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 Previous: FCC Amateur Radio Enforcement LettersFor Week Ending July 14, 2001 |  Next: Foundation for Amateur Radio Announces Scholarship Winners for 2001 |
 Bahri Kacan, TA2BK, at the TA1ITU special event station set up during World Radiocommunication Conference 2000 in Istanbul. [ARRL Photo] |
NEWINGTON, CT, Jul 24, 2001--The international Amateur Radio community is mourning the loss of well-known amateur and founding president of the Turkish Radio Amateur Association Bahri Kacan, TA2BK. Kacan, of Istanbul, died unexpectedly July 23. He was believed to have suffered a heart attack.
ARRL Executive Vice President David Sumner, K1ZZ, called Kacan "a friend and great Amateur Radio enthusiast" who was responsible for getting Amateur Radio recognized in Turkey.
"Bahri worked patiently for many years to regularize Amateur Radio in Turkey," Sumner said. "The present status of Amateur Radio in Turkey--where there's formal recognition of its emergency communications role--stems from his efforts." Sumner added that Kacan "had to overcome obstacles most of us cannot even imagine" to gain government recognition for Amateur Radio.
A native of Yugoslavia, Kacan got his start in Amateur Radio in 1956 at the YU1BKL club station in Belgrade. When he moved to Turkey, he became one of the founders of TRAC in 1962. Although Kacan had used the TA2BK call sign for many years, the Turkish government did not formally recognize ham radio until 1984. Prior to that, it tolerated the low-profile operation of the handful of die-hard enthusiasts.
 TA2BK's QSL card. |
Sumner said Kacan was instrumental in persuading Turkish government officials that Amateur Radio was a resource for the country and not the security threat some feared. Kacan thus was able to be formally granted the TA2BK call sign he'd adopted on his own years earlier.
Kacan, who worked for the German firm Bosch, was an avid DXer and held DXCC Honor Roll status under his TA2BK call sign as well as his German call sign, DJ0UJ.
In 1970 and 1971, he was a part of the ZA2RPS DXpedition which made Albania available to the DX community for the first time. He also was a guest operator at 4U1ITU. During World Radiocommunication Conference 2000 in Istanbul, TA2BK helped organize the TA1ITU special event station that operated during the conference.
His TA2BK call sign also was well-known on 160 meters, where he was a frequent visitor.
Current TRAC President Asis Sasa, TA1E, cited Kacan's "wisdom, patience and personality" and said he played a major, ongoing role in developing Amateur Radio in Turkey.
"It's now our obligation to continue his phenomenal work in order to make him unforgettable," Sasa, said.
Survivors include Kacan's wife, Nermin, as well as a son and daughter. A funeral service was held July 24. Condolence messages may be sent to TRAC via e-mail.
| Previous: FCC Amateur Radio Enforcement Letters For Week Ending July 14, 2001 | Next: Foundation for Amateur Radio Announces Scholarship Winners for 2001 |
