World War II Amateur Radio Use

In the last post I talked about the use of Ham Radio for emergency communications in today's world. In the previous post to that I talked about how my ham radio interest helped my in the Army and how the Army helped my ham radio hobby.

But that was in the early 1960's. Last Thursday was Veterans Day. I attended the ceremonies in our local elementary school and had fun telling the children about my service and how ham radio fit into that time. I was surprised how many of them had never heard of "The Iron Curtain". Veterans Day reminds me of World War II and of my father and uncles who served in the Army, the Army-Air Force, and the Navy during that war. My Uncle Erv was also a licensed ham radio operator as well.

Did you know that at the start of World War II in 1939, ham radio was banned by 121 countries including the Canada and the UK. When the U.S. entered the war in 1941, the hams in the U.S. showed their patriotism by following the same ban to the letter. Soon after, the ARRL petitioned the FCC to create the War Emergency Radio Service (W.E.R.S.). These licenses were issued to communities, not individuals. Hams were asked to participate in WERS activities when the community government asked them to help. This was probably the first example of a similar system that is in place today with FEMA and it's subsidiaries all the way down to the community level with RACES calling out amateur radio operators to help with their radios during emergencies.

You can read the full story on A6CV's History Website. Scroll halfway down the page to the read The War Years" by KH6O. Our thanks to them both for preserving this history.

'73
WA2KKG

How To Get On The Air With Amateur Radio, Part I

First let me introduce you to the FCC, the Federal Communications Commission. The FCC is charged with overseeing the operation of all equipment that uses radio waves to communicate. This includes amateur radios (ham radios), AM and FM radios, televisions, cell phones, cordless phones, police and fire department radios, CB radios, radio controlled cars, boats, and planes, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. In order to operate a radio in the Amateur Radio Service you have to take and pass a test to show that you understand something about how radios work and what the rules are to operate a ham radio.

The test for the entry level license is not hard at all. Ordinary people as young as 5 years old have become licensed ham radio operators. The most popular license for beginners, as I write, is the Technician Class license, which requires only a 35 question multiple-choice written exam. It covers basic regulations, operating practices, and simple electronics theory. This exam is written with the beginner in mind. Morse code is no longer a requirement for any class of Ham Radio license. A good way to learn the material needed for the exam is to go to a series of classes held by a local ham radio club. Usually the classes are free or at a nominal cost except for the cost of a study book. Check out this list offered by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) to see if there is a club in your area. Then contact the club to see when they are running the next beginners class. Ham Radio Club Search

Some people have been able to pass the test just by reading a book about ham radio, or studying a published license manual, or even going online and reading sample questions and answers. Books about ham radio and license manuals are often sold at stores like Radio Shack, and your local book store. Stop in and ask. Books are also available at the ARRL website and Amazon.com (Ham Radio Books.) Another place to get a good study book for your first license is the W5YI Group. Make sure any book you buy is the current version (not more than a year old). If you decide to take a class, sign up for that first because you will need to use the book they are using.

Last, if you know of any ham radio operators in your town, call them or find out where they live and knock on their door. Ask them if they know of any local classes coming up or if they would have the time to help you learn what you need to know to pass the test. You might be surprised...hams are usually very friendly people.

Until next time...

'73 OM
de wa2kkg k

Ham Radio and April Fool's Day - Past and Present

Another April 1 has come and gone and now the April Fool's Day pranksters have to start planning for next year. I decided to see how many April Fool's Day pranks I could find recorded that relate in some way to Ham Radio. Here are a handful that gave me a chuckle.

In a memorial article about longtime American Radio Relay League staffer, By Goodman, it tells about his dry sense of humor and his series of QST April Fool parodies under the pseudonym Larson E. Rapp, WIOU. Here is one example:

"In the April 1960 issue, a phony full-page ad announced the formation of "Larsen E. Enterprises, Inc," supposedly off Route 128 in "Kippering-on-the-Charles," Massachusetts, with Larsen E. Rapp as president. Bearing a "Not a Advertisement" disclaimer, the ad offered customers free access to the company's air-conditioned "Wonder Workshop" with each kit purchase.

"If you don't have the time to assemble the entire kit yourself, one of our engineers will be glad to do it for you, just for the pleasure it gives him," the ad promised. " More...
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This one, from 2005, is simply titled: Converting a 1955 warbird into a modern ham radio DXpedition shuttle. What a whopper. Read more...

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This one, from 2007, tells how the FCC has made an announcement in the broadband powerline (BPL) interference issue. Read on...
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Here's another scary FCC announcement, from 2004, to take effect in 2008. We're almost there...
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One facet of the hobby enjoyed by Ham radio enthusiasts is direction finding and tracking things like weather balloons and amateur rockets. Radio beacons are put in these devices before launch or release and the ham operators attempt to find them later to retrieve any data collected on the flight. These next two involve those activities.

This one involves a group of ham radio operators who are members of Stratofox, an Aerospace Tracking and Recovery Team. This one was in 2005.

"This year's April Fools' joke was based on the premise that it needed to have the punchline, "the weasel has landed." About a dozen Stratofox members and some of their friends set out to see if it was really possible to fool anyone, even for a moment, that a fictitious organization called "TubeRat Aerospace" had landed a probe on the moon."More...
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This one is a little more tongue-in-cheek. Here is an excerpt from the "Voyage of the Peep-o-nauts" from way back in the year 2000.

"Soon afterward the balloon ruptured on schedule at an altitude of 110,000 ft. Unfortunately, no one had briefed the Peeps about this part of the mission! The audio downlink transmitted a mixture of wind and the payload's audio beacon. You can clearly hear the sounds of rushing wind when the balloon popped (at something over 100,000 feet) and began its plummet toward the ground."Continued...

Well, that's all the fun for now.

Until next time...

'73 OM

DE WA2KKG
K