It was a proud moment for 11 ham radio operators in Iran who got on the air on June 7th, calling CQ on SSB as special event station EP2PG. Using modest, home-based equipment with 100 watts of power or less, the operators faced less-than-ideal conditions on the HF bands during their 16-hour operation.
Still, it was a proud moment as the hams of Echo Papa two Persian Gulf celebrated the historical and cultural significance of the Persian Gulf itself and shared it with the world. One of the operators, Morteza EP5APP, told Newsline that the team's focus was on making as many DX contacts as possible in the interest of friendship and unity and, of course, to share the story of the gulf, which is one of the world's oldest maritime regions.
The team achieved that goal, logging more than 360 QSOs from, 60 DX countries across Europe, Asia, Oceania and the Americas.
Morteza told Newsline [quote]: "This activity was entirely self-funded and carried out by volunteers with a shared passion for radio and a strong desire to make the voice of Iran heard in a positive, non-political, and welcoming way." [endquote]
They're ready to do it again next year - hoping to exchange even more stories and of course QSL cards.