SB NEWSLIN @ ALLBBS $NLIN.914
Amateur Radio Newsline #914 18 Feb 1995
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NEWSLINE RADIO - CBBS EDITION #914 - POSTED 02/18/95
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Some of the hams of NEWSLINE RADIO...
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and many others in the United States and around the globe!!!
(****************************************************************
[914]
The following is a QST
The ARRL's president is taken seriously ill. George Wilson
W4OYI is felled by a stroke while on ham radio business in
Washington, DC. The latest word on his condition on an expanded
Newsline report number 914 coming your way right now!
(*****
ARRL PRESIDENT HOSPITALIZED
A ham who is considered a friend to all of amateur radio is
fighting to recover from a sudden and very serious illness.
ARRL President George S. Wilson, W4OYI, is reported in guarded
condition following a stroke he suffered the evening of
February 11th.
George Wilson and several other high ranking league officials
were winding up a series of meetings in Washington, DC. George
was returning to his hotel when he took ill. Paramedics were
called. They transported the ARRL President to a local hospital
where his condition was quickly diagnosed.
About twenty four hours later, after he had been stabilized,
President Wilson was moved to a facility in Virginia that
specializes in treating this kind of disorder. There, a surgical
procedure was performed to relieve the pressure on the brain.
As we go to air, W4OYI is reported to be resting comfortably
in the Intensive Care Unit. He is sedated, and for the moment,
only close relatives permitted to visit.
By way of background, George Wilson has been a very different
kind of ARRL leader. Anyone who has ever had the opportunity to
meet him knows that W4OYI is friendly and approachable individual
reminiscent of the ARRL presidency of the late Victor C. Clark,
W4KFC.
When he took office George Wilson made it clear that he would
do all he could to preserve our ham bands and make them more
pleasant to operate. He has been at the forefront of efforts in
both areas. The results can be seen in several stories you are
about to hear in this weeks newscast. These include the details
on the new vanity call sign program and a major victory in
retaining the 902 to 928 MHz band.
More important, to his friends here at Newsline and his friends
around the world, George Wilson W4OYI is a very special person
who has dedicated himself to the human side of ham radio. We ask
that you join with us in praying for his full, speedy and complete
recovery.
Get well wishes should be sent via ARRL headquarters or to
W4OYI at his callbook address. We will have an update on
President Wilson's condition next week.
(*****
VANITY CALL SIGN ORDER RELEASED
The FCC has released its Report and Order in PR Docket 93-305,
amending its rules to provide for a vanity call sign program. As
previously reported, to accommodate requests for specific, vanity
call signs, the Commission will use a series of four starting
gates. The Commission will announce the opening of each gate by a
Public Notice. The first gate will open as soon as the new
application form, FCC Form 610-V, is available and the
Commission's licensing facility is prepared to begin processing
the applications.
Applicants will then be permitted to request call signs
reflecting their own or other call sign regions. Except for a
close relative applying for a deceased licensee's call sign, or a
club station trustee applying with the written consent of a close
relative of a deceased licensee, a vacated call sign will not be
assignable for a two-year waiting period.
For clubs, persons not already holding a club station license,
as trustee, must first apply for and receive a valid Amateur
license before filing an application for a vanity call sign.
The FCC has also set aside the one-by-one call sign block until
the matter of assignment of these calls could be addressed in a
separate proceeding. The ARRL has requested the assignment of
one-by-one call signs to special event stations of national
significance.
The new rules are effective March 24. FCC will begin accepting
applications for new club and military recreation station licenses
on that date. Applications will go to the Commission's
contractor, Mellon Bank, which will accept them in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania. They will be processed in the order they are
received. A $70 fee will have to be paid when requesting a new
or renewed vanity call sign.
(*****
CHANGES TO 902 MHz BAND
Amateurs and unlicensed Part 15 users will continue to have
access to 902 to 928 MHz. This, on a secondary basis to the new
Location and Monitoring Service as well as industrial, scientific,
and medical systems; and to government users.
The FCC has adopted the new rules for the future licensing and
continued development of a number of services, including Amateur
Radio in the 902 MHz band. The new rules set standards for what
had previously been called automatic vehicle monitoring systems
but which the Commission now refers to as the Location and
Monitoring Service.
As a result of the change, Part 15 users are now on a secondary
basis to all other services including amateurs. The FCC says that
it will now adopt a plan to afford both amateurs and Part 15 users
a greater degree of protection from interference from other
services. It will also clarify what constitutes harmful
interference to LMS licensees by Part 15 devices. Look for
operational restrictions to be imposed to maintain the coexistence
of the many varied users of the band.
(*****
NJ ANTENNA WIN
The perseverance of a Winslow, New Jersey ham with a little
help from the American Radio Relay League has paid off in an
apparent victory for Paul Kaplan, N2FOB. Kaplan says that the
township would let him put up a television tower but not one for
ham radio. That a local ordinance not only forbids ham radio and
CB towers in residential areas, but even forces radio users to
keep towers outside residential areas at least fifteen hundred
feet away. Kaplan considered that to be discriminatory and lodged
a legal challenge. This lead to a hearing where a judge realized
the impossibility of the situation.
"The judge on his own calculated that 1500 feet would be a 162
acres. So I would have to buy a piece of property and install the
tower in the center of 162 acres of land to be in compliance with
this ordinance. And the judge basically found that to be
unreasonable." Paul Kaplan, N2FOB.
Based on the fact that the town was willing to approve TV
towers but refuses hams and CB'ers their antennas and support
structures, the judge threw out the ordinance. He did say that
the town does have the right to reasonably control several
aspects of am ham radio or CB tower, but PRB 1 denies them an
outright ban.
As we go to air, Kaplan is still waiting for the townships
zoning board to react to the judges decision. A hearing is
schedule for about a month from now. The town has the option of
filing an appeal, but it's more likely that Kaplan will soon be
able to use his TV tower for ham radio. Kaplan says he is so
happy that he is flying a flag!
"A lot of the help came from the American Radio Relay League.
It was really fantastic. The League on three separate occasions,
almost overnight, sent me documentation regarding PRB 1, 200 or so
newspaper articles on how hams help through out the community and
Internationally. The League was just fantastic. In fact the
lawyer, one lawyer said to another lawyer, if the amateurs had a
union, it would be the American Radio Relay League. I think that
is a complement to the League and in fact right now I have the
League Flag, the ARRL Banner is flying from my tower as just a
sign of victory." Kaplan.
Kaplan says that the ARRL flag won't come down until the
antenna goes up.
(*****
CORDLESS PHONES NOW ECPA PROTECTED
WA2RCB reports via packet that Public Law #103-114 has amended
the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 to cover all
cordless telephone frequencies. This was part of the recently
passed Wiretap Act. As such, it is now just as illegal to monitor
cordless telephones frequencies on your scanner, as it is to
monitor 800 Mhz Cellular Phones.
No word yet from the manufacturers if they will delete coverage
of these frequencies from their current production on the assembly
line or future models.
(*****
Special Olympics World Games
The 1995 Special Olympics World Games will be held in New
Haven, CT from July 1st through the 9th. Approximately 7,500
athletes and 500,000 spectators are expected.
As part of the festivities, a special event station with the
call sign W1SO will be operating from the venue of the Games.
Current plans call for several HF and VHF positions. A special
commemorative QSL card or certificate will be available. For more
information, contact Neil Salowitz, WA1CBW via America Online or
at his callbook address.
(*****
ARRL NUMBERS
The ARRL reports that its membership rose about one percent in
1994, new members more than making up for the inevitable attrition
of deaths and drop-outs. Declining sunspots left DXCC activity
flat for the year, contest entries the same, while QSLs forwarded
by the ARRL Outgoing QSL Service dropped off by 18%.
(*****
FAR SCHOLARSHIPS
The Washington, DC based Foundation for Amateur Radio is once
again coordinating the distribution of fifty-six scholarships for
the 1995 to 1996 academic year. Licensed radio amateurs may
compete for these awards if they plan to pursue a full time course
of studies beyond high school. Applicants must be accepted for
enrollment in an accredited college, university or technical
school. The scholarships range in value from $500 to $2000 each.
For more information please write to the Foundation For Amateur
Radio, 6903 Rhode Island Avenue, College Park, Maryland 20740.
(*****
YHOTY CUTOFF EXTENDED
The cutoff date for filing for the 1995 Newsline Young Ham of
the Year Award has been extended to June 30th. The original date
was April 30th, but has been moved two months later as a result of
the recent agreement with the Huntsville Hamfest. It is hoped
that the extra two months will permit additional nominations.
Again, the new cutoff date for Young Ham of the Year nominations
is June 30th, 1995.
(*****
HOUSTON AMSAT NET
The Houston AMSAT Net is now on Telstar 302, Transponder 21,
5.8 Mhz Audio Subcarrier. KK5DO reports that the net came to the
bird on February 7th.
(*****
NOAA J LAUNCHED
The NOAA J data satellite was successfully launched on Friday
December 30 at 02:02 PST from Vandenberg AFB atop an Atlas-E
booster. The burn was nominal for a 870 km near polar orbit
inclined 98 degrees.
(*****
DX
In DX news, word that K8VIR, will be traveling to several
different Pacific locations over the next six months. Activity
will begin from New Caledonia but no starting day or call sign
have been announced. The only other information reported is that
he will be active from Western Samoa, Tonga and maybe a few
surprise locations.
Also, W1BIH is active from Curacao until mid April as PJ9JT.
John has been heard on 3.506 MHz starting around 01:30 UTC and
on 40 meter CW between 01:00 and 02:00 UTC. QSL via W1AX.
And the long awaited 3D2R Rotuma operation has been
cancelled by 7L2RPY. Tetu says that bad weather between Fiji
and Rotuma makes transit impossible, but the expedition will be
operational from Fiji.
(*****
ALABAMA SKYWARN
And finally, a history-making event for amateur radio has
taken place in Alabama. On February 11th, hams from across the
state met and pledged to work together on one of the most
ambitious communications projects ever in Alabama. What ham radio
operators plan to do is expected to help save countless lives.
This is the first time a meeting like this has ever taken place
in Alabama. Amateur radio operators from across the state, all
active in providing Skywarn storm spotter communications, say it's
time to work together. In the past, the groups operated on their
own, relaying information to their local National Weather Service
office. But the Weather Service plans to consolidate its
operations by closing two offices in Alabama. Hams over a large
part of the state will exchange reports with a single office
instead. That means the various Skywarn groups will depend on
each other to relay vital information over longer distances. Tom
Moore, KL7Q, is the ARRL's Section Manager for Alabama. He calls
the meeting unprecedented.
"It doesn't have any name on it that is unique to a local area
such as an ARES Group or RACES Group, you can't infringe on my
area or my responsibilities or anything. This is a Skywarn thing.
You don't have to be ARRL, you don't have to be anything. You
just have to be Amateur Radio. I think that right there is one of
the keys in allowing everybody to feel like they can participate."
Tom Moore, KL7Q.
The Skywarn groups plan to link repeaters between cities and
they want to expand packet radio capability. Section Emergency
Coordinator Rick Kimbrell, KC4RNF, calls the meeting very
productive.
"I was extremely proud to see all the folks. The volunteering
of the people for the committees to work on linking up repeater
systems, for the digital committees as well as getting involved in
their areas in northern Alabama, southeastern Alabama, Columbus,
GA area. It was extremely encouraging. We didn't have a lot of
folks just sitting to see what was happening. They became
involved once they found out all the details. It is starting to
come together as a state more. What ever boundaries were
separating us in the past, whatever differences that we had in
other areas of the state seem to be evaporating. We are coming
together as amateurs in Alabama." Rick Kimbrell, KC4RNF.
Skywarn group leaders realize there's no shortage of work and
potential obstacles in building an effective network. But they
say amateur radio in Alabama has begun a new era, one of
cooperation, because lives may depend on it.
Don't be surprised if similar efforts take place in many other
parts of the U.S. as well. That's because the National Weather
Service plans to consolidate operations all across the nation.
(*****
HEADLINE REVIEW
Again repeating this weeks top story. ARRL President George
Wilson, W4OYI, is hospitalized in Washington, DC after suffering a
stroke while in the nations capitol in league business. An update
on his condition next week.
(*****
And for this week, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline.
You can write to us at Post Office Box 660937 in Arcadia, CA
91066.
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