Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2029, Sept. 15, 2016

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2029 with a release date of Friday,
Sept. 15, 2016 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST.  Ohio hams stage their own "parks on the air"
celebration. A number of radio amateurs are among this year's Radio Club of
America honorees. An Arizona library adds some critical ham radio equipment
-- and our top story: HR 1301, the Amateur Radio Parity Act, passes in the
House of Representatives. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report
Number 2029 comes your way right now.

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BILLBOARD CART HERE


****

HOUSE PASSES AMATEUR RADIO PARITY ACT

PAUL: We begin this week’s report with the big announcement out of
Washington, D.C. that the House of Representatives passed HR 1301, otherwise
known as the Amateur Radio Parity Act. The measure now goes to the Senate for
similar discussion and vote.

While this is great news and brings hams one step closer to potential freedom
from restrictive land-use rules and covenants, one ham would like us to
remember that we also need to work on our state legislatures
to pass companion bills to strengthen the message of HR 1301.

Larry Scantlan, KE Zero K Zed, has been directly involved with a similar bill
in Missouri. Scantlan moved back from Florida when he retired and into the
house where his new wife had been living in Wentzville,
Missouri. Shortly thereafter, he decided to become active in ham radio again.
And then came a surprise:

LARRY: A friend of mine gave me a vertical antenna and I put it against my
deck. My wife and I went on vacation to Branson and when I came back I had
received a letter in the mail from the City of Wentzville informing me that I
was in violation of city ordinance with this antenna. Well, I thought that
was rather strange. You know, I was well aware of HOA issues but not with the
city. But the bottom line is I was able to successfully get them to change
the ordinance in favor of ham radio operators. Not just me but there are
approximately 100 licensed ham radio operators in Wentzville on the books.
Not only did their ordinance restrict antennas but it was written in such a
way that you couldn't even have amateur radio equipment inside of your home
unless you filed a request to have that equipment in your house.

PAUL: That experience opened his eyes to the potential plight of others:

LARRY: In that process I discovered the reality is that I am not the only one
who deals with these kinds of issues and more importantly, with respect to
the HOAs. And as I became more familiar with the Amateur Radio Parity Act on
the federal side of things I felt like oftentimes it's the states who end up
determining things anyway. We are independent, united states and oftentimes
even though there may be federal legislation it's often helpful to have
companion legislation at the state level.That gives it that much more weight
in the legal course of action that ends up happening.

PAUL: Scantlan and his team managed to get a bill sponsored by their local
representatives and then got good news, followed by bad news:

LARRY; We were able to get through the House. We successfully won all the
votes, all of the challenges, through the two committees they had to go
through as well as the full House floor debate and vote which we felt was
pretty incredible. And then it was submitted to the Senate and we started the
long hard process again of trying to relay to these senators just how
important this was. It was submitted to committee. And on the committee there
were 2 or 3 people who were very pro what we were trying to accomplish.
Unfortunately, the chairman of that committee, for whatever reason, took a
position to table the matter and said there wasn't enough public interest. I
found it very concerning that one man could make a unilateral decision even
after the House of Representatives, after all that, and there were several
people who were on his own committee who were wanting this to move forward
into debate. He alone made this decision.

PAUL: Larry intends to keep fighting, and will work to get the bill brought
back up before the Senate. He wantd to emphasize that even if restrictions
don’t affect you now, you never know when life may dictate
that you move, and you may very well end up without the ability to practice
amateur radio. So it’s important to all hams to get behind efforts such as
these and what the A-Double-R-L is doing in Washington.

He also said it was crucial for all hams to get the word out to the community
about what amateur radio really is, how we are all tested and licensed, and
provide a crucial communications service in times of
emergency. In other words, we all need to work to build up our image.

For the full conversation, please go to our website, triple-w dot arnewsline
dot org and click on the “extra” tab.

We also encourage you to write to your Senators in support of HR 1301, as
this is critical to the future of our hobby here in the United States.

**

DESPITE RAIN, OHIO STATE PARKS GET ON AIR

PAUL/ANCHOR: The National Parks on the Air centennial doesn't offer the only
ham radio celebration of beautiful places in the great outdoors. There are
plenty of parks in Ohio that recently got into the act, too. Here's Amateur
Radio Newsline's Stephen Kinford, N8WB.

STEPHEN: Organizers of the 9th annual Ohio State Parks On The Air contest
were counting on more operators than ever this year on Saturday, September
10, as 59 of the state's 74 parks were being activated. What they hadn't
counted on was the storm front that swept through Ohio halfway through the
eight-hour contest. Hail, rain, wind and lightning prompted most of the
stations to halt operations and only a few got back on the air after the
weather had cleared.

Like its counterpart at the national parks level, which it helped inspire,
the Ohio state contest encourages outdoor and portable operations and is also
viewed as a good way for hams involved in emergency communications to assure
that their gear is functioning. It was created in 2008 by the Portage County
Amateur Radio Society.

According to the event's chairman, Tom KB8UUZ, even as organizers await
arrival of final scores and statistics by November 1, they are already
working on the event for 2017, which will be held September 9. They're hoping
for the usual high level of participation, and definitely better weather.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Stephen Kinford, N8WB, in Wadsworth, Ohio

(OHIO STATE PARKS ON THE AIR)

**

RADIO CLUB OF AMERICA HONORS HAMS

PAUL: In just a few weeks, radio amateurs are going to share the spotlight
with broadcast professionals and others in the wireless world, as the Radio
Club of America confers honors at its 107th annual banquet. Here's Amateur
Radio Newsline's Bobby Best, WX4ALA.

BOBBY: The Radio Club of America, the world's oldest group of wireless
communications professionals, has set aside November 18th as its day to honor
a number of men and women for their contributions to and achievements in
radio and a number of radio amateurs are on that list. They'll be among the
recipients of awards being given at the RCA's 107th banquet in Manhattan on
that day.

One of them, William T. Murphy, W0RSJ, will receive the Sarnoff Citation for
his work in electronic communication. Joseph H. Taylor, K1JT, will be
recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award, for his life's work with
wireless technology. The Fred M. Link Award will go to Dan Clark, W9VV, for
his work in land mobile radio communication. Stanley Reubenstein, WA6RNU,
will receive the Barry Goldwater Amateur Radio Award, for his contributions
to Amateur Radio.

The Ralph Batcher Memorial Award will be given to Marc F. Ellis, N9EWJ, for
his work in keeping the history of radio and electronic communications
preserved. For his devotion to military communications work, Robert A. Rude,
K0RAR, will be given the Frank A. Gunther Award.

Another radio amateur, John E. Dettra Jr, WB4NBF, has been selected to
receive the President's Award for his work devoted to the Radio Club of
America itself.

The club is also elevating a number of people to Fellow, and the newest group
of Fellows will count several amateurs among its membership.

For more details about the banquet and the award recipients, visit the club
website, radioclubofamerica.org

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bobby Best, WX4ALA.

(RADIO CLUB OF AMERICA)


**
HAMS NEEDED FOR CHARITY RIDE

PAUL: When the Ride to Defeat ALS steps off on Sunday the 25th of September
in Worcester, Massachusetts, organizers are hoping to give participants the
best assurance of safety: the watchful eyes of amateur radio operators. If
you are in the Worcester area and and could volunteer your time, the
Worcester Emergency Communications Team would welcome you. The 70-mile
bicycle route is more of a charitable event than a true competitive race. It
begins at 6 a.m. and ends at 3 p.m., but some stations open as late as 9 a.m.
and close as early as 11 a.m., so contact Ben NB1H at nb1h@wect.org if you're
interested.

Bring your HT. The event makes use of both 2m and 70cm linked repeaters.

(WORCESTER EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS TEAM)

**

HAMS NEEDED FOR MARINE CORPS MARATHON

PAUL: Hams are also needed to assist with communications at the 41st running
of the U.S. Marine Corps Marathon in the Washington, D.C. area on Sunday,
October 30. An estimated 25,000 runners step off near Arlington National
Cemetery and continue into Washington itself, ending at the Marine Corps War
Memorial back in Arlington after completing 26.2 miles. Because the race
travels past so many monuments, it is nicknamed "The Marathon of the
Monuments."

Hams will be needed to staff mile markers, water points, food stops, medical
aid stations and other locations as well as help with logistical
communications in cooperation with law-enforcement and emergency workers. For
more information, contact Howard WD5DBC, the marathon's communications
director, at howardc@macrollc.com

(ARRL)

**

BREAK HERE:

Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline,
heard on bulletin stations around the world, including the SPARC club
repeater for the Sportsman's Paradise Amateur Radio Club, K4WAK, in Wakulla
County, Florida in time for the Friday afternoon commute.

**

NO MYSTERY TO THIS ENIGMA

PAUL: The Enigma Machine that played a key role during World War II is now
serving as an inspiration for an exercise in encryption that draws
participation from hams worldwide. We hear more from Amateur Radio Newsline's
Jeremy Boot, G4NJH.

JEREMY: During World War II, Germany made wide and successful use of its
notorious and highly complex message-coder known as the Enigma Machine. These
days, among radio amateurs, the concept of enigma has come to mean something
else -- a fun challenge at deciphering communications and a test of one's
ability at finding meaning in code. At least, that's how it has been since
2014 when the Enigma event, an international on-air exchange of encrypted
messages began as a cooperation between the Marine Museum of La Spezia in
Italy and the Cultural Association Rover Joe in Fidenza. It has also received
major support from the Italian Radio Amateur Association.

This year's formal Enigma Reloaded Contest begins on the 17th of September
and runs through the 1st of October. On that final day of the event, in
October, the exchange will involve encrypted messages. Despite the
encryption, the messages are designed to be easy to solve and the content
will be made publicly available, either through a web-based Enigma emulator
or some other means.

It doesn't take much deciphering however, to appreciate the real goal of the
annual event: to get as many radio amateurs around the world as possible
involved and on the air.

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

(ENIGMA RELOADED WEBSITE)

**

TIGNISH LIGHTHOUSE SPEAKS TO THE WORLD

PAUL: The allure of a contact with a lighthouse never dims, especially if the
lighthouse is in a rare and special location such as Prince Edward Island,
Canada. Amateur Radio Newsline's John Williams, VK4JJW, explains.

JOHN: You don't need to wait for next year's International Lighthouse and
Lightship Weekend in August to add to your collection of lighthouse contacts.
In fact, if you are especially hoping to collect contacts with lighthouses in
somewhat rare locations and even add to your list from Islands on the Air,
this lighthouse will be a beacon for both of those pursuits. On Friday,
September 23 through Sunday afternoon, September 25, members of the Prince
Edward Island Amateur Radio Group are activating the Tignish Run lighthouse
in the Fisherman's Haven Park.

The three-story lighthouse, which was built in 1880 and decommisioned in
1997, has been designated as CAN-036 by the Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society.

This is one coveted contact however, that carries the added bonus of being an
island location. Prince Edward Island, in Atlantic Canada, is listed with
Islands On The Air as NA-029.

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

(GEORGE DEWAR, VY2GF, PEI LIGHTHOUSE SOCIETY)


**

MORE THAN BOOKS AT ARIZONA LIBRARY

PAUL: One Arizona library is adding something unusual to its vast collection:
an antenna and a repeater. We hear more from Amateur Radio Newsline's Neil
Rapp, WB9VPG.

NEIL: The latest addition to the Centennial Public Library in La Paz County,
Arizona isn't a new wing or multi-media room or even a first edition of a
collectible book -- it's going to be a ham radio antenna and radio repeater.
On September 6, the county's Board of Supervisors voted to allow the
installation of the radio equipment, after hearing from Dave Anderson, K1AN,
president of the group applying and the Arizona Amateur Radio Association.
Dave said the ham radio group gives special priority to encouraging
youngsters to participate in ham radio. He'd asked the supervisors for
permission to install the antenna and repeater so his group could bring
services into the McMullen Valley, which has challenging, mountainous terrain.

According to the Parker Pioneer newspaper, Anderson told the supervisors that
his group's genesis came about a year ago when it became apparent to him that
the youngsters living in the county's 22 communities were not only struggling
with poverty but also the geographic isolation of that region of Arizona,
which has fewer than 1 child per square mile in the county. He envisioned
amateur radio as a way of linking the children into a cohesive community able
to talk with one another. The strategy worked, he added: There are now 34
young amateur radio licensees who got their tickets within the last eight
months.

Anderson said the vote of support meant the group could increase its coverage
beyond the present 12 communities using the My La Paz Radio System and of
course the public library.

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

(PARKER PIONEER NEWSPAPER)


**

THE WORLD OF DX

In the world of DX, a special event station is underway through Nov. 15 in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. Members of the Radio Club Kakanj, E73EKK, and Cement
factory Kakanj are activating the callsign, E703QLA, in what they are calling
the "Third Ecological Project in organization of Heidelberg Cement Group."
Find them using CW, SSB and RTTY on 80/40/20/17/15/12 and 10 meters. Incoming
QSL cards should be sent via QSL manager, E71CQ. The club asks as well for
IRC or 2 U.S. dollars to cover direct mailing costs, with a self-addressed
envelope.

Andre, IZ1MHY, will be on the air as 8Q7MD from the Alimatha Resort, Felidhoo
Atoll between October 2nd and 12th, working holiday style on 40-10 meters. He
will be using SSB, JT-65, SIM31, RTTY and possibly
other Digital modes. Send QSL cards via 9A8ARS by the Bureau, LoTW, eQSL or
directly to IZ1MHY.

Listen for Herb, N4RG, in Namibia and possibly Ascension Island until
September. 29th. His call sign from Ascension Island is ZD8RG. It was
announced at press time what his Namibia call sign was going to be. He will
be operating during his spare time on 160 meters through 10 meters, working
CW and SSB. Send QSL cards to his home call sign.

Finally, listen for Frank, PH2M, in the Canary Islands. He will be active as
EA8/homecall from
Lazarote Island from September 25th through October 6th, working holiday
style on 40-10 meters. Frank will be using SSB only. Send QSL cards via his
home callsign or by the Bureau.

(OHIO PENN DX BULLETIN)


**
KICKER: A SEPT. 11 REMEMBRANCE

PAUL: Finally, we look at an annual ritual for one ham who understands - as
any radio operator might - that often the best tribute one can pay is through
audio, no matter how painful it might be to hear. Such is the case with this
year's 15th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks. Here's Amateur Radio
Newsline's Mike Askins, KE5CXP, with that story.

MIKE: The September 11 terror attacks of 2001 included the destruction of New
York City's Twin Towers and nearly 3,000 lives in New York alone on that day.

An Air Force and Army veteran and husband of an active Air Force member who
is also a ham, Mark Lacy W5TXR turns part of his website over, each year, to
air some audio that is forever frozen in time. These are the logging tapes of
the calls that went out to New York City's emergency responders on that day,
as buildings collapsed, as people became trapped and as help arrived,
sometimes to no avail. In many cases, the voices that remain on these
recordings belong to people who vanished forever.

The website also includes the FAA-NORAD audio featuring communications
between air traffic control and the doomed airliners as the attacks unfolded.

Mark told Amateur Radio Newsline recently that he shares the audio on his
website each year because QUOTE "I am a patriot. And I don't want people to
forget." ENDQUOTE

This is how things happened. Every year, we listen and we remember. Visit
www.w5txr.net and click on "historical audio archives" until the 25th of
September and you can hear it too, thanks to Mark. It is unforgettable which
is, of course, the whole point. When we think collectively of that single
painful day, no, we can never forget.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Mike Askins, KE5CXP.

(MARK LACY, W5TXR)

**

NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Alan Labs; the ARRL; Amateur Radio Europe; CQ
Magazine; Gizmodo; Hap Holly and the Rain Report; the IARU; Irish Radio
Transmitter Society; Mark Lacy W5TXR; Ohio-Penn DX Bulletin; QRZ; Ohio State
Parks on the Air; Parker Pioneer Newspaper; PEI Lighthouse Society; Radio
Club of America; Southgate Amateur Radio News; Ted Randall's QSO Radio Show;
Wireless Institute of Australia; Worcester Emergency Communications Team;
WTWW Shortwave; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio
Newsline. Please send emails to our address at newsline@arnewsline.org. 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 Paul Braun, WD9GCO, in Valparaiso, Indiana saying 73
and as always we thank you for listening.

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



-- 



73
James
KB7TBT
www.arnewsline.org



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