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 Previous: AMSAT-NA Symposium and Annual Meeting Draws a Crowd in Atlanta |  Next: SATERN Operation Marks One Month in New York City |
Oct 10, 2001
(In alphabetical order: )
ARRL not soliciting for affinity credit cards: The ARRL is not telemarketing amateurs to sign up for an affinity credit card. Some ARRL members have reported being solicited for such products in connection with an Amateur Radio organization. The ARRL is not sponsoring these solicitations and has no plans to do so in the future.
ARRL Public Service Report Form is now available on-line: The ARRL Public Service Report Form, FSD-157, now is available on the ARRL Web site. Participants now can enter reports electronically, making it unnecessary for headquarters staff to retype information into the database from e-mail or hard copy reports. Written reports remain acceptable, however. FSD-157 also is available as an Acrobat PDF (portable document format) file. The project was a cooperative effort by Projects Supervisor Mary Lau, N1VH, Public Service Specialist Steve Ewald, WV1X, and Web Publications Assistant Tom Hogerty, KC1J, of the ARRL Headquarters staff.
 (L-R) Vojislav Kapun, YU7AV; Raymundo Rodriguez, YS1RR; Mome Dimovski, Z32ZM; Dragan Kosteski, Z32AU; Srecko Moric, YU1DX; Ratko Novakovic, YU1NR; Stevan Stepanov, YZ7AA; and Hrane Milosevic, YT1AD. |
Conway Reef DXpedition going full steam: The 3D2CI/3D2CY crew reportedly had logged more than 30,000 QSOs by mid-week. The team expects to QRT Thursday, October 11, at around 0800 UTC. Operators have been running 100 W on the low bands. As of October 10, 3D2CY had reportedly logged 13,600 QSOs on SSB, and 3D2CI had logged 16,100 QSOs on CW. The team also has worked an additional 1900 contacts on RTTY, SSTV and satellite. The QSL information for 3D2CY is via Dragan Kostevski, Z32AU, PO Box 35, 6000 Ohrid, Macedonia. QSLs for 3D2CI go to Dr. Hrane Milosevic, YT1AD, 36206 Vitanovac, Yugoslavia. Some pirate operations have been reported. For more information, visit the Conway Reef DXpedition Web site.
DXCC credit now approved for TT8DX operation: Through the help of recent inquiries on the Internet, the ARRL DXCC Desk has received and accepted documentation for TT8DX (Chad). Those who submitted TT8DX previously and were denied credit may contact DXCC and have their records updated without having to resubmit cards.--DXCC Desk
Estimating your neighborhood TVI odds: According to the National Association of Broadcasters only three out of every ten TV sets in the US--some 81 million in all--receive their programs exclusively over the air. NAB also says that one-quarter of all cable and satellite TV-equipped households have at least one set that receives only over-the-air signals.--SkyREPORT
Ham radio now a family affair for Pennsylvania amateur: Labor Day weekend marked the completion of a private ambition for Rick Johnson, AE3C, of Highland Park, Pennsylvania, whose newly licensed wife and eight-year old daughter now share his lifelong hobby of Amateur Radio. Johnson has been interested in two-way radio since 1961, when his father got him on Citizens Band and using the family business's radio at a young age. He finally took the plunge into Amateur Radio this summer, advancing from Technician through Extra in about two months. True to that tradition, Johnson introduced his daughter, Barbara, to two-way radio and Family Radio Service H-Ts. "At every possible occasion, she would take along the FRS H-T, each time learning a little more about good operating technique," said Johnson. While Johnson was studying for his test earlier this year, Barbara kept listening to the Morse code practice and ultimately asked to take an exam herself. Johnson's wife--also named Barbara--is a patent attorney and interested in anything having to do with technology. She started studying, too. Mom and "Li'l Bee" both passed their Amateur Radio Technician examinations on September 1. Mom now is KB3HAR, and daughter is KB3HAS. "Li'l Bee is working on code now and is active on 6 and 2 meters," Johnson reports. He is hoping to interest his daughter's schoolmates in Amateur Radio as well--as an alternative to Internet chat rooms. "Ham radio operators are a pretty darn good group of people," he has concluded.
Ham-sailor to make trial run prior to starting final leg of journey: Ham-sailor David Clark, KB6TAM--who, at age 77, hopes to become the oldest person to circumnavigate the globe--plans to take his sailing vessel Mickey out for a trial run to check out all systems, including his onboard ham gear. Clark, who's been keeping in touch with the US via ham radio during his nearly two-year journey, has been sitting out the Atlantic hurricane season in Jamaica. He hopes to set sail for St Croix on October 29 and arrive on or about November 6. His itinerary from there includes San Juan, Puerto Rico, Great Inagua, and Nassau, Bahamas, by mid-November--weather and other circumstances permitting. Clark says he then hopes to leave Nassau in late November, sail into Bimini by early December, and leave for Ft Lauderdale in time to arrive on December 7. "Can't wait! It will be good to get back on the open ocean again," he said in an e-mail to his wife, Lynda. "I seem like a fish out of water when I'm at the dock side."
Noted DXer Pete Billon, K6JG, SK: John P. "Pete" Billon, K6JG, of Arroyo Grande, California, died October 7 following a long illness. He was 80. A member of ARRL a ham for more than 40 years, Billion was an A-1 Operator Club and DXCC Honor Roll member. He achieved #1 DXCC Honor Roll on Mixed (366) and Phone (363). A pilot during World War II, he later flew for United Air Lines. A memorial service is scheduled for Saturday, October 13, at the Lady Family Mortuary, 555 Fairoaks Ave, Arroyo Grande, California. Survivors include his wife, Jessie, K6GJ.--W6KFV via The Daily DX
Novice Spectrum Survey deadline is October 15: The deadline is Monday, October 15, to express your opinion on possible ways to optimize use of the present Novice and Technician Plus allocations on 80, 40, 15 and 10 meters. Survey results ultimately might form the basis of an ARRL petition for rule making before the FCC. The Novice Spectrum Study Committee--chaired by ARRL International Affairs Vice President Rod Stafford, W6ROD--has been examining the status and usage of the present Novice HF bands with an eye toward determining what changes might be needed now that the FCC no longer issues new Novice licenses. More than 4000 responses have been filed to date. The Novice Spectrum Study survey is available to ARRL members on the Web. Members may complete and submit the survey only once. Comments from members and non-members alike also are invited via e-mail to novicesurvey@arrl.org. Those completing the survey are asked to first read through the entire text of the survey to understand some of the committee's assumptions regarding what questions to ask and what band segments and modes to offer as predefined options. ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, appointed the Novice Spectrum Study Committee as a result of action taken during the January meeting of the ARRL Board of Directors. The membership survey is part of the ARRL Board's mandate to the committee.
Number station FOIA request denied by FCC: The FCC has denied an application for a review of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for records regarding so-called "number stations" often heard on HF frequencies. Michael Ravnitzky filed two FOIA requests for FCC number stations records. According to the Memorandum Opinion and Order in the case, released September 28, "number stations use high-power transmitters to transmit short-wave radio broadcasts of strings of numbers, sometimes along with sounds ranging from yodeling or a repeated flute melody to electronic tones or bursts of information-filled noise, on strange frequencies with no known schedule." The FCC said it had provided Ravnitzky with records concerning number stations but had edited portions of the records using an exemption to the FOIA--"withholding national security information concerning the national defense or foreign policy properly classified under an executive order." The FCC also deleted what it considered irrelevant material from the pages sent to Ravnitzky as well as five pages of correspondence between the FCC and foreign government offices. Certain e-mail materials were withheld as "part of a continuing process of agency decision making," the FCC said. Number stations are widely believed to be associated with clandestine espionage operations. The complete FCC MO&O is available on the FCC Web site.
Reviewing the rules for amplifier builders: A recent FCC enforcement action regarding HF and 6-meter amplifier construction and marketing has prompted some questions about what is legal for those who build their own amplifiers. The FCC Part 97 Amateur Service rules permit a licensee to build or modify no more than one unit of one model of an external RF power amplifier capable of operation below 144 MHz during any calendar year for amateur use without an FCC Grant of Certification (formerly called FCC Type Acceptance). Any external RF power amplifier or RF power amplifier kit for amateur use must be certificated in accordance with Part 2 rules, although there are some exceptions. The applicable rules are under §97.315 and §97.317. The complete Amateur Service Part 97 rules are posted on the ARRL Web site.
Special USA call sign issued in Cook Islands: Victor Rivera, ZK1CG, has obtained special call sign ZK1USA from the Telecom in the Cook Islands. He will have special QSL cards for his "support the people of the United States" operation. QSL go to Victor Rivera, ZK1CG, PO Box 618, Rarotonga, Cook Islands, via New Zealand.--The Daily DX
Steam locomotive excursion goes forward with ham radio support: On September 29, members of the Michigan Net, QMN, and the Morse Telegraph Club worked together to provide communications for a steam locomotive excursion in Michigan.
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Bob Hibbard assists a youngster as he fills out his radiogram form. | Jim Wades, WB8SIW, transmits a message on the Morse wire as Anne Travis, K8AE, awaits more visitors. |
 The operating crew in front of the famous Pere Marquette 1225 steam locomotive at Mt Pleasant: (L-R) Jim Wades, WB8SIW, Bob Hibbard, W8MYU, Anne Travis, K8AE, and Malcolm Travis, NX8K. |
A telegraph office was set up at the Mt Pleasant Depot, which served as headquarters for the event. Authentic telegraph apparatus was utilized in conjunction with a dial-up Morse system to provide periodic "train bulletins" to the waiting crowds of passengers and rail fans. A free "telegram" service was also provided, through which visitors could originate messages via Morse Telegraph. These messages were then taken off the wire at Dearborn, Michigan, and placed on NTS for subsequent delivery.--Jim Wades, WB8SIW
 [Carl Jagielski, KA4HLO, Photo] |
Vice Director Gauzens receives prestigious award: ARRL Southeastern Division Vice Director Evelyn Gauzens, W4WYR, was recently presented with the CHAMP Award by Sam Harte, KQ4MR. CHAMP--Citizens' Ham Mobile-Marine Patrol--was founded in 1994 by the South Florida FM Association, Citizens' Crime Watch, and the Miami-Dade Police Department. The CHAMP mission is for hams, in the ordinary course of their activities, to assist the police in the Miami-Dade County area in the prevention and reduction of crime by reporting sightings of emergency and/or criminal activities to the county's Emergency Operations Center--better known as the 911 Center. National television coverage of CHAMP during its early years provided a model for similar programs now in place across the US. The annual CHAMP Award is presented to an Amateur Radio operator for an exemplary act of service to the community during the preceding year, or to an amateur who has demonstrated years of distinguished service to Amateur Radio and the community. Gauzens, whom Harte called "the South's most distinguished lady Amateur Radio operator"--was recognized for her half-century of service to the community and Amateur Radio. Gauzens was a cofounder of and continues to chair the Tropical Hamboree. She helped author Dade County's initial Amateur Radio antenna ordinances. Gauzens announced earlier this year that she would not seek another term. An election currently is under way to choose her successor.
Wisconsin amateur antenna bill, AB-368, advances to Senate: Following passage on a voice vote earlier this month, the Wisconsin Amateur Radio antenna bill, Assembly Bill 368, is now in the Wisconsin Senate. AB-368 would codify the FCC's doctrine of limited pre-emption, PRB-1, into state law. PRB-1 requires that localities "reasonably accommodate" Amateur Radio communication. The bill's original sponsor, Rep Joan Wade, resigned from the Assembly August 31, but she was in the chamber October 2 to see the bill pass. Opposition to the measure has come from the League of Municipalities and the City of Milwaukee. The bill is now in the Senate Committee on Universities, Housing and Government Operations, chaired by Sen Mark Meyer. Committee members are Senators Moore, Grobschmidt, Hansen, Ellis, Huelsman, and Zein. Meyer recently indicated in correspondence with a bill supporter that he understands the bill's importance to Amateur Radio operators. "In fact, I myself grew up with ham radio and fully support the bill," he said. Meyer said AB-368 would definitely be among the measures he plans to schedule for further committee action. Meyer could hold another public hearing before his committee votes on whether to send the measure before the full Wisconsin Senate. Information on how to contact Wisconsin lawmakers is available via the Badger State Smoke Signals Web site. A copy of the pending legislation is on the Wisconsin Legislature Web site.--Badger State Smoke Signals
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