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   L.C.A.S. ADMITTED TO IARU MEMBERSHIP   
      
   On 21 January 2025, voting was completed on Proposal No 266 concerning   
   the admission of the Libyan Communications Amateur Society (LCAS) to   
   IARU membership.   
      
   With 52 affirmative votes required for approval, there were 61 votes in   
   favour, no votes in opposition, and no abstentions.   
      
   Accordingly, Proposal 266 has been adopted.   
   IARU Region 1 Monitoring System Newsletter   
      
   The first IARU Region 1 Monitoring System newsletter of 2025 has been   
   published. The January edition highlights that almost one thousand   
   transmissions of powerful over the horizon radar signals were recorded   
   in the HF amateur bands for January alone.   
      
   Transmissions associated with the Russian Ukrainian radio war continue   
   to dominate reports as well.   
      
   I made mention there of the Russian Ukrainian radio war. Well it's taken a   
   turn or two for the worst.   
      
   Electronics firm RigExperts administrative office, in Kyiv, Ukraine, has   
   been destroyed by a Russian ballistic missile. All employees are reported   
   to be safe.   
      
   RigExpert is a leading manufacturer of antenna and cable analysers and   
   officials said they are committed to restoring operations as soon as   
   possible. Our top priority is the safety of our team and the continuity   
   of our operations, said Ashot Andeev, Chief Executive Officer. While our   
   administrative office is in ruins, our production facilities survived,   
   allowing us to continue serving our customers and partners.   
      
   The news this week has been consistently bad, but Ukrainians frequently   
   carry on as if nothing has changed. This is because in a way little does   
   change, if youre dealing in daily life, not headlines. The reality is the   
   fight, in whatever form that takes Zaporizhzhia Radio Club lost its   
   windows to one of the nightly drone attacks... and got down to fixing   
   them.   
      
   "A mobile air defence group was chasing a drone and it just happened to be   
   shot down over the workshop. It's not news," said Myk, the chairman. Just   
   another day for a Ukrainian volunteer workshop, with a few extra tasks   
   rebuilding place after military attack. As the name suggests, the club,   
   which has a few dozen members, was founded for ham  radio enthusiasts in   
   Zaporizhzhia city and oblast. They teach young people to design and   
   assemble various electronic devices, broadcast and communicate digitally   
   and in Morse code.   
      
   Allan Boyd, VE3AJB RAC President and Chair has announced the selection   
   of Mike Kelly, VE3FFK as the recipient of the RAC Amateur of the Year   
   Award for 2024.   
      
   With over five decades as an Amateur, Mike, VE3FFK, has volunteered   
   countless hours as a member of the Ottawa Amateur Radio Club.   
      
   My Amateur career began as a teenager intrigued by the sounds of Morse on   
   an old all wave radio, and wanting to figure out what those guys were   
   saying. That led to a course with the Ottawa Amateur Radio Club and   
   eventually a few Executive positions there over the years. One of those   
   positions was the club's designated Delegated Examiner in around 1993,   
   something I still enjoy doing". Mike said.   
      
   An interest in public service events led to several years volunteering for   
   the Canadian Ski Marathon, the Rideau Lakes Bicycle Tour, several car   
   rallies, soccer tournaments and road running events. Other interests   
   included bicycle mobile HF and VHF operating, and portable operation   
   before it became as popular as it is today.   
      
   Radio Amateurs of Canada sincerely congratulates Mike Kelly, VE3FFK, on   
   his appointment as Amateur of the Year for 2024.   
      
   New Zealand's Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE)   
   is seeking feedback on changes to radio spectrum licence fees.   
      
   These fees recover the costs of managing New Zealands radio spectrum   
   regulatory system, including maintaining the Register of Radio   
   Frequencies, issuing licences, and investigating interference and for   
   the past eight years, fees have been set below actual costs due to a   
   historic surplus. As the surplus is nearly depleted, MBIE is adjusting   
   fees to ensure full cost recovery. The proposed changes shift fees from   
   an under-recovering level to full recovery.   
      
   Under consideration, two fee options.   
      
   Needed from the New Zealand spectrum users, their preferred option   
   Alternative options   
   and how the changes may impact businesses   
      
   The consultation is open until 5pm on 11 April, 2025.   
      
   HAM RADIO OPERATOR IS FRONT-RUNNER TO LEAD GERMANY   
      
   Although there are numerous amateur radio awards, such as DXCC and   
   Worked All Europe, Frederich Merz, DK7DQ, is hoping for an achievement   
   that could be thought of as Worked All Germany even though, in this   
   case, it's outside the realm of amateur radio.   
      
   Frederich Merz is leader of Germany's CDU party and a possible front   
   runner in this month's elections. A win would make the political   
   conservative the nation's new Chancellor and as such he would join the   
   ranks of other licensed heads around the world - most notably the late   
   King Hussein of Jordan, who held the callsign JY1, and the present   
   King of Thailand, whose callsign is HS1A.   
   Still in Germany and the German Amateur Radio Society will be holding the   
   48th HAM RADIO. From Friday, June 27 until Sunday, June 29th.  HAMs and   
   electronics enthusiasts from all over the world will meet again in   
   Friedrichshafen will hear topics such as:-   
   REMOTE RADIO  CONNECTING THE WORLD   
      
   LAWMAKERS RECONSIDER MEASURE TO PROTECT ANTENNAS IN HOAS   
      
   The US Congress has also returned to considering a measure giving hams   
   the right to install antennas that, until now, have been banned or   
   restricted by homeowner associations.   
      
   This is the latest version of the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness   
   Act, which has been considered by US lawmakers over the past several years   
   without taking any action.   
      
   The measure prohibits HOAs from writing rules that ban amateur radio   
   antennas, which are recognized as part of an essential disaster   
   communications system for public safety.  The act also provides hams with   
   a means of resolving disputes that arise in connection with their   
   antennas.   
      
   Paul Giamatti to Play Art Bell in Biopic Film   
      
   Publication Screen Rant reports of an upcoming film set to portray the   
   late Art Bell and his radio show Coast to Coast AM. Paul Giamatti is said   
   to be starring in the lead role.   
      
   With Giamatti, a two-time Oscar-nominated actor attached to star,   
   the Art Bell biopic has received a big boost in terms of its prestige.   
   The late paranormal DJ hosted the five-hour radio show, Coast to Coast,   
   which took unscreened calls from guests recounting allegedly firsthand   
   tales of alien encounters, reincarnation, time travel, and other phenomena   
   reminiscent of The X-Files. Bell even claimed to have had his own UFO   
   encounter. At the peak of its popularity during the 1990s, Coast to Coast   
   drew an audience of roughly 10 million listeners.   
      
   Amazon and Warner Bros. are said to be bidding on the project.   
      
   In addition to working as a radio host, Art Bell was an Amateur Radio   
   operator holding a license in the US W6 O BB and Philippines 4 F 1AB.   
   He was originally licensed at age 13.   
   -------------------------------------------------------------------   
   OPERATIONAL NEWS - A FELIX VK4FUQ PRESENTATION   
   The Board of the WIA has accepted the following distance record:-   
      
   *   50MHz Short-Path DIGITAL   
   *   Steve Gregory VK3ZAZ  to Jose Ribeiro de Sa CT1EEB   
   *   Date of contact  28/10/2024  @ 08:43 UTC   
   *   Distance claimed 17,479Km  exceeding the current record by 1,740Km   
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   --- SoupGate-DOS v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)