IT WAS ABOUT ANOTHER 1 1/2 HRS BEFORE I COULD REACH OUR BASE STANDARDS MGR AT HIS HOME; AND RECEIVE ANY DETAILS ABOUT WHAT WAS IN QUESTION. THE FO HAD TALKED TO THE BASE STANDARDS MGR; BUT ONLY KNEW THERE WAS A WRONG DOING; NOT WHAT WAS DONE WRONG. OTHER FACTORS THAT MAY OR MAY NOT CONTRIBUTE: 1) WE HAD ONLY 5 HRS ON THE GND THE NIGHT BEFORE. I PERSONALLY GOT ABOUT 3 1/2 HRS OF SLEEP (ALTHOUGH I DID NAP THE PREVIOUS DAY; I WAS STILL TIRED). 2) THIS IS MY SECOND TRIP OFF IOE AS A CAPT. 3) THE FO IS FAIRLY NEW AND INEXPERIENCED -- LESS THAN 200 HRS IN TYPE -- AND HE HADN'T FLOWN IN ABOUT 4 WKS PRIOR TO THIS TRIP. NOTE: MANY OF OUR NEW FO'S ARE BEING HIRED WITH LESS THAN 500 HRS TOTAL TIME. MANY GO BTWN 2-5 WKS WITHOUT FLYING.