Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2023, August 5, 2016
 

Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2023, August 5, 2016

*** CLOSED CIRCUIT ADVISORY ****

The following is a closed circuit advisory and not for broadcast.

Newscast #2023 is an expanded edition of Amateur Radio Newsline,
containing special reports. This newscast has three segments and there
are 2 breaks for identification.

And now, here's this week's anchor, Stephen Kinford, N8WB.

***

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2023 with a release date of
Friday, August 5, 2016 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Dayton Hamvention has found a new home now that
Hara Arena is closing. We proudly introduce the 2016 Bill Pasternak
WA6ITF Memorial Young Ham of the Year -- and we devote a special
segment to celebrating a few other young amateurs who've distinguished
themselves on and off the air. Hear all this and more in our expanded
edition of Amateur Radio Newsline, Report Number #2023 coming your way
right now.

***

BILLBOARD CART HERE

***

DAYTON HAMVENTION FINDS A NEW HOME

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We open this week with our top story: With Hara Arena's
closing, the big question looming was "Where will Hamvention go?" Now
we know. Amateur Radio Newsline's Paul Braun, WD9GCO, tells us more.

PAUL'S REPORT:

PAUL: For the first time since 1964, the Dayton Hamvention has a
newhome!

ESTHER PIERSON: We are excited, I'm telling you! This is going to be
the greatest thing for this fairground. We're really happy!

PAUL: That was the response from Esther Pierson from the Greene County
Fairgrounds and Exposition center in Xenia, Ohio, talking about the
news that Hamvention will be moving there for 2017.

Ron Cramer, KD8ENJ, General Chairman of Hamvention, and Michael Kalter,
W8CI, spokesman for the event, talked about the new venue on Wednesday
evening's HamNation podcast:

RON CRAMER: Well, we are moving from Hara. We are going to Xenia, Ohio,
which is almost a suburb of Dayton. We are going to the Greene County
Fair and Exposition Center.

PAUL: For those concerned that there won't be enough space for
Hamvention, they wanted to assure everyone that there definitely is:

RON CRAMER: One hundred and four acres are available to us, and a part
of that is in parking. It is going to take a lot of parking spaces. We
are hoping we can park everyone on the site.

PAUL: Cramer and his team have big plans for the 2017 show. Kalter said
that they're not aiming for "Good enough":

MICHAEL KALTER: we are not going to just start out good and get better.
We want to start out great and get awesome.

PAUL: The future of Hamvention, which only a week ago seemed rather
bleak, appears now to be very bright indeed.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO.

**

YOUNG HAM OF THE YEAR HAILS FROM COLORADO

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: The Amateur Radio Newsline is proud to announce the
winner of its 2016 William Pasternak WA6ITF Memorial Young Ham of the
Year Award. Amateur Radio Newsline's Mark Abramowicz has the details:

MARK'S REPORT: He is Skyler Fennell KD0WHB of Denver, Colorado.

The 17-year-old is the son of Karl and Carol Fennell. He's a recent
honors graduate of the Denver School of the Arts.

Skyler credits a family member with introducing him to what he hopes
will become his career...

"Back in third grade is really where my interest in electronics
sparked," Sklyer recalls. "To my great grandpa, he gave me, it was a
snap circuits kit on starting building simple electronic circuits and I
was so interested I built everything in it."

But Skyler says it didn't stop there as he continued work on other
projects going through middle school...

"I built a laser spirograph in eighth grade which take a laser pointer
and it had some mirrors and stuff and it made cool shapes," Skyler
says. "Then, about ninth grade, my friend, KD0MLV really sparked my
interest in amateur radio."

Talk of the technical, Skyler admits, and what ham radio could do
really got his attention...

"He said he had his license but he told me that, 'Oh, you can talk
around the world with HF and all the different bands' and how
wavelengths on antennas, like different sections of wavelengths make
good antennas," Skyler says. "I started doing research and I'm like,
wow, this seems like an amazing hobby and I quickly got my Technician
license the summer of that year."

Skyler says he got involved with repeaters - designing and building
them - thanks to his first, on-air contact...

"My first contact was a broadcast engineer KE0VH. He kind of started
answering questions about repeaters and everything when I used them,"
he recalls. "I was like, how does this work, and he started mentoring
me as well as some other broadcast engineers."

Skyler got involved with satellite communications thanks to Colorado
Amateur Satellite Net and expanded that to an affiliation with AB0BX
STEM School Amateur Radio Club in nearby Littleton, Colorado.

He says there he got exposed to Edge of Space science missions and
helped put together payloads for the balloon launches.

Skyler also started the Denver School of the Arts Amateur Radio Club
and became trustee of its call sign, KE0FXH.

Skyler had spare time growing up to become involved in the Boy Scouts
and earned the rank of Eagle Scout by the age of 13.

And, then, there was music and the piano - a passion he developed at an
early age thanks, he says to the support and patience of his parents.

"Have a lot of fun with it, whether it's jazz or classical," Skyler
says. "Been involved with a lot of different things with my school
-orchestra, the band and really it's been a big part of my life.
Reallyfun."

So what's next for Skyler? You could say the sky is the limit...

"I'm headed off to New Mexico Tech for electrical engineering," Skyler
says. "So, I hope to gain more knowledge about electronics, that I get
a deeper understanding of how it all works.

"And, of course, continue on with music. Eventually, I see myself
designing my own electronics, prototypes, maybe starting a business."

Congratulations Skyler and our best wishes for great success in school
and your future from all of us at Amateur Radio Newsline.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Mark Abramowicz, NT3V, in
Philadelphia.

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Skyler will be recognized at the Huntsville Hamfest in
Huntsville, Alabama on Aug. 20. And, a special thanks to our sponsors,
CQ magazine, Yaesu USA, Heil Sound, and Radiowavz.

**

OHIO AMATEUR WINS HIRAM PERCY MAXIM AWARD

STEPHEN: Skyler Fennell is in good company. A young Ohio ham has just
won one of the ARRL's biggest honors. Amateur Radio Newsline's Paul
Braun, WD9GCO, spoke with him.

PAUL: The winner of the A-Double-R-L's 2015 Hiram Percy Maxim Award is
13-year-old Chris Brault, KD8YVJ.

I had the opportunity to speak with this remarkable young man. He
explained that getting licensed was actually a father-son project. His
father, Jocelyn Brault, is KD8VRX :

CHRIS: I was first licensed in 2014 and my dad, when I was a Scout, he
would do JOTA - Jamboree On The Air - and what he would do, when I was
in the Cub Scouts, he became a Scoutmaster. And we were wondering if we
could do Jamboree on the Air. He did some research and found out how to
get a ham license and got his. And then he had a little HT and he would
put it in the car with a mag mount and I would be in the back seat and
I would do a third party and that's pretty much how I got started. I
wanted to get licensed and I did - and now I'm a General. I love doing
HF, DXing and even some satellite work.

PAUL: I asked Chris what he enjoyed most about ham radio:

CHRIS: Probably DXing and a little bit of contesting. I like talking to
different places and seeing how far I can get with my antennas and my
dad's antennas, and just seeing what we can do to get the farthest
distance and stuff like that.

PAUL: As to what it means to him to receive this award, Chris said:

CHRIS: It is amazing. It makes me feel really special and that I can do
anything I set my mind to do. Of course, there are a lot of people that
helped me get here, a bunch of my Elmers at the West Chester Amateur
Radio Association, our club station, and the YACHT [Young Amateurs
Communications Ham Team] group.

PAUL: I asked Chris what he has to say to other young people in today's
world of internet, smartphones, and instant messaging who might think
ham radio is old-fashioned:

CHRIS: Well, your Bluetooth, your Wifi, your cell phone, all the stuff
that you use that's wireless, is radio! Cellular is a more advanced
version of radio, and I am kind of doing a more simple version. But
mine is more powerful and we have different antennas we can make and
use more power and directional antennas.

PAUL: According to the A-double-R-L press release, Chris is active in a
wide range of Amateur Radio-related activities, including antenna
building and bicycle mobile operation.

He is also active in the recruitment and training of new amateurs by
participating in such events as Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) and
activities at the West Chester Amateur Radio Association/Voice of
America Museum (WC8VOA), where he serves as a volunteer. Brault was
involved in developing an Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) contact proposal, in cooperation with iSPACE and the
WCARA/VOA Museum.

I was first licensed as a novice at the age of 15. But looking back on
what I accomplished compared to what Chris Brault has accomplished,
what we mostly have in common is that we both like amateur radio, both
like the space program, and share the first four letters of our last
names.

Chris Brault is a remarkable young man, and gives you hope in the
future of our hobby.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO.

**

BREAK HE

Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including the
West Chester Amateur Radio Club repeater WC8VOA in West Chester, Ohio,
on Monday nights.

**

SUMMER CAMP IS OVER

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We continue our look at promising young amateurs with
this special report on the IARU's Youngsters on the Air camp, which
recently wrapped up its activities in Austria. Amateur Radio Newsline's
Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, spoke to one of the two Americans lucky enough to be
invited to attend this year.

NEIL: Two young radio amateurs from the United States are the first
hams to attend the IARU Region 1 Youngsters on the Air camp in Austria,
held July 16 through the 23rd. Sterling Coffey, N0SSC, of St Louis,
Missouri, and Sam Rose, KC2LRC, of Syracuse, New York, were invited by
Glenn Johnson, W0GJ, from the Northern California DX Association and
Ward Silver, N0AX, from the Yasme Foundation, in an effort to learn
from the event and hopefully develop a similar event in the U.S. The
camp is for 15- to 25-year-olds, and is designed to expose young hams
to additional modes, and step up their skills to the next level.

YOTA is in its sixth year and is growing in number of countries
participating. Sam Rose told us the planners had an excellent balance
of radio events and social events to promote international goodwill.

SAM: We partook of various events which were workshops where we learned
about things like using a Raspberry Pi to transmit WSPR, or HamNet,
which is a high-speed amateur radio data protocol based on WiFi. There
were some demonstrations such as an ISS contact. We had a good balance
of that and some just plain touristy things, like going to see the
largest ice cave in Austria and going and seeing one of the castles.

NEIL: Sam said YOTA included a contact with the ISS, as well as a
European style fox hunt on 80 meters.

SAM: What you would do is do a race to see who could find the five
foxes the fastest. So each fox had a little punch on the top and you
would be timed. People would start on 1 minute, zero, and you could go
through and punch your card with one of the punches from each of these
foxes. The goal was to be the fastest person to find all the foxes and
return. So it was both a competition in how good you were at radio
direction finding and how athletic you are.

NEIL: The U.S. team's reports will be made available by the fall to
help facilitate creation of a hoped-for camp in Region 2 here in the
U.S. Meanwhile, Sam and Sterling are thinking back on a great time,
when the two Americans, as camp first-timers, also enjoyed a bit of
minor celebrity.

SAM: It was really exciting for a lot of the attendees there to see
people from the U.S. There were attendees from Ethiopia and South
Africa. And it was, "Oh God, I get to take my picture with an American,
this is so cool!"

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Neil Rapp, WB9VPG

**

FCC FINES GEORGIA OPERATOR $1,000, CALIFORNIA OPERATOR $25,000

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: The FCC is cracking down again on violators. We hear
first about one Georgia amateur who the agency has described as a
repeat offender. Here's Amateur Radio Newsline's Heather Embee, KB3TZD.

HEATHER: Saying that a Georgia radio operator has shown "deliberate
disregard" for prior warnings, the FCC has fined him $1,000 for failure
to properly identify himself on the air.

David J. Tolassi, W4BHV, of Ringgold, Georgia, received a Forfeiture
Order from the agency, one year after the FCC sent him a Notice of
Apparent Liability for Forfeiture. In proposing the fine last year, the
FCC said Tolassi had disregarded an earlier warning about his failure
to send his call sign properly while operating on 20 meters.

The FCC states that Tolassi told the agency he had identified properly
during the 10-minute window while transmitting on 14.313 MHz - but the
FCC has challenged his assertion, saying that 15 minutes had elapsed
without identification during the time agents were monitoring him.

The FCC has determined that he repeatedly violated Section 97.119, and
reaffirmed those charges in the recent Forfeiture Order, released July
29. He has 30 days to pay the fine. Tolassi had earlier asked the
agency to cancel the Notice of Apparent Liability and issue a Warning
Letter, but the agency denied that request.

The Enforcement Bureau reports that Tolassi has had other enforcement
issues relating to other violations, years earlier.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Heather Embee, KB3TZD.

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: In another FCC action, the agency has also fined a
California amateur $25,000 for intentional interference. William F.
Crowell, W6WBJ (formerly N6AYJ), of Diamond Spring, California, has
been assessed the full amount that had been proposed in a December 2015
Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture. In an August 2 Forfeiture
Order, the FCC said that its fine is based on QUOTE "the full base
forfeiture amount as well as an upward adjustment reflecting Mr
Crowell's decision to continue his misconduct after being warned that
his actions violated the Communications Act and the Commission's
rules." ENQUOTE

The FCC said its December notice was issued after complaints from the
Western Amateur Radio Friendship Association, whose 75 meter nets had
been challenged by Crowell. According to the FCC, Crowell had
interfered with amateurs on the air there in August of 2015. The FCC
described Crowell as someone who has a long-standing record of
interaction with the FCC Enforcement Bureau.


(ARRL)


**

OFCOM INTRODUCES NEW LICENSING PORTAL

STEPHEN: In the UK, a computer upgrade is completed and radio license
holders and applicants have access to what the licensing authority
OFCOM hopes is an improved online experience. Amateur Radio Newsline's
Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, has more on that story.

JEREMY: The UK licensing authority OFCOM has rolled out its new Amateur
Radio and Ships Radio Licensing Portal. They expect the update will
improve customers' on-line experience while keeping information secure.

The new portal is being called the first stage of an ongoing effort to
refresh services and OFCOM acknowledged on its website, that some
technical issues can be expected along the way. Hams may use the
redesigned portal to apply for and manage all amateur radio licenses,
including those held by clubs.

In this early stage of the roll-out OFCOM is looking for feedback on
user experience and asks that any visitors to the portal send an email
with comments to

Visit the website at licensing.ofcom.org.uk

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jeremy Boot, G4NJH in Nottingham,
theUK.


(OFCOM, RADIO SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN)

**

SOUTH AFRICAN RADIO LEAGUE

STEPHEN: Speaking of licensing, there are some important changes - and
a deadline - looming for some licensees in South Africa. Amateur Radio
Newsline's John Williams, VK4JJW, has those details.

JOHN: If you're a South African amateur radio operator with a ZU
license and you're older than 25, time is running out for you. Newly
enacted age restrictions for ZU licensees require an upgrade to Class
A. This means that by April 1 2017, anyone 25 and older who still
possesses a ZU license will be unable to renew it.

The next Radio Amateur's Examination will be offered this coming
October and registration has already begun. The Independent
Communications Authority of South Africa is urging all affected ZU
license-holders to begin their studies now for the Class A license and
be prepared for the test this fall. For the registration web page on
the SARL website, visit
http://www.sarl.org.za/Web3/RAE/RAERegistration.aspx

This will be the only chance to take the test before the April
expiration date.

Under the regulation changes, amateurs younger than 20 are able to hold
a ZU license, which is a Class B license, until they are 25 years old.
After that, they must take the Class A exam for the ZS/ZR license.

Applicants must achieve a passing grade of at least 65 percent on the
test, with at least 50 percent in both the technical and regulatory
sections.

So hit the books...as the clock is ticking!

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm John Williams, VK4JJW.

(SARL)

**

BREAK HE

Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including the
Riverland Amateur Radio Club's WR9ARC repeater in LaCrosse, Wisconsin
on Sundays.

**

FACE TO FACE WITH ARISS

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Now here's some news that Space Geeks around the world
won't be able to resist! There's a big meeting this fall about the
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station program and it's being
held, not in space but on Planet Earth - in Houston Texas. Here's
Amateur Radio Newsline's Graham Kemp, VK4BB.

GRAHAM: What's happening in Texas this coming November might well be
considered the ultimate Eyeball QSO: It's the Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station's global face-to-face meeting. American
team members will serve as hosts in Houston as the worldwide team
gathers there on November 15 through November 18.

These meetings are open for the public to observe and there is no
registration fee -- although it's going to take some planning if you
want to attend. The dates this year were selected to coincide with the
20th anniversary of ARISS which had its first meeting -- not
surprisingly -- at the same NASA Johnson Space Center where this
gathering will occur. In fact, a tour of the space center will be given
to meeting attendees on the afternoon of Monday, Nov. 14.

To learn more about attending the meeting, email Rosalie White at
, or Frank Bauer at

The agenda is an ambitious one and will obviously look forward to the
program's next 20 years - and beyond.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Graham Kemp, VK4BB.


(ARISS)


**
THE WORLD OF DX

In the world of DX, two members of the Ukrainian DX Team, operators
Alex/UX0LL and Alex/UT5UY, will be on the air as 5H1XX from Zanzibar
Island between August 13th and August 22nd. They can be heard on
various bands and modes. Send QSLs to M-Zero-URX.

The Essex UK based Martello Tower Group will be operating the special
event station GB5RC ( G-B-5 Radio Caroline) from August 5th to the 8th
on-board the MV Ross Revenge in the River Blackwater to commemorate
five decades of offshore radio broadcasting in the UK . The group will
be active on 40 to 10metres with full UK legal output power. A special
QSL card will be available.

Listen for operators Dietmar/DL3DXX, Rene/DL2JRM, Kurt/DJ4XX and
Robin/DO2XX working as OJ0DX from Market Reef between August 11th and
16th. They will be transmitting on 80-6 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY.
They also have plans to be in the Worked All Europe CW Contest that
takes place August 13th and 14th. Send QSLs to DL3DXX.

A special event station, operated by a team of Cuban amateurs will be
on the air between August 11th and 14th. The call sign is T42FRC.
Listen for them on 160-10 meters where they will be using CW, SSB,
PSK31, PSK63, PSK125, RTTY and JT65. Send QSLs to CO2WL.

(OHIO PENN DX BULLETIN)

**

KICKER: MADE FOR EACH OTHER

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We end this week's newscast with the tale of a magazine
notice that led to a happy marriage, with the help of an amateur in
Georgia.

No, this isn't the story of two people who went out on a date and found
romance. It's about the happy marriage between one museum and a vintage
Morse Code-generating machine it had been wanting for about a decade.

Last year, the Chatham Marconi Maritime Center in Massachusetts placed
a notice in the ARRL's QST magazine saying it was looking for something
called a Creed keyer to add to its collection. The keyer generates
one-way Morse Code messages to ships at sea at speeds as fast as 100
words per minute, using tapes with holes punched ahead of time
-player-piano style - by another machine.

The museum had been searching for the perfect match for its collection
for 10 years - and Gene Greneker, K4MOG, of Powder Springs, Georgia,
proved to be the ultimate match-maker. The ham radio operator had the
machine, which he and a friend had found and bought from a small RCA
wireless station in Lantana, Fla.

After some fundraising on behalf of the museum, the Creed machine was
sold, shipped and enroute to its new home in Massachusetts.

The Maritime Center's president, Dick Kraycir said the next step is to
pair the machine with another mate: a translator that converts the
Creed machine's output into dots and dashes that museum visitors will
be able to hear. A vintage translator is currently undergoing
restoration and once that's done, the two are expected to live happily
ever after.


(CAPE CODE CHRONICLE, ARRL)

**

NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Alan Labs; the ARRL; ARISS; Cape Cod
Chronicle; CQ Magazine; the FCC; Hap Holly and the Rain Report; Irish
Radio Transmitter Society; Ohio-Penn DX Bulletin; QRZ; the South
African Radio League; 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 . More information is
available at Amateur Radio Newsline's only official website located 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 Stephen Kinford, N8WB, in Wadsworth,
Ohio, saying 73 and as always we thank you for listening.

Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.