Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2286 for Friday August 20, 2021 Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2286 with a release date of Friday August 20, 2021 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. Sorting out the tragedy in Haiti after an earthquake and a tropical storm. The FCC delays its new $35 fee -- and the Intrepid DX Group drops its Bouvet plans. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2286 comes your way right now. *** BILLBOARD CART ** HAITI IN TURMOIL AFTER EARTHQUAKE, TROPICAL STORM STEPEHN/ANCHOR: We begin this week with a story that was still developing as Newsline went to production on Thursday, August 19th. Rocked by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake on August 14th and battered afterward by Tropical Storm Grace, the island nation of Haiti was still planning on amateur radio assistance. Jean-Robert (Zzzzhon-Ro-Bear) Gaillard (Guy Yard), HH2JR, president of the Radio Club of Haiti told the IARU's Region 2 emergency coordinator Carlos Alberto Santamaria Gonzalez CO2JC that a number of churches around the island would be willing to be active because their membership included licensed hams but they needed donations of modern equipment. Jean-Robert told Carlos in an email that meanwhile the hams were helping in other ways, distributing medicine and supplies and aiding with transportation when possible. According to various media reports, by August 18th, the death toll had climbed past 2,000 and was expected to continue to rise. Jean-Robert wrote: [quote] "I am afraid the worst is yet to happen." [endquote] Region 2 of the IARU asked meanwhile that hams in the Americas keep emergency frequencies clear at 3.750 MHz, 7.150 MHz and 14.330 MHz. (BBC, WASHINGTON POST, CARLOS GONZALEZ CO2JC, ARRL) ** INTREPID DX GROUP CALLS OFF BOUVET PLANS STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Bouvet Island is no longer in the sights of one of the world's most prominent DXpedition teams. John Williams VK4JJW gives us the details. JOHN: The Intrepid DX Group's planned trip to activate Bouvet Island would have been the third such activation by a group in the next few years -- but now it has been called off. Paul Ewing, N6PSE, the group's president, made a brief statement that appeared in the Daily DX saying that the Intrepid DX Group is instead taking a fresh look at the 10 most-wanted DX entities. He said [quote] "We plan to activate a different rare and much-needed entity in January/February 2023. That is now our focus." [endquote]. He said that with teams set to sail to the island this year and next year, being the number three team is [quote] "not comfortable for us." [endquote] He added that the group wishes a "safe and productive" journey in November of 2022 for its former 3Y0J (Three Y Zero Jay) teammates, now reconstituted and headed by co-leaders Ken LA7GIA, Rune LA7THA and Erwann LB1QI. Meanwhile, the Three Y Zero Eye (3Y0I) team expects to set sail later this year For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm John Williams VK4JJW. (DAILY DX) ** FCC DELAYS STARTUP FOR COLLECTING NEW HAM LICENSE FEES STEPHEN/ANCHOR: The FCC has reported a delay in implementing its new $35 fee for US hams receiving new licenses, hams renewing or modifying existing licenses, as well as hams applying for vanity call signs. The fees were supposed to take effect this summer. According to the ARRL, however, Volunteer Examiner Coordinators learned during a recent virtual meeting with FCC staff that the agency still needs to make changes to its Universal licensing System software and adjust other procedures before it can begin receiving the fees. The announcement appeared on the ARRL website on Monday August 16th. The fees are not expected to take effect until early 2022. They are to be paid directly to the FCC with the help of the agency's online system known as the FCC Pay Fees System. (ARRL) ** ROMANIA PROPOSES LICENSE CHANGES WITH BROADER IMPACT STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Hams in Romania have proposed some changes that could have an impact on radio license portability throughout Europe. Ed Durrant DD5LP has the details. ED: The CEPT's Working Group for Frequency Management are studying whether member states throughout Europe should accept presentation of amateur radio licences in a digitally signed electronic PDF format. The group has given permission for a feasibility study based upon the positive responses to a questionnaire submitted to the CEPT working group last year from officials in Romania. Romania is hoping to make its own radio licence documents available as PDFs. Using the digital document format would allow hams the capability to travel Europe without needing paper copies of their licences. Using mobile devices to display the documents would allow official checking in CEPT countries by reference to a central CEPT database. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Ed Durrant DD5LP. (SOUTHGATE, CEPT WGFM) ** US MONITORING PROGRAM SENDS HAMS ADVISORY NOTICES STEPHEN/ANCHOR: In the US, a program overseen by the FCC and the ARRL has just put a number of amateurs on notice for questionable on-air behavior. We hear more from Geri Goodrich KF5KRN. GERI: Hams around the US have been sent advisory notices from the Volunteer Monitor Program operated jointly by the FCC and the ARRL. A report released by program administrator Riley Hollingsworth K4ZDH gives details of the notices sent to hams deemed in violation of FCC Part 97. The program's July report, released recently, gives the results of more than 3,000 hours of observation combined on the HF, VHF and UHF frequencies. Although these were advisory notices, one notification -- sent to a ham in Parks Arizona -- was referred to the FCC for enforcement action. In that instance, the ham is being reported for failing to honor a request to stay off a repeater. Some of the other notices included the following: A General class licensee in Acworth, Georgia, received a notice for failing to identify properly and for repeatedly making contact with unlicensed stations on 3.895 MHz. A notice was sent to an Extra Class ham in Keansburg, New Jersey, involving threats made on the air to another operator while on 3.844 MHz. Notices were also sent to some General class licensees for operating on 20 meters in the Extra Class portion of the band. Those hams are in Marco Island and Arcadia, Florida, and in Maryland. Technician-class licensees also received notices. Those hams were in Spring Valley, Smith River, and Nipomo, California; Oneonta, New York; Idaho Falls, Idaho, and Center, Texas. The notices indicate they were operating FT8 on frequencies not authorized to Technician licensees. The Volunteer Monitor program began operation in 2020. It was established to underscore the need for amateur compliance on the air. Trained Volunteer Monitors also recognize hams who are observed engaging in commendable conduct. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Geri Goodrich KF5KRN. (FCC, ARRL) ** HAMS HELPING RADIO STATION MARK CENTENNIAL STEPHEN/ANCHOR: What could be better than radio honoring radio? When it's amateur radio honoring professional radio, it's a natural combination, as we hear from Skeeter Nash N5ASH. SKEETER: New England's oldest broadcast station is marking its 100th anniversary this year and two amateur radio clubs in Massachusets are inviting everyone to the party on the amateur bands. The Billerica Amateur Radio Society and the Hampden County Radio Association are having a special operating event planned for September 17th through September 19th. The dates closely follow the first day Westinghouse put WBZ on the air as an AM radio station: September 15th 1921. It began life as a 100-watt station in East Springfield, Massachusetts but by the time it moved to Boston in 1931, it had a 15,000-watt transmitter. By 1933, that power had gone up to 50,000 watts. So be listening for the callsigns W1W, W1B, W1Z, and WB1Z. Hams will be calling QRZ on all bands using CW, SSB, the digital modes and, of course, AM. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Skeeter Nash N5ASH. (ARRL NEW ENGLAND; BILLERICA AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY) ** SCHOOLS MAKE CONTACT WITH MAURITIUS' CUBESAT STEPHEN/ANCHOR: The first satellite launched by Mauritius has been busy doing its part to further students' education. Graham Kemp VK4BB brings us up to date. GRAHAM: Although the first CubeSat launched by the nation of Mauritius is still not available for amateur radio use, it has already accomplished an important educational mission in STEM education: According to the Mauritius Amateur Radio Society, students at three schools in Mauritius have received and decoded signals from the satellite, known as MIR-SAT 1, which stands for Mauritius Imagery and Radiotelecommunication Satellite 1. AMSAT reported the news from the ham radio society, saying that other schools and educational institutions are preparing to follow suit. According to AMSAT, the satellite is still in safe mode and being tested. The radio society expects to announce when hams will be able to use it. The satellite was deployed from the International Space Station on June 22nd. MIR-SAT1 has an expected lifetime of between two and three years and during that time it is expected to make ground contact with Mauritius four to five times daily. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Graham Kemp VK4BB. (AMSAT) ** BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the N8NC repeater of the North Coast Amateur Radio Club in Brunswick, Ohio on Sundays at 8 p.m. during the weekly information net. ** SILENT KEY: FIRST RESPONDER COLIN McFADDEN KB1YYG STEPHEN/ANCHOR: A young amateur radio operator with a strong volunteer spirit has become a Silent Key in his Connecticut hometown. Kevin Trotman N5PRE tells us about him. KEVIN: Hams and first responders in Connecticut are grieving the loss of a valued member of the emergency response team in Bristol, Connecticut. Colin McFadden KB1YYG, a volunteer firefighter, died on Thursday, August 12th, two days after he suffered a brain hemorrhage while fighting a blaze at a historic building in New Hartford. According to his obituary on the Funk Funeral Home website, he died two days after emergency surgery at the local hospital. Fire officials said doctors discovered that Colin had a form of leukemia that had been undiagnosed. Connecticut Community Emergency Response Team considered him a vital part of their operation. The group posted on its Facebook page that Colin was not only the team's ham radio specialist but could always be counted on to participate when needed, including in community service events. According to the website of the Bristol CERT, Colin was especially active on the 2 meter Cross Community Net on Thursdays. A member of the Burlington Volunteer Fire Department, he was also an advocate for people with autism. He got his amateur radio license with the support of the Insurance City Repeater Club and later became its vice president. Most recently, Colin's community service work as a ham included providing traffic control for COVID testing sites in Bristol and for the Farm to Families food distribution. Colin McFadden was 26 years old. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Kevin Trotman N5PRE. (NBC CONNECTICUT, FUNK FUNERAL HOME, BRISTOL CERT WEBSITE) VOUCHERS GOOD FOR RSGB MEMBERS AT BLETCHLEY STEPHEN/ANCHOR: A perk has been restored for members of the Radio Society of Great Britain. Jeremy Boot G4NJH has the details. JEREMY: Members of the Radio Society of Great Britain are once again eligible to use free entry vouchers for Bletchley Park. The voucher also provides free access to the RSGB's National Radio Centre. Because the protocol for visiting has changed, anyone coming to the site must book a date and time slot in advance using the Bletchley Park website. The RSGB has full instructions for visiting on its website, rsgb.org. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jeremy Boot G4NJH. ** HAM RADIO JOINS AQUINO TANK WEEKEND AT ONTARIO MUSEUM STEPHEN/ANCHOR: A big weekend celebrating Canada's Ontario Regiment will be getting under way next month and this year's event is adding something new: amateur radio. Andy Morrison K9AWM picks up the story from here. ANDY: The Ontario Regiment Museum, home to the largest collection of working military vehicles in North America, is about to mark an amateur radio "first." The North Shore Amateur Radio Club VE3OSH will be operating during the museum's Aquino Tank weekend taking place on September 17th to the 19th. Club president Laird Solomon VE3LKS told Newsline that the idea to add ham radio to the museum's annual weekend evolved from of a dialogue between the museum and one of the club's members who works there as a volunteer: They loved his suggestion that radio become a part of the activities which commemorate the key role the Ontario Regiment played in 1944 during the Battle of Aquino in Italy. Laird said the museum will be placing one of its WW II communications trucks at the activators' location and hams will be operating CW from there. Operators will also be on the air at three other stations using SSB, FT8 and Yaesu Fusion/AllStar/DMR. Laird told Newsline: [quote] "We hope to be able to display the evolution of radio from WWII to today." [endquote] Oshawa, the city where the museum is located, has strong ties to the Second World War. Laird told Newsline that not far from there a secret spy training and high-power radio facility called Camp X was set up on the shores of Lake Ontario. It was at that location, where Hydra, a powerful radio station, would exchange coded messages with Allied headquarters in the US and Britain. So many years later, the North Shore amateurs still have ties to this site too: Laird said that the club was formed by some of the wartime operators who had been assigned to the Hydra station. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Andy Morrison K9AWM. (LAIRD SOLOMON VE3LKS) ** WORLD'S LARGEST TEAPOT EVENT TOTALS UP THE CONTACTS STEPHEN/ANCHOR: The tea-totaling is done and the special event for the World's Largest Teapot has some impressive numbers. Here's Jim Damron N8-TEEEEE-MW with the results of this first-time nationwide activation. JIM: The World's Largest Teapot in Chester, West Virginia, has a long history as a public attraction dating to the early 1900s. Now thanks to amateur radio it can claim one more distinction: a one-week special event activation that had 9,013 QSOs, contacting all states in the US, as well as 68 countries. There was even a decoded SSTV signal from the International Space Station on Saturday, August 7th, during the community's Teapot Festival. This was the first year this formerly local radio event was a coast-to-coast activation and operators reported massive pileups. Organizer Justin Shaw W8LPN of the Hancock Auxiliary Communications Team said there are plans in the works next year to include a bonus station from the UK. Meanwhile, the teapot itself, situated near West Virginia's border with Ohio and Pennsylvania, continues to be steeped in fame and glory. A number of radio operators who are not from the West Virginia area said during their QSOs that they now have plans to visit this unusual - and obviously very inspirational - teapot. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jim Damron N8TMW. (JUSTIN SHAW W8LPN) ** WORLD OF DX In the World of DX, listen for Elvira, IV3FSG, using the callsign 5X3R from Uganda through the 2nd of September. She is on 80m through 10m using SSB, RTTY and PSK31. Send QSLs via IK2DUW, direct, by the Bureau or ClubLog. Fred, DL5YM, and his XYL Tina, DL5YL, will be on the air as HBZero/DL5YM and HBZero/DL5YL, respectively, from Liechtenstein between the 5th and 28th of September. Their time on the air will be limited because they will be hiking during the day. Listne on 160m through 6m where they will be using mostly CW, with some SSB and RTTY. Be listening for them as well during the CQWW DX RTTY Contest taking place September 25th and 26th. Send QSLs via their home callsigns, direct, by the DARC Bureau or ClubLog. Don't forget you can pick up some great DX during the International Lighthouse Lightship Weekend on the 21st and 22nd of August. There are nearly 300 registered Lighthouse/Lightship stations around the world that are planning to be on the air. Visit the website illw dot net. (OHIO PENN DX) ** KICKER: A FRIEND IN NEED STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Finally, it's been said that "when all else fails, there's ham radio." Our last story takes this one step further. Because even when amateur radio isn't directly involved, when all else fails, there's nothing like ham radio FRIENDS. Here's Ralph Squillace KK6ITB with that story. RALPH: Ham radio is what gave Blil Scott K6PKL and Skip Kritcher K7ZAA the gift of friendship. But ironically, it was the connection via another form of radio communication -- the cellphone -- that gave Skip the gift of life. According to a report from CBS Sacramento, the Myrtle Point, Oregon radio operator was apparently felled by a stroke last month and desperately punched up numbers on his mobile phone, thinking he was calling his sister. Those numbers connected him instead with Bill, 500 miles away in San Joaquin County, California. Skip had difficulty speaking because his speech was slurred but suddenly Bill released who it was who was speaking and that his friend was in distress. Bill's wife, Sharon, a retired nurse, concluded Skip had just had a stroke. The couple called 9-1-1 and first responders in Oregon were dispatched to his home to transport him to a hospital According to the news report, Skip is back at home recovering after four days in the hospital and for now he still has some impaired vision. One of the EMTs told Bill and Sharon he would have died within a few hours if he hadn't found help. While Skip recovers, he and Bill, who belongs to the Ham Radio Club in Manteca, have gone back to communicating under less urgent circumstances. They are also using their preferred means of getting in touch with one another: amateur radio. For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Ralph Squillace KK6ITB. (CBS SACRAMENTO, MANTECA RIPON BULLETIN) ** NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Amateur News Weekly; AMSAT; the ARRL; the Associated Press; Billerica Amateur Radio Society; Bristol CERT; CBS Sacramento; CQ Magazine; David Behar K7DB; Daily DX; FCC.Gov; Funk Funeral Home; Laird Solomon VE3LKS; Manteca Rpon Bulletin; NBC Connecticut; Ohio Penn DX; QRZ.com; Southgate Amateur Radio News; shortwaveradio.de; Ted Randall's QSO Radio Show; WTWW Shortwave; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. You can write to us at newsline@arnewsline.org. For more information or to support us visit our official website at arnewsline.org. For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our news team worldwide, I'm Stephen Kinford N8WB in Wadsworth Ohio saying 73. As always we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2021. All rights reserved.