Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2152 for Friday, January 25 2019 Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2152 with a release date of Friday, January 25 2019 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. A U.S. ban on certain Hytera radios takes effect. Hams prep for Orlando HamCation -- and Radio Scouts add an awards program for contacts. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2152 comes your way right now. ** BILLBOARD CART ** ITC IMPORT BAN TAKES EFFECT ON SOME HYTERA MODELS JIM/ANCHOR: We begin this week's newscast with an update on the DMR radio battle between Motorola and Hytera. Andy Morrison K9AWM brings us that report. ANDY: The U.S. International Trade Commission's ban on the import of numerous models of Hytera DMR radios has taken effect. The commission's action came after a determination last year that the Chinese radios infringed on numerous Motorola patents. The Hytera models affected include - but are not limited to - the MD652, MD782, BD302, BD362 and BD502 as well as the RD622 amd RD982 repeaters. The X1e and X1p radios are also included in the exclusion. The order, which was issued in late 2018, took effect on Wednesday, January 16th. A judge responding to a complaint from Motorola Solutions had found what was called "persuasive evidence" that the Chinese company had copied Motorola technology for its DMR radios after gaining access to more than 7,000 Motorola documents. Mark Hacker, general counsel and chief administrative officer of Motorola Solutions, said in a statement: “Motorola Solutions welcomes legitimate competition, but it is only legitimate when companies compete on the basis of their own original technologies." Meanwhile, Hytera announced it had released an update for its firmware and has begun selling its i-Series products in place of the earlier models. A statement from Hytera noted: "The main takeaway remains that Hytera's new generation of i-Series DMR radios do not infringe on any patents and we will continue to be able to offer our entire product line in the U.S." Hytera is suing Motorola for what the company calls anticompetitive conduct under the Sherman Antitrust Act, claiming it is waging a campaign to exclude Hytera from the market. It called Motorola's actions "inappropriate litigation." For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Andy Morrison K9AWM. (RADIO RESOURCE MEDIA GROUP, MOTOROLA, HYTERA WEBSITES) ** THOUSANDS ARE PACKING FOR FLORIDA 'HAMCATION' JIM/ANCHOR: Hams are packing their suitcases and making plans for HamCation in Florida and Jack Parker W8ISH has the details. JACK: Were you among the thousands to attend HamCation in Orlando Florida last year - or even the year before? Do you have your ticket for this year's gathering? The international event is being held soon - from the 8th to the 10th of February. The Central Florida Fairgrounds and Expo Park turns into one big ham shack for those days as the action gets under way, sponsored by the ARRL-affiliated Orlando Amateur Radio Club. HamCation is also hosting the ARRL Southeastern Division Convention. According to the event website, forums will be held on Friday and Saturday at the Lakeside Pavilion. The subjects will include "The Digital Dilemma: D-STAR, DMR or Fusion?" "Flex Radio - Software Defined Radio" and "The ARRL Collegiate Amateur Radio Initiative." There are also discussions for homebrewers, IRLP fans and history buffs who want to know more about the secret ENIGMA Codes of World War II. To learn more about the 73rd edition of this event, which is coming up fast - visit the website hamcation dot com (hamcation.com) For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jack Parker W8ISH. ** BUILD-A-THON GETS HAMS READY FOR WYONG FIELD DAY JIM/ANCHOR: Meanwhile, in New South Wales, Australian amateurs are prepping for next month's Wyong Field Day by building, soldering and mentoring, as we hear from Ed Durrant DD5LP. ED: What do you do while preparing for the largest gathering of Amateurs in the Southern Hemisphere? Well, run a Build-A-thon of course! At least that what's the Central Coast ARC did. In order to get members and their families building, Tom VK2VC organised and ran a Build-A-Thon at the club rooms near Gosford on Saturday the 12th of January. Graham VK2GRA gave a short soldering course and 5 kits were sold. Three were built during the meeting. The other two being taken home by Brad VK2NMZ so that he could build his along side his daughter building hers with some guidance from him. VK2NMZ said his daughter was amazed and pleased that her first build worked first time! Clubbing the "old fashioned way" one could say. Now that's over, it's back to the important preparations for the Wyong Field day on February 24th, which all are on schedule with a good array of commercial sellers, exhibitors and presentations lined up. More about the event on the club's website at ccarc.org.au. This is Ed Durrant DD5LP on behalf of the CCARC. ** ROLLING BACK THE CLOCK FOR A RALLY ON AM MODE JIM/ANCHOR: If you've ever made contacts on AM, or wanted to, you've got the chance to do it in a big way, as Paul Braun WD9GCO tells us. PAUL/ANCHOR: There seems to be a lot of focus on all of the new digital modes in ham radio today. A growing sense of nostalgia plays a role, however, in events which celebrate the hobby's early years such as "Straight Key Night." If you want to go back, but not quite that far back, then the upcoming AM Rally might be just for you. I spoke with one of the organizers, Clark Burgard, N1BCG, about the event: BURGARD: There seems to be not only a popularity resurgence among users but also in the manufacturing world. We wanted to build on that with an event that would showcase the mode. Some people call it a "contest" - it's not, it's an operating event that was created to showcase that mode and some of its capabilities. Really, just say, "Hey! If you have an AM button on your rig, press it and try it out so you have one more tool in your arsenal of communication." PAUL/ANCHOR: The event has been growing in popularity, according to Burgard. He said something that has really helped has been the involvement of the League through W1AW: BURGARD: The ARRL has decided to get behind it because we made it educational. They said that they would only be involved with events that were non-selective - meaning anyone can participate - and were educational in some way. The ARRL will be using their recently-converted Gates BC-1T transmitter. They will be on most of the time with that rig so you'll have some classic "heavy iron" involved right from the headquarters. PAUL/ANCHOR: The AM Rally begins at zero-hundred Zulu on Saturday, February 2nd and runs through 0700 Zulu on Monday, February 4th. Burgard said that operations will mainly center around the standard AM frequencies. Full details, along with information on optimizing your rig for AM operation can be found at the group's website, AMRally.com. Burgard stressed that while it's not a contest, you can still submit your log and earn certificates. And who doesn't like certificates? So, give your sideband filters a well-deserved break and modulate that carrier. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO ** PLANS UNDER WAY FOR D-DAY COMMEMORATIVE EVENT IN WALES JIM/ANCHOR: The North Wales Radio Society has plans for a D-Day Commemorative Event. Here's Jeremy Boot G4NJH. JEREMY: Seventy five years have passed since the D-Day Landings on the beachfront of France, and the North Wales Radio Society is busy planning Special Event Station GB2ORM to operate on the Great Orme, Llandudno in North Wales. The selection of the station's site is significant: It is a 3-story building that is the former Aerial Defence Research and Development Establishment (ADRDE) also known as "X3." According to the radio society's website, the building apparently housed a secret radar experimental station above the Royal Artillery School on the Great Orme. The school itself played a prominent wartime role, and over time it grew beyond its gunnery wing, adding wireless and searchlight wings in 1940. Depending on propagation, station operators on the 7th, 8th and 9th of June are hoping to contact as many hams within the UK, Europe and beyond on as many bands and frequencies as possible. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jeremy Boot G4NJH. ** BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the Massasoit Amateur Radio Association's 2 meter repeater W1MV in Bridgewater Massachusetts and W1MV-R on EchoLink on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ** NEW AWARDS PROGRAM TO DEBUT IN RADIO SCOUTING JIM/ANCHOR: Radio Scouts have begun the new year with a full agenda and Bill Stearns NE4RD tells us what they've got planned. BILL: This week in Radio Scouting we're beginning two countdowns and a new awards program is in the works. Jamboree on the Air 2019 is just a mere 10 months away. The month of January is when you get your event on the district or council calendar. Most groups publish the calendar earlier, but if you failed to set some 2019 dates, now is the perfect time to begin those conversations. Start recruiting members that can help you achieve your updated goals for 2019. Check out our website for other January items that should be in your JOTA checklist. World Scout Jamboree is only 6 months away, and the leadership team for the NA1WJ event are busy at work meeting and organizing the team for this major event. The leadership team met earlier this month to go over progress in the various areas of the program to assure all the materials, equipment, and training is either in hand or in progress. The ARDF team is putting together all the 80m gear for the foxhunts. The demo team is putting together all the scripts, contact logs, and ensuring we have as many bands and modes covered to make contacts possible. July will be here before we know it! While the K2BSA has had the Scout Camps On The Air website, and has been a great resource for scheduling your radio scouting events, we are excited to finally announce that we will be transitioning this to an awards program. Similar to other "on the Air" programs, SCOTA will allow you to earn points for activating and chasing activations, as well as other details yet to be worked out. Once the program is finalized, we'll be rolling out an update SCOTA.US site that will include the new aspects of the program and as well maintaining the ease of access to the activations calendar. For more information on this and radio scouting, please visit our website at k2bsa.net. For Amateur Radio Newsline and the K2BSA Amateur Radio Association, this is Bill Stearns, NE4RD. ** TWO SILENT KEYS IN NEW ZEALAND JIM/ANCHOR: They were hams for a lifetime, a very long lifetime, and now two New Zealand operators are Silent Keys. Jim Meachen ZL2BHF has that story. JIM MEACHEN: Two longtime amateur radio operators in New Zealand have become Silent Keys. Reg Motion ZL2LX of Tauranga was 97 years old when he died on the 14th of January at Tauranga Hospital. Reg had at one time been with the New Zealand Post Office as a radio technician. John Duncan ZL2JD was 81 years of age when he died on the 15th of January. John's QR Zed page notes that he had been active on the HF bands and was an ex-Maritime Coast Station operator in Wellington. He had been licensed since the 1960s and got his first license in Auckland. His other call signs were ZK1CI for the Cook Islands, C21JD for Nauru Island and ZK2JD for Niue Island. Vale Reg Motion and John Duncan. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jim Meachen ZL2BHF. ** VOA'S BETHANY RELAY STATION MARKING A MILESTONE JIM/ANCHOR: There's going to be a lot of partying going on, radio-style of course, in West Chester, Ohio, as we hear from Stephen Kinford N8WB. STEPHEN: The National VOA Museum of Broadcasting in West Chester, Ohio - home to the West Chester Amateur Radio Association WC8VOA - is marking the 75th birthday of the VOA Bethany Relay station this year. This milestone is being celebrated with a four-event series conducted jointly by the museum and the MidPointe Library System. The series is called "The Voice of Truth in America: Celebrating 75 Years of the VOA Bethany Station" and underscores the power of radio during the active years of the station's shortwave broadcasts. The series kicks off on March 6 with a talk by Steve Herman, the VOA's White House bureau chief. This series is among the dozen free events being held this year inside the VOA building. Others include the annual Hamvention Nights at the VOA Museum on May 16, 17, 18 and 19 and a program on July 11th discussing stealth antennas for radio amateurs who live in communities with HOAs. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Stephen Kinford N8WB. ** WORLD OF DX In this week's world of DX, listen for Shabu, M0KRI on the air as 9U4RI from Burundi from the 15th to the 25th of February. He will operate CW, SSB and PSK31 on 40-10 meters. QSL via LoTW or direct to M0KRI, also by logsearch on Club Log. In the Bahamas and possibly other island groups, Heli, DD0VR, is on the air as C6A/DD0VR through to the 2nd of February. Usually he operates QRP on 80-10 meters CW and SSB. QSL via DD0VR, direct or bureau. Listen for Rick, NE8Z operating from Ecuador until the 6th of February. He is on the air operating CW, SSB and FT8 on 40-6 meters. Usually he uses the call sign HC1MD from Tumbaco; the call sign HC1MD/HC2 from Punta Blanca and HC1MD/HC7 from Papallacta. QSL via LoTW, or direct to K8LJG. Emmanuel, F5LIT is active as YB9/F5LIT from Bali Island from January 27th through to February 6th. QSL via home call, direct only, and by LoTW. If you're keeping an eye out for the Three Y Zero Eye (3Y0I) DXPedition, the RebelDX group reports good progress on ship preparations in South Africa now that the Christmas and New Year holidays are over. All are eager to get going but no official date has been given as yet for their ship, the Atlantic Tuna, to leave port heading for Bouvet. To keep up to date monitor the blog on the bouvetoya.org/blog/ website. ** KICKER: GIFTS FROM THE HEART OF THE HAM COMMUNITY JIM/ANCHOR: We conclude this week's report with this reminder about the real power of radio. It's not the power you get from any linear amplifier; this is the power that comes from hams who have a heart. We told you last week about the family of James Lea WX4TV, a well-known amateur radio family in Florida struggling financially since James, a freelance cinematographer, was injured while at home last year and became unable to work. James contacted us to say his amateur radio family - the greater, global amateur radio community - has reached out to him through his GoFundMe page and in other ways. He told Newsline that as of Wednesday, January 23rd more than 100 people - from the U.S., Europe and even Asia - had contributed more than $8,000 to help him, his wife and their children with their needs. He wrote [quote] "We are near the goal but are realizing that the extent of the need exceeds the goal by about 50 percent." [endquote] James told us that the words that these donors are sharing - along with their donations - have been especially meaningful to his family. He wrote that the donations have included [quote] "lots of reports from people that we have inspired them or helped them get licensed. That's the coolest thing about this! So many people say WE have helped THEM!" [endquote] James added that his family is not just grateful but most certainly humbled. ** NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Alan Labs; Amateur News Weekly; the ARRL; CQ Magazine; Hap Holly and the Rain Report; Hytera; K2BSA; Motorola; the National VOA Museum; North Wales Radio Society; Ohio-Penn DX Bulletin; QRZ.COM; Radio Resource Media Group; Southgate Amateur Radio News; Ted Randall's QSO Radio Show; Wireless Institute of Australia; WTWW Shortwave; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. Please send emails to our address at newsline@arnewsline.org. More information is available at Amateur Radio Newsline's only official website at www.arnewsline.org. For now, with Caryn Eve Murray, KD2GUT, at the news desk in New York, and our news team worldwide, I'm Jim Damron N8TMW in Charleston West Virginia saying 73 and as always we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2019. All rights reserved.