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Annual Armed Forces Day Crossband Test to Be Conducted May 10

05/07/2008

The Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard are co-sponsoring the annual Military/Amateur Radio Crossband Communications Test in celebration of the 58th anniversary of Armed Forces Day (AFD). Although the actual Armed Forces Day is celebrated on the third Saturday in May -- May 17 in 2008 -- the AFD Military/Amateur Crossband Communications Test will be conducted on May 10 to prevent conflict with the Dayton Hamvention®, scheduled for May 16-18.

The annual celebration features traditional military to amateur crossband communications SSB voice tests and copying the Secretary of Defense message via digital modes. These tests give Amateur Radio operators and short wave listeners an opportunity to demonstrate their individual technical skills and to receive recognition from the Secretary of Defense and/or the appropriate military radio station for their proven expertise. QSL cards will be provided to those stations making contact with the military stations. Special commemorative certificates will be awarded to anyone who receives and copies the digital Armed Forces Day message from the Secretary of Defense.

Military-to-Amateur crossband operations will take place on the dates and time in UTC on the frequencies listed for each station on the Army MARS Web site. Voice contacts will include operations in single sideband voice (SSB). Some stations, depending on propagation and manning, may not operate the entire period. Participating military stations will transmit on selected Military MARS frequencies and listen for Amateur Radio stations in the Amateur bands. The military station operator will announce the specific amateur band frequency being monitored. Duration of each voice contact should be limited to 1-2 minutes.

The schedules and frequencies of participating military stations are published on the Army MARS Web site, with the exception of the following changes and additions:

STATION: AAZ (HQ Army MARS Gateway, Fort Huachuca, Arizona)

Frequency

Mode

Date/Time

6988.0 kHz

RTTY

11 May 0110Z

 

PACTOR FEC

11 May 0130Z

 

MT63

11 May 0220Z

 

PSK-31

11 May 0250Z

14402.0 kHz

RTTY

11 May 0110Z

 

PACTOR FEC

11 May 0130Z

 

MT63

11 May 0220Z

 

PSK-31

11 May 0250Z

STATION: WAR (Pentagon ARC/MARS Station, Arlington, Virginia)

Frequency

Mode

Date/Time

6988.0 kHz

RTTY

10 May 1700Z

 

RTTY

10 May 2300Z

 

MT63

10 May 1715Z

 

MT63

10 May 2315Z

14440.0 kHz

PACTOR FEC

10 May 1730Z

 

PACTOR FEC

10 May 2330Z

 

Olivia

10 May 1745Z

 

Olivia

10 May 2345Z

Stations copying the Secretary of Defense message transmitted from AAZ/WAR should send their entries to Armed Forces Day Celebration, Commander NETCOM/9th ASC, Attn: NETC-OPE-MA (MARS) (31), Fort Huachuca, AZ 85613-5000.



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