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   IN NATIONAL NEWS THIS WEEK:-   
      
   WIA Director Peter Clee VK8ZZ. -   
      
   WIA RD Contest Manager and last call for logs. -   
      
   With the dreadful news coming out of Porepunkah, a rural town 320 km   
   northeast of Melbourne, of the ambushing of police and the ultimate   
   slaying of 2, it is even more poignant to try and work VI 8 POL on air   
   13-29 September. It concludes on National Police Remembrance Day 29th   
   September, a day dedicated to honouring and remembering police officers   
   who have lost their lives in the line of duty. -   
      
   BUT WAIT - THERE'S MUCH MUCH MORE IN THIS EDITION OF NEWS FROM THE   
   WIRELESS INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA FOR WEEK COMMENCING SUNDAY AUGUST 31.   
      
   I'M EDITOR GRAHAM VK4BB   
      
   WIA   
      
   JOIN THE WIA   
   tinyurl.com/yyj87b9y   
      
   WIA Director Peter Clee VK8ZZ   
      
   Last weekend I attended the TOKYO Ham Fair. It was great to see several   
   Australian Amateurs in attendance. The Tokyo event was a major draw card   
   for amateurs and non-amateurs alike. Official numbers for the event was   
   around 40,000 people over the two days.   
      
   Saturday was the official opening of the Tokyo Ham Fair. This event was   
   hosted by the JARL and was officiated by President of the JARL who was   
   joined by representatives from JARL, IARU and IARU Region 3 in the   
   ribbon cutting ceremony.   
      
   The trade displays were amazing, with the release of the new   
   IC-7300 Mark 2. That stand was very well attended and the new rig   
   a major drawcard. All of their products were on display including the   
   IC-905 with the 24GHz module and a cutaway version of the antenna. Not to   
   be outdone, on display elsewhere was all of the variations for the FTX-1   
   series of transceivers. As well as all of their mobiles, handhelds and   
   the very popular DR-2X Repeater.   
      
   It was also a used equipment megafest. I must say that I managed  to pick   
   up a few bargains on the weekend.   
      
   Saturday night was the official dinner and I attended representing the   
   Wireless Institute of Australia. Most of the IARU R3 societies were   
   represented at that dinner.   
      
   The Sunday saw a huge number of amateurs attend and it was certainly well   
   attended.   
      
   This has been WIA Director Peter Clee VK8ZZ, JL1GBI and 9V1ZZ signing off   
      
   DISCUSSON POINT   
      
   5 MHz denied VK radio amateurs in a deal â€" claim debunked   
      
   A claim that the WIA quote, “made a deal,â€� unquote, with the ACMA and   
   defence to deny quote, “all Australian amateurs access to the 5 MHz bandâ€�   
   unquote, has been debunked by those very agencies.   
      
   In February, an Australian amateur radio splinter group issued an   
   unattributed news release with an elaborate narrative constructed to make   
   the claim that, among other things, quote, “The WIA made a deal with the   
   Defense (sic) and the ACMA which included denying all Australian amateurs   
   access to the 5 MHz band.â€�, unquote.   
      
   This allegation was reinforced in March in a weekly amateur radio   
   broadcast from VK6ARN, when an announcer claimed the contents of the news   
   release were, quote, “trueâ€�, “verifiableâ€�, and that   
   â€œcorrespondenceâ€�,   
      
   unquote, exists in support.   
      
   Seeking the facts, I (Bruce VK3WL) wrote to the relevant ministers asking   
   if there was any truth in the claims. The Minister for Defence referred   
   my correspondence to the Minister for Communications, who asked the   
   relevant department to reply.   
      
   On 15 August, I received an official reply from the Department of   
   Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport   
   and the Arts.  [ Visit: tinyurl.com/5MHZ2ru ]   
      
   Mr Andrew Irwin, an Assistant Secretary at the department, reiterates the   
   official reasons why 5 MHz access for amateurs was not supported;   
   itâ€(tm)s about balancing, quote, “the existing uses of the band against   
   the   
      
   impacts of introducing use by the amateur service,â€�, unquote,   
   after considering public submissions. You can download this letter from a   
   URL in the text version of this broadcast. tinyurl.com/5MHZ2ru   
      
   Of significance, is interdepartmental correspondence between the ACMA and   
   the department I have seen, making it abundantly clear that there is,   
   quote, “no such evidenceâ€�, unquote, any deal took place between the ACMA,   
   Defence, and the WIA.   
      
   Surely, the amateur radio community and the WIA deserve both a retraction   
   of the false allegations as well as a public apology from the discredited   
   splinter group and VK6ARN?   
      
   73   
   Bruce Kendall VK3WL   
   ------------------------------------------------------------*   
   INTERNATIONAL NEWS is with thanks to Amateur Radio Daily, ARRL,   
   DX-WORLD, eHam, Hackaday, IARU, IRTS, NEWSLINE, NZART,  RAC,   
   Radioworld.com, RSGB, SARL and the World Wide sources of WIA.   
   AST SpaceMobile, which has asked the FCC for permission to use amateur radio   
   frequencies for a planned constellation of satellites providing   
   cellular-based broadband service, has announced it expects to have launched   
   between 45 and 60 satellites by next year.   
      
      
   The company said that it plans satellite deployments every one to two   
   months into 2026 and expects to begin providing service in the United States   
   by the end of this year. In the first quarter of next year, the company hopes   
   to begin rolling out service as well in Canada, the UK and Japan.   
      
      
   In two separate deals pending, the company is planning to acquire use of   
   portions of the S-band and L-band spectrum for global delivery of its   
   services.   
      
      
   AST SpaceMobile, which is considered a rival to SpaceX, was recently approved   
   to use the amateur radio band on an experimental basis for a low-earth orbit   
   satellite - a prototype known as FM1. It was assigned the callsign WP2XRX,   
   which is valid through the 1st of July, 2027. The company plans to use the 70   
   cm amateur frequencies to conduct telemetry, tracking, and telecommand   
   between ground stations and its satellites.   
      
      
   The Malaysian Amateur Radio Transmitters Society (MARTS) has once again   
   made history by sending an official delegation to participate in the   
   Japan Amateur Radio League (JARL) Ham Fair 2025.   
      
   MARTS President Mohd Aris Bernawi said the JARL Ham Fair, the largest   
   amateur radio exhibition in Asia, was held in Tokyo. He said MARTS's   
   involvement in the exhibition highlights its important role in the   
   international amateur radio community, in line with MARTS's slogan of   
   "providing service through radio."   
      
   Still at the Japanese Hamfest and exciting news last weekend especially   
   if you are into Icom   
      
   Up first, there's a new Icom IC-7300 MK2 on the way.   
      
   The IC-7300 MK2 is a next-generation compact HF transceiver, building on   
   the worldwide success of the IC-7300 which has already sold over 100,000   
   units globally. There has been no official price announcement from Icom   
   as yet.   
      
   A couple of features of the IC-7300MK2 include:   
   Lower Heat Generation and Lower Power Consumption along with an HDMI Port   
      
   Up next was the Icom ID-5200, a successor to the popular Icom ID-5100.   
      
   The ID-5200 is a versatile 144/430 MHz dual-band transceiver with support   
   for both FM and DV (Digital Voice) modes. A key feature is its ability to   
   perform simultaneous dual reception of FM - FM, FM - DV and DV - DV   
   signals.   
      
   In India, officials are taking aim against the sale and marketing of   
   hand-held radios that they say violate consumer and telecommunications   
   regulations.   
      
      
   Yes the authorities in India have announced a crackdown on the listing and   
   sale of  hand-held transceivers from China that they say break laws governing   
   consumer protection and the unauthorised use of radio frequencies.   
      
      
   Stories in various Indian media outlets identify some of the 13 e-commerce   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)