KE9V's Ham Radio Blog

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Due to Pandemic

Posted: 23 Feb 2020 04:42 AM PST
https://ke9v.net/2020/02/23/due-to-pandemic/



Im curious if the Swains DXpedition delay due to a global pandemic was a
first in ham radio history event?








The backstory here being that an international team of 10 operators planned
to be active from Swains Island as W8S from March 10-25th of this year.
Being number 34 on the Most Wanted list made this one highly anticipated
and the team planned to be active on all HF bands in CW, SSB, FT8 and RTTY.




But then came breaking news that the operation would have to be canceled
due to the Coronavirus. Not that anyone on the team had contracted the
virus, but rather the sudden travel restrictions implemented upon entering
American Samoa, restrictions imposed by the Department of Health as a
result of the outbreak. The Department of Health allows non-residents to
enter American Samoa only via Hawaii, after a 14 days mandatory quarantine
in Hawaii. This wasnt workable for the team as it would have extended the
time of the excursion by an additional two weeks, and would require
re-routing of flights and purchasing new tickets, etc.




The GOOD NEWS is that the operation has been re-scheduled:




Following the disappointing news earlier this week the Swains2020 team is
extremely happy that we can announce the new schedule for the W8S
DXpedition to Swains Island. The team will be on the island from September
23 until October 6, 2020.




The impact of the deadly Coronavirus continues to be much more serious than
simple changes in travel plans. With thousands having died of the virus and
the impending collapse of the global economy, the final results from this
pandemic have yet to fully materialize.




Still I wonder, as just a footnote in our history, was this a first for
amateur radio?