Carry on plane antenna
 

Hi, I haven't flown since 9/11, preferred to drive. I am going on a
Cruise to the eastern Caribbean, and want to take my travel antenna
(loaded whip with counterpoise) and small hf xcvr. Anybody done this
sort of thing on a plane? Would it be better to take the rig on
carry-on or in the checked baggage? Or is this a bad idea cause they
will arrest me as a suspected terrorist? Ham radios are not on the
list of banned items, but I had rather not bother if it will cause any
glitch in this endeavor. Thanks for any info.
Gary N4AST

In article .com,
wrote:

Hi, I haven't flown since 9/11, preferred to drive. I am going on a
Cruise to the eastern Caribbean, and want to take my travel antenna
(loaded whip with counterpoise) and small hf xcvr. Anybody done this
sort of thing on a plane? Would it be better to take the rig on
carry-on or in the checked baggage?

I haven't done it myself. From what I have heard, anecdotally:

- Both carry-on and checked-luggage methods can work. Carry-on may
be preferable because you'll be present when the equipment goes
through X-ray, and can explain it on request.

- It's a very good idea to have a printed copy of your amateur-radio
license with you, and another with the radio itself. Go to the FCC
web site and download/print a set if you don't have 'em
conveniently available. Also, carry a copy of whatever
reciprocal-operating-agreement documentation you'll need to
demonstrate that you have privilege to operate in the countries into
which you are travelling.

- Identify each piece of equipment clearly - a label may be enough,
but it's probably better to ship 'em in their original boxes if
available, and/or have the manual with it.

- The inspectors are as likely to be concerned about the wire and
cable and loading coils as they are about the radio... they may
look like a suspicious bomb setup on X-ray.

- Alerting the inspection personnel to the fact that you have radio
gear in your luggage couldn't hurt... maybe ask them "Hey, is the
X-ray process going to damage my radio?"

- Be prepared to explain everything, and (if asked) to plug in the
transceiver and tune it around until it hears a few birdies, so
they can be confident that it's actually a working radio.

- If you want to actually operate when you're on board a ship, you'll
need the captain's approval to transmit. Don't transmit on board a
plane :-)

My guess is that you'll have less trouble with this than my wife and I
had, getting her walking sticks approved for carry-on in Germany last
year (they were nervous about the spikes on the bottoms).

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Hosting the Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
I do _not_ wish to receive unsolicited commercial email, and I will
boycott any company which has the gall to send me such ads!

Dave Platt wrote:
In article .com,
wrote:

Hi, I haven't flown since 9/11, preferred to drive. I am going on a
Cruise to the eastern Caribbean, and want to take my travel antenna
(loaded whip with counterpoise) and small hf xcvr. Anybody done this
sort of thing on a plane? Would it be better to take the rig on
carry-on or in the checked baggage?

I haven't done it myself. From what I have heard, anecdotally:

- Both carry-on and checked-luggage methods can work. Carry-on may
be preferable because you'll be present when the equipment goes
through X-ray, and can explain it on request.

- It's a very good idea to have a printed copy of your amateur-radio
license with you, and another with the radio itself. Go to the FCC
web site and download/print a set if you don't have 'em
conveniently available. Also, carry a copy of whatever
reciprocal-operating-agreement documentation you'll need to
demonstrate that you have privilege to operate in the countries into
which you are travelling.

- Identify each piece of equipment clearly - a label may be enough,
but it's probably better to ship 'em in their original boxes if
available, and/or have the manual with it.

- The inspectors are as likely to be concerned about the wire and
cable and loading coils as they are about the radio... they may
look like a suspicious bomb setup on X-ray.

- Alerting the inspection personnel to the fact that you have radio
gear in your luggage couldn't hurt... maybe ask them "Hey, is the
X-ray process going to damage my radio?"

- Be prepared to explain everything, and (if asked) to plug in the
transceiver and tune it around until it hears a few birdies, so
they can be confident that it's actually a working radio.

- If you want to actually operate when you're on board a ship, you'll
need the captain's approval to transmit. Don't transmit on board a
plane :-)

My guess is that you'll have less trouble with this than my wife and I
had, getting her walking sticks approved for carry-on in Germany last
year (they were nervous about the spikes on the bottoms).

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Hosting the Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
I do _not_ wish to receive unsolicited commercial email, and I will
boycott any company which has the gall to send me such ads!
Hi Dave, thanks for the reply, sounds like it is not worth the
trouble, although about all I do with ham radio these days is mobile,
portable operation.
Gary N4AST

wrote in message
oups.com...


Dave Platt wrote:
In article .com,
wrote:

Hi, I haven't flown since 9/11, preferred to drive. I am going on a
Cruise to the eastern Caribbean, and want to take my travel antenna
(loaded whip with counterpoise) and small hf xcvr. Anybody done this
sort of thing on a plane? Would it be better to take the rig on
carry-on or in the checked baggage?

I haven't done it myself. From what I have heard, anecdotally:

- Both carry-on and checked-luggage methods can work. Carry-on may
be preferable because you'll be present when the equipment goes
through X-ray, and can explain it on request.

- It's a very good idea to have a printed copy of your amateur-radio
license with you, and another with the radio itself. Go to the FCC
web site and download/print a set if you don't have 'em
conveniently available. Also, carry a copy of whatever
reciprocal-operating-agreement documentation you'll need to
demonstrate that you have privilege to operate in the countries into
which you are travelling.

- Identify each piece of equipment clearly - a label may be enough,
but it's probably better to ship 'em in their original boxes if
available, and/or have the manual with it.

- The inspectors are as likely to be concerned about the wire and
cable and loading coils as they are about the radio... they may
look like a suspicious bomb setup on X-ray.

- Alerting the inspection personnel to the fact that you have radio
gear in your luggage couldn't hurt... maybe ask them "Hey, is the
X-ray process going to damage my radio?"

- Be prepared to explain everything, and (if asked) to plug in the
transceiver and tune it around until it hears a few birdies, so
they can be confident that it's actually a working radio.

- If you want to actually operate when you're on board a ship, you'll
need the captain's approval to transmit. Don't transmit on board a
plane :-)

My guess is that you'll have less trouble with this than my wife and I
had, getting her walking sticks approved for carry-on in Germany last
year (they were nervous about the spikes on the bottoms).

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Hosting the Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
I do _not_ wish to receive unsolicited commercial email, and I will
boycott any company which has the gall to send me such ads!
Hi Dave, thanks for the reply, sounds like it is not worth the
trouble, although about all I do with ham radio these days is mobile,
portable operation.
Gary N4AST

Gary

I got my ICOM PCR 1000 and an antenna and lap top computer to Miami from
Los Angeles (LAX), as carry on, two months ago. No trouble
It has been my experience that the rules are not consistant from day to
day with airport security regulation enforcement.

Jerry

jgboyles:

Planes are a bummer, if you can, do what Nancy Regan suggested--just say
NO! Very small commuter jumps can be worlds more friendlier...

....and just dropping by a private airport and checking bulletin boards
and chatting--if you need hops here in the usa, mexico or canada will
work if you don't mind the inconvience...

Short of your co/corp having a private plane and granting you
use--business travel sucks, especially international flight... frown

Warmest regards,
John

wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi, I haven't flown since 9/11, preferred to drive. I am going on a
Cruise to the eastern Caribbean, and want to take my travel antenna
(loaded whip with counterpoise) and small hf xcvr. Anybody done this
sort of thing on a plane? Would it be better to take the rig on
carry-on or in the checked baggage? Or is this a bad idea cause they
will arrest me as a suspected terrorist? Ham radios are not on the
list of banned items, but I had rather not bother if it will cause any
glitch in this endeavor. Thanks for any info.
Gary N4AST

And remember - if you're traveling outside the country -
that your license is for US amateur radio
so check with foreign laws regarding operating there
Take some flippers and a snorkle -and have fun
you can get back to hamming when you get back


"John Smith" wrote in message
...
jgboyles:

Planes are a bummer, if you can, do what Nancy Regan suggested--just say
NO! Very small commuter jumps can be worlds more friendlier...

...and just dropping by a private airport and checking bulletin boards
and chatting--if you need hops here in the usa, mexico or canada will
work if you don't mind the inconvience...

Short of your co/corp having a private plane and granting you
use--business travel sucks, especially international flight... frown

Warmest regards,
John

wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi, I haven't flown since 9/11, preferred to drive. I am going on a
Cruise to the eastern Caribbean, and want to take my travel antenna
(loaded whip with counterpoise) and small hf xcvr. Anybody done this
sort of thing on a plane? Would it be better to take the rig on
carry-on or in the checked baggage? Or is this a bad idea cause they
will arrest me as a suspected terrorist? Ham radios are not on the
list of banned items, but I had rather not bother if it will cause any
glitch in this endeavor. Thanks for any info.
Gary N4AST

I've carried quite a variety of interesting stuff on domestic flights
many times before and after 9/11, including homebrew gear, mag mount
antennas, cables, batteries, etc., and on a few international flights.
My checked bags always end up with a card saying they've been inspected,
but that's all. The carry-on is sometimes flagged for hand inspection by
the X-ray operator, and I've learned to leave the interesting stuff on
top so it's easy to find during the hand inspection. Sometimes the
problem is simply that they can't see what might be hidden under a metal
box (which I assume is why they require computers to be removed from
their bags). If you're in a hurry, you can dump all the interesting
stuff into one of the plastic bins so it's in plain sight and they won't
have to search through your bag for it, and so it won't hide any of the
bag contents from the X-ray -- I've done that on a few occasions. The
hand inspection usually only takes a couple of extra minutes. There's
nothing illegal about carrrying radio or electronic gear -- they just
need to know that it won't explode, give off noxious fumes, or be used
to stab somebody. If it won't, they could care less what it is or does.
It's not a big deal at all.

MP3 players, USB, Ethernet, and telephone cables, GPS receivers, HTs,
cell phone chargers, power supplies and voltage converters, and other
common modern trappings generally sail right through the X-ray machine
without a comment.

Roy Lewallen, W7eL

Roy Lewallen wrote:
I've carried quite a variety of interesting stuff on domestic flights
many times before and after 9/11, including homebrew gear, mag mount
antennas, cables, batteries, etc., and on a few international flights.
My checked bags always end up with a card saying they've been inspected,
but that's all. The carry-on is sometimes flagged for hand inspection by
the X-ray operator, and I've learned to leave the interesting stuff on
top so it's easy to find during the hand inspection. Sometimes the
problem is simply that they can't see what might be hidden under a metal
box (which I assume is why they require computers to be removed from
their bags). If you're in a hurry, you can dump all the interesting
stuff into one of the plastic bins so it's in plain sight and they won't
have to search through your bag for it, and so it won't hide any of the
bag contents from the X-ray -- I've done that on a few occasions. The
hand inspection usually only takes a couple of extra minutes. There's
nothing illegal about carrrying radio or electronic gear -- they just
need to know that it won't explode, give off noxious fumes, or be used
to stab somebody. If it won't, they could care less what it is or does.
It's not a big deal at all.

MP3 players, USB, Ethernet, and telephone cables, GPS receivers, HTs,
cell phone chargers, power supplies and voltage converters, and other
common modern trappings generally sail right through the X-ray machine
without a comment.

Roy Lewallen, W7eL

Hi Roy, Thanks for the advice, and to everyone else that replied.
Sounds like I will not have any problems, now I have to convince my
son, who is accompanying me that there will be no problem. He believes
all this stuff on the internet.
Gary N4AST