"Concerned Officer" wrote in message
ups.com...
How the Police, and the Public, are being mislead about Airwave.
An Insider Evaluation of the Propoganda.

Greetings,

I'm a PC in the Met, and a few months ago went from Borough to the Transport
Operational Command Unit (TOCU), a Pan London unit of the Metropolitan
Police Service. The standard radio for the TOCU is the airwave system, and
I was issued a new Motorola handset accordingly. However, all BOCUs
(Borough Operation Command Units, the new jobspeak for divisions) operate on
the old Metradio system, which is 100% incompatible with Airwave. As such,
I currently have to carry 2 radios: an Airwave to talk to my pan-London TOCU
control room; and a Metradio to talk to local stations in order to respond
to divisional shouts, request cell space etc.

I have a number of issues with the new Airwave, beyond the weight issue of
carrying 2 radios, which I acknowledge is a consequence of the transitional
period:

1) The flimsy design. The Motorola actually rattles when it's shaken, and
is about as robust as an old mobile phone. A sergeant at my base recently
had his old Metradio run over by a car and the carrier (a long wheel base
Mercedes Sprinter van), and apart from scratches, it works as well as
before. Considering the back falls of my radio regularly, and the battery
unclips with a jolt (such as running!), I doubt the new radio will be
anything like as solid as the old system.

2) Attachment. The Airwave system used attaches to a clip on the fabric
loop of my outer clothing, and doesn't have a remote mike (in the old days
known as a PSM, public safety microphone). What this means is that there is
only a couple of grams of cotton thread between me and the loss of my radio.
Even the old Storno was securely clipped to my belt with a remote
microphone, and in a tussle I could rely on it staying on my belt, albeit
with the microphone dangling loose. With very little effort my new radio
could be sent into the yonder.

3) Microphone quality/position. The microphone of the airwave radio is
badly positioned. If pressing the PTT (Press To Talk Button) of the new
Airwave whilst it is attached to uniform, it is basically impossible not to
cover the speaker with your hand whilst talking. The PTT is at top right,
and the microphone is bottom left, and holding down effectively occludes the
microphone with your palm. It is almost impossible to talk into the radio
with it clipped to clothing, and most officers have to remove it and chat
into it like a mobile phone. This means that one swipe would send the radio
flying. OST (Officer Safety Training) dictates that radios should never be
held loose in the hand; with the new Airwave, it is the only way to talk.

4) Radiation. This is a subject I am talking on based on canteen gossip
rather then personal experience, and I apologise in advance for any
inaccuracies. Rumour has it that the handset releases far more radition
then a mobile phone, with the widely reported brain frying consequences.

Beyond the above problems, reception is poor, the microphone seems to pick
up background noise better then direct speech, and it is a wasted
oppurtunity. The trial was advertised as having the ability to send photo
messages with wanted pictures, but the handset issued is a low resolution
black and white LCD screen, with no such facility. All in all, the
technology that the Home Office is investing billions in seems outdated
before it is introduced.

I would like to think that the problems listed will be ironed out, but I
doubt it. The Met has not fully installed MDTs (Mobile Data Terminals) in
patrol vehicles, about 20 years after America (watch The Blues Brothers, the
SCHMARDS system they illustrated was fully operational in the mid 80's), and
in terms of directional guidance is several generations behind those of the
RSPCA (about 6 months ago I went in an RSPCA van for an arrest, and was
amazed how in advance of the Met they were). The new radio system seems to
be a throw back to early 90's mobile phone technology, and misses the chance
to bring police communications into the 21st century. I can only hope that
the system being trialled is rejected, and something approaching modern
technology is introduced.

T.T.F.N.

SPENNY

PC, TOCU - MPS.