Firedrake Jammer on the Loose Again in Asia
Amateur Radio operators throughout the United States have reported hearing an intruder signal -- dubbed Firedrake -- on 20 meters. ARRL Field and Regulatory Correspondent Chuck Skolaut, K0BOG, said he has received reports from Intruder Watch monitors in Texas, Montana, West Virginia, Massachusetts, Colorado, Washington, Nevada and Pennsylvania hearing the jammer on 14.010 and 14.070 MHz. Hams in IARU Region 1 have heard the jammer on 14.000, 14.005, 14.010, 14.030, 14.050, 14.050 and 14.090; Uli Bihlmayer, DJ9KR, Assistant Monitoring Coordinator for Region 1 (IARUMS) said he has had reports of hearing the jammer on three frequencies at the same time.
Skolaut said he heard it on 14.070 at 1500 EDT on June 6 from ARRL HQ, but has not confirmed Firedrake on any other frequencies. "We have reported the jammer to the FCC's High Frequency Direction Finding (HFDF) facility in Columbia, Maryland. They have also heard the jammer and have sent a harmful interference report to the Chinese government," Skolaut said. The FCC has no authority to make intruder stations outside the US stop transmitting on Amateur Radio frequencies; such situations typically are dealt with through diplomatic channels.
"All three IARU regions are coordinating efforts to collect observations and forward them to the proper authorities to follow up on this," Skolaut said. "As you probably remember, this jamming occurred almost two years ago and was primarily heard on 14.260 and 18.160 MHz."
W1AW Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, said the jammer is interfering with PSK transmission on 14.070 MHz at W1AW, the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station. "It is sounding clear now, but when the jamming was present, signals peaked around S9 + 5-10 dB, depending on antenna orientation. Weak PSK31 signals -- normally copyable -- were obliterated, with only strong PSK31 signals making it through. So while operating PSK31 was still doable, the interference/jamming greatly curtailed casual operating," Carcia said.
According to Bihlmayer, the jammer (whom Region 1 monitors have dubbed Firedrake) plays oriental-type music and originates from the Chinese government in an attempt to block out the Sound of Hope short wave broadcasts. The Sound of Hope refers to itself as "a Chinese language media network providing an alternative to China's state controlled media with news and cultural programming. Radio Free China (RFC) is Sound of Hope's project to reach listeners in Mainland China with programming beyond the control of China's omnipresent blockade of free information."
Information on the Intruder Watch program can be found in the June 2007 issue of QST.
REVISED Jun 13, 2008 09:21 ET
Hams on Hand as Floods Sweep across Midwest US
When severe thunderstorms started to threaten the Midwestern United States with tornadoes, hail, severe lightning and rain starting on June 4, state agencies were quick to call on Amateur Radio operators for assistance.
Indiana
The Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) activated ARES members to help out with communication efforts, providing radios for those amateurs who offered to help. ARRL Indiana Section Emergency Coordinator Tony Langer, W9AL, said hams were instrumental in many ways, including assisting in Emergency Operations Centers, sand bagging, helping out in shelters and even aiding in rescue efforts.
This storm brought 12 confirmed tornadoes to 11 Indiana counties, with some communities reporting up to 11 inches of water, Langer said; 20 counties were under a State of Emergency. On June 9, President Bush declared 29 counties in central Indiana a major disaster area, opening up the region to receive federal aid and FEMA assistance. Four people perished in the storms.
In a call put out to Amateur Radio operators on June 8, IDHS said, "The flood waters have impacted several counties here in Indiana severely. Ham Radio operators have been operating continuously since activated and are growing weary. Some counties do not have a vast amount of active hams to relieve these tired operators." Specific areas needing amateur assistance were overnight relief operators at the Bartholomew County EOC, as well as the EOC and three shelters in Columbus County.
Marion County (Indiana) Emergency Coordinator Mike Palmer, N9FEB, called on ARES members in his area to help out. "People might think, 'Why not just use telephones or cell phones?' Well, many phones are not working down there at this time. With the high waters, electric transformers are out all over; even those servicing cell towers are out. Even with today's technology, we find ourselves looking at ham radio to assist. If you can spare a few hours or an entire evening, please consider helping."
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels called in the United States Coast Guard to assist in evacuations and rescues. The Coast Guard responded by sending two helicopters to the state along with boats and personnel. The Indiana National Guard was called out to assist in evacuation and direct traffic and enforce road blocks on the many flooded roads.
Wisconsin
Torrents of rain also brought flooding to Wisconsin. On June 9, five counties -- Vernon, Columbia, Richland, Rock and Sauk Counties -- had requested aid from Amateur Radio operators, ranging from backup communications to disaster assessment and flooding communications. One county called on ARES members to provide patrols of the flooded areas overnight on Tuesday and Wednesday. Two counties, Vernon and Columbia, were the only two that have requested mutual aid at this point.
According to ARRL Wisconsin Section Emergency Coordinator Bill Niemuth, KB9ENO, approximately 90 ARES members responded to the call for assistance. "In Columbia County, ARES members provided dam monitoring communications early in the flooding. These communications gave critical information to public safety officials about two dams that were nearly compromised. Due to falling water levels, this activity has been discontinued, but hams remain on standby due to the threat of additional heavy rain," Niemuth said.
Richland County ARES members remain activated, Niemuth said. "Hams are providing a variety of services, including fielding information calls in the County's Emergency Operations Center and providing specialized communications for disaster assessment by hover craft and airplane. These communications are in addition to providing traditional ham radio communication links between the EOC and evacuation shelters."
On Thursday, June 12, more rains inundated the state and more counties requested aid from area Amateur Radio operators. Niemuth said Winnebago County ARES members are providing damage assessment assistance in the county and in the City of Oshkosh, while hams in Fond du Lac are helping out with shelter communications. ARES teams in Marquette and Outagamie are providing back-up communications and flooding reports to their respective Emergency Operations Centers. -- Information provided by ARRL Indiana Section Emergency Coordinator Tony Langer, W9AL, and ARRL Wisconsin Section Manager Don Michalsi, W9IXG
July 2008
Kid's Day Rules
Purpose: Kids Day is an on-air event to encourage young people (licensed or not) to have fun with Amateur Radio. It is designed to give on-the-air experience to youngsters and hopefully foster interest in getting a license of their own. It is also intended to give older hams a chance to share their station and love for Amateur Radio with their children.
Dates:Saturday, June 21, 2008, 1800z – 2400z. Operate as much or as little as you like.
Fun was the apparent result of a successful recipe--a recipe that included lots of preplanning, food, and Ham Radio. At the Indianapolis the Red Cross Chapter house, the Red Cross radio disaster group sponsored its very first Kids Day event. [Full Story]
Suggested exchange: Name, age, location and favorite color. Be sure to work the same station again if an operator has changed. To draw attention, call "CQ Kids Day."
Suggested Frequencies: 28.350 to 28400 MHz, 24.960 to 24.980 MHz, 21.360 to 21.400 MHz, 18.140 to 18.145 MHz, 14.270 to 14.300 MHz, 7.270 to 7.290 MHz, 3.740 to 3.940 MHz, as well as your favorite 2-meter repeater (with permission of the repeater's sponsor). Be sure to observe third-party restrictions when making DX QSOs.
Reporting: Logs and comments may be posted on the Internet. Those without Internet access may forward comments to the Boring Amateur Radio Club (see address below).
Awards: All participants are eligible to receive a colorful certificate. You can download this certificate for free, customized with the youngster's names, after filling out the Kids Day Survey. Alternatively, you can send a 9" x 12" SASE to Boring Amateur Radio Club, PO Box 1357, Boring, OR 97009. You can also join an email reflector for Kids Day. More info can be found at: http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/kids
MILITARY AFFILIATE RADIO SYSTEM
FORT HUACHUCA, ARIZONA 85613-7070
For immediate release
Free Fathers' Day Messages for Soldiers Overseas
If Jeff Hammer gets his way, he'll be an awfully busy soldier in the run-up to Father's Day June 15. Captain Hammer represents the Army Military Affiliate Radio System in Iraq, and he has appealed to the families of troops deployed overseas to shower down with holiday messages for their loved ones.
These free messages—called MARSgrams—date back to the Korean War when many thousands were delivered. The service continued in Vietnam and the first Gulf War, but had fallen off with the advent of e-mail and cell phones.
As the military's Middle East operations continue, however, responses from the area have indicated soldiers treasure the printed MARSgrams as mementos of their deployment, not just a greeting. E-mail just isn't the same. MARSgram traffic spurted last Thanksgiving and Christmas. As for Father's Day MARSgrams, "I am 100 per cent set up to deal with them," Captain Hammer said. "Request you do a media blitz."
Army MARS is a Defense Department-sponsored organization of more than 2,700 amateur radio operators who provide emergency communications backup for government agencies in times of civil calamity. Active-duty service personnel may also join. Parallel MARS units serve the Air Force and Navy-Marine Corps.
A National Guardsman from Indiana, Hammer arrived in Baghdad this spring. He previously served in Afghanistan. In addition to volunteering for the MARS assignment, he is acting as station custodian for the Baghdad Amateur Radio Society. He shipped in
his own low-power ham station and began direct receipt of messages May 25. Hammer has to shoehorn his volunteer amateur radio activity into off-duty hours.
Sunday night (June 1) five soldiers including Hammer gathered for a meeting of the Baghdad ham club. The subject was preparing for the hoped-for Father's Day traffic. After a period of instruction on MARS procedure during which the participants wrote their own MARSgrams, Hammer took the members to his personal MARS station to attempt transmission despite difficult propagation conditions.
"We are only running 5 watts on a Yaesu 817 [a small portable shortwave transceiver], but we wanted to give it a try if for no other reason than to see the equipment and demonstrate the procedure," Hammer messaged afterward. "God must have been smiling down on us because after only a few attempts we connected to AEN3QT (Qatar) on the 40 meter band and got all the messages through without any problems."
"I am proud to announce," said Hammer, "that we, Army MARS, are on our way to making some history here."
Family members can easily send free MARSgrams overseas by entering their message on the web site www.mymars.org. The Army MARS WinLink system automatically relays the Iraq-bound messages to Hammer and his helpers, who produce printouts and envelopes and hand them on to the Military Postal Service for final delivery. A MARSgram travels much faster than ordinary mail and can be delivered wherever American troops serve.
This news release is submitted by:
Bonner Pittman
AAR4FW
Charlotte NC.
bonner@bk2.us
Wide-Area coverage... 
Repeaters exist for the purpose of expanding the range of mobile and hand-held transceivers. Once a contact is made on a repeater, your QSO is open for anyone to join in - so remember to allow time between transmissions for others to do so. If you wish to have a relatively more private conversation, it is appropriate to move to a simplex frequency - or at least, another lower profile repeater that all stations involved in your QSO can reach.
The appropriate amount of time to use a repeater can vary during the time of the day. For example; During commute hours perhaps two or three minutes is all that should be used... while off-hours, or even "middle-of-the-night" sessions would allow for longer QSOs.
A good operator identifies correctly.
FCC rules require a station to identify every ten minutes and at the end of a QSO. Repeating the other stations call sign and your call sign following every transmission is the mark of a poor operator. Most of us are acquainted with each other. We often recognize each-other's voices without any further identification being necessary and when we meet each other in person, we address each other by our names rather than our calls.
A good operator uses plain English and avoids jargon. 
FM repeater communication is essentially as clear as a telephone call. In addition to avoiding needless repetition, a key to good communication on fm repeater contacts is the use of plain English. There is no radio-ese. There is no appropriate jargon. Q-signals, pro signs and phonetics are not appropriate for fm operation except in the most unusual circumstances. Those circumstances exist when your signal cannot otherwise be understood. Normally, before a signal deteriorates to that point, communication becomes impossible.
If you hear things that are not suitable on the repeater ask that person if he or she could stop or go to a simplex frequency, do not get into a disagreement on the air, take and record the amateur operators call sign and the frequency, and the time of the incident, hopefullyit wouldn't have to go this far but sometimes their are some who do not respect others and it happens.....Send your complaints to the repeater owner or control operator.. It can be dealt with accordingly!
A good operator does not overuse the repeater.
The repeater is a shared resource.
--
Rick Sawaya Sr N4JTQ Amateur Extra Class &
Cathy Sawaya KI4YPO Amateur General Class
2005 Spence Mountain Loop
Sevierville,TN 37876
865.429.2422
Monitor 145.470 & 444.300,146.940,147.075
Member Of SCARS,ECARS,SSCC
OMISS,MWCC
Donations to the 145.470 send to:
Tim Berry
214 Echodale Rd
Knoxville TN 37920
--
Rick Sawaya Sr N4JTQ &
Cathy Sawaya KI4YPO
2005 Spence Mountain Loop
Sevierville,TN 37876
865.429.2422
Monitor 145.470 & 444.300
Member Of SCARS,ECARS,SSCC
OMISS,MWCC
Donations to the 145.470 send to:
Tim Berry
214 Echodale Rd
Knoxville TN 37920
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