[Attachment(s) from James KB7TBT included below]


Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2083 for Friday, September 29 2017

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2083 with a release date of Friday, 
September 29 2017 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Hams help Florida with storm recovery. In 
California, a ham's killer is sentenced to prison -- and Spain 
celebrates the success of young-but-growing regional hamfest. All this 
and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2083 comes your way right now.

(Billboard Cart Here and Intro)

**
AMATEURS HELP FLORIDIANS PICK UP THE PIECES

DON/ANCHOR: We begin this week's report with a story of post-storm 
recovery efforts. As Floridians rebuild after the most recent hurricane, 
hams are there. Kent Peterson KC0DGY spoke with one Red Cross volunteer 
who also happens to be an amateur involved with a busy ARES team.

KENT'S REPORT:

MORRIS: I was working Hurricane Harvey in Baton Rouge repairing mobile 
radios when we were sent back to Florida to prepare for Irma and then 
joined my ARES team, we opened 4 evacuation shelters and ran radios 24/7.

KENT: In addition to being involved with ARES, Dave Morris N4DWM is also 
a Red Cross volunteer.

MORRIS: I hopped in my Red Cross vehicle and came down to the Keys  I 
was one of the first Red Cross people as well as one of the first hams 
to come down to the Keys. At that point in time no one was allowed into 
the Keys unless you were in an emergency vehicle.  When I arrived down 
here, I worked on generator power setting up a satellite system. The 
preferred technology for the Red Cross is satellite communications 
however I did put up my Buddipole pole and my own ham radio on 40 meters 
I did check in with the HF hurricane net.  We started up in some pretty 
rugged conditions as days went by the power company got it restored and 
I was redeployed with the satellite system to Sugar Loaf Key which was 
ground zero, very rugged conditions, the National Guard was there with 
us. At that point no residents were allowed in that far down.  After 
several days the power came back and they started to get some 
infrastructure and they started to let some of the residents in. One 
thing I noticed was cell phones will not stay up during this kind of 
weather event and you have to find other means to communicate.

KENT:  Morris emphasized the value amateur radio operators bring to the 
Red Cross.

MORRIS: The Red Cross really values the use of amateurs in their 
communications systems, now obviously hams don't get to play with 
satellite communication much, where in the Red Cross they use it 
extensively.  But in the emergency shelters it was all 2 meters. We did 
have HF radio but it wasn't necessary.

KENT:  Morris says there are important lessons learned.

MORRIS: Number one, the Red Cross needs the skills that amateurs have to 
make their relief operations work well.  And everything you do on Field 
Day you do in this scenario.  I know everyone practices every field day 
once a year we all do what we know how to do, believe me when you end up 
in this situation you use those skills.

KENT: And he says the Keys are starting the rebuild.

MORRIS: As the Keys recover while there is a lot of devastation here, 
this is a resilient group of people and it looks to me like they're 
starting to get back on their feet.

For Amateur Radio Neweline, I'm Kent Peterson KC0DGY

**
PRISON FOR CALIFORNIA HAM'S KILLER

DON/ANCHOR: There's justice at last for the killer of David Caouette 
(CO-ETT) N6DAC.  It arrived at his sentencing in an Orange County, 
California courtroom on September 22.  Joe Moell (MELL) K-zero-O-V has 
the story.

JOE'S REPORT:

"You emerged as the face of evil in this community." Those were the 
words of Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals as he imposed a 232-year 
prison sentence on Scott Dekraai.  It was back in October 2011 when 
Dekraai, heavily armed and wearing a bulletproof vest, walked into a 
Seal Beach hair salon and shot his ex-wife.  He kept firing at everyone 
else in sight and then made his escape.  In the parking lot, he spotted 
David Caouette N6DAC sitting in his truck.  N6DAC was a former star 
high-school athlete who loved offroading in his Land Rover.  Thinking he 
was an undercover officer, Dekraai shot the 64-year-old ham, making him 
the eighth fatal victim of his rampage.  Dekraai soon surrendered, but 
his case dragged on as evidence mounted showing widespread misuse of 
jailhouse informants by the District Attorney and Sheriff's offices.  
That led the judge to rule out capital punishment, even though Dekraai 
had pleaded guilty.  However, Friday's verdict gave him no chance of 
parole.  In closing the case, Judge Goethals said that there were no 
winners in this case, only losers.  The only win, he said, is by the 
rule of law.  From Orange County, California, this is Joe Moell K0OV for 
Amateur Radio Newsline.

**

ARISS PROGRAM SEEKS APPLICANTS FOR CONTACTS

DON/ANCHOR: Hams on the International Space Station want students to 
look to the sky - and then start talking. Here's Neil Rapp WB9VPG with 
the details.

NEIL'S REPORT: So what exactly do you say to an astronaut? Well, if you 
could have been on the air with Space Station astronaut Joe Acaba KE5DAR 
recently, you might have asked about his concerns for his home in 
Houston as well as his family's homeland in Puerto Rico, both impacted 
by recent hurricanes. Schools, museums, youth groups and science centers 
will get a chance to ask these kinds of questions - and other kinds of 
questions - next year as the Amateur Radio on the International Space 
Station program once again solicits for proposals for groups to talk to 
the orbiting crew members between July 1 and December 31 of next year. 
The program connects students around the world with the men and women in 
space but these radio contacts require planning. The ARISS program looks 
for participants who can build a well-thought-out lesson plan around the 
actual contact itself, which occurs  over amateur radio. That means 
students are exposed to radio science, satellite communications, 
wireless technology and other STEM topics.
Deadline for proposals in November 15th. For proposal guidelines and 
other information, the web address is arrl.org/ariss.


As any educator will tell you, there's a lot that can be said in those 
important and unforgettable 10 minutes.

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

(ARISS)

**
SPAIN'S IBERRADIO HAMFEST A HIT

DON/ANCHOR: Spain's IberRadio hamfest is just three years old but it's 
maturing, as we hear from Jeremy Boot G4NJH.

JEREMY: It appears that IberRadio, south Europe's largest hamfest, is 
gaining some traction. Its third annual gathering was held in Avila 
Spain on the 16th and 17th of September and the hamfest organizers say 
they had record attendance, drawing from an even wider international 
participation. The two days of vendor displays and seminars was designed 
to appeal directly to CBers, amateur radio operators and electronics 
enthusiasts, helping to make what the Iber Radio website said is one of 
the most important ham radio events in Europe. The hamfest also offered 
license testing by VEs from the ARRL allowing many to upgrade their FCC 
licenses. Other attendees seized the moment to have their QSL cards 
checked for DXCC, WAC and other awards.

Already the planning has begun for Iber Radio 2018.

For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jeremy Boot G4NJH

(SOUTHGATE AMATEUR RADIO NEWS)


**

PENN STATE PROFESSOR WINS SARNOFF HONOR

DON/ANCHOR: One Pennsylvania professor isn't just tops in electrical 
engineering, he's a Sarnoff Citation winner. Jim Damron N8TMW has that 
report.

JIM's REPORT: Antenna designer James Breakall WA3FET, a Pennsylvania 
State professor of electrical engineering, is in good company: He has 
joined the late Senator Barry Goldwater K7UGA and Qualcomm founding 
chairman and CEO emeritus Irwin Mark Jacobs in receiving the Sarnoff 
Citation from the Radio Club of America.

Licensed since the age of 12, he credits ham radio with igniting his 
later interest in an electrical engineering career. His specialty soon 
became antennas. Breakall holds a patent for the three-dimensional 
frequency-independent phased array design antenna which he developed for 
its intended use at the High Frequency Auroral Research Program in 
Alaska. His antenna research also took him to Puerto Rico's Arecibo 
Observatory, home of the largest dish antenna in the world. He is also 
credited with the creation of the optimized wideband antenna for amateur 
radio.

On campus, he is known for getting first-year engineering students 
involved in fox-hunting exercises with hand-held radios, as a way of 
opening the door for them to ham radio.

James Breakall will receive the award in November at the RCA's annual 
awards banquet in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jim Damron N8TMW.


(PENN STATE UNIVERSITY WEBSITE, RADIO CLUB OF AMERICA)

**
BREAK HERE:

Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio 
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the 
WB0QXW repeater in St. Louis, Missouri on Monday nights following the 
World Friendship Net on Echolink.


**

FORMER MIT PRESIDENT BECOMES SILENT KEY

DON/ANCHOR: A noted Massachusetts Institute of Technology educator and 
former ham has become a Silent Key. Kevin Trotman N5PRE tells us about 
his life.

KEVIN: The former president of MIT and a former longtime ham radio 
operator, Paul Gray of Concord, Massachusetts, has become a Silent Key. 
An electrical engineering professor emeritus, Paul became a ham radio 
operator as a New Jersey teen in the 1940s at the end of World War II. 
He was especially proud of having built all his own equipment and his 
lifelong fascination with gadgets and all things electrical served him 
well in his later career. He was first licensed in New Jersey as W2UWN 
and later became K1ZVT but his license lapsed in 1970.

An electrical engineering graduate of the school, he became MIT's 14th 
president, serving between 1980 and 1990. The school plans a memorial 
service for November 30th.

Paul Gray died September 18th after a long battle with Alzheimer's 
disease. He was 85.

For Amateur Radio Newsline in Aiken, South Carolina, I'm Kevin Trotman 
N5PRE.

**
100 WATTS AND A WIRE SCHEDULES 2nd 'FALLOUT' ACTIVITY

DON/ANCHOR: It's time to Fall Out. It's not a contest and not a Special 
Event Station. It's an annual activity of radio fellowship, as we hear 
from Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT.

CARYN'S REPORT: What's the best thing in autumn besides the turning of 
the leaves? How about the turning of the dials on your rig up and down 
the HF bands? The 100 Watts and a Wire amateur radio community is 
marking the autumnal equinox with its second annual FALL OUT activity on 
the 6th and 7th of October.

If you have a 100 Watts and a Wire ID, you're encouraged to go portable 
and get out among all those falling leaves to work other members -- or 
find a summit, a park or a beach. Exchange signal reports, exchange your 
100WattsIDs, exchange ideas - and spot yourself on the group's Facebook 
page.

If you can't go portable, stay home. Just get on the air - anytime 
during those days and in any mode. If you don't have a 100Watts ID, get 
one at the website 100wattsandawire dot com.

It's not a contest but if you post your total contacts on their Facebook 
page you'll automatically be put in a random drawing for some prizes - 
prizes you'll be able to use in your shack no matter what the season.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT.

**

IN NEW ZEALAND, FRIENDLY COMPETITION

DON/ANCHOR: In New Zealand, hams are getting ready for two weekends of 
Pacific Islands DXing, as Jim Meachen ZL2BHF tells us.

JIM'S REPORT: Hams in New Zealand consider the Oceania DX Contest one of 
the easiest and most friendly competitions around. It's also one of the 
longest-running ham radio contests. In fact, this event seems to deliver 
everything but the on-air contact itself. The competition heats up 
during the first two weekends in October, over two 24-hour periods, and 
all that's needed is 50 QSOs to qualify for a certificate. The weekend 
of October 7th and 8th will be reserved for phone; CW operators will get 
their chance on October 14th and 15th.

It's a tradition of Pacific Island contesting that dates back to the 
1930s and organizers are encouraging New Zealand hams in particular to 
make this their first contest if they have yet to jump into the fray.

There are new island activations in the contest this year - both VK9XI 
and VK9CI will be on Christmas Island and Cocos Keeling Island 
respectively. There will also be a memorial plaque awarded for the first 
time this year in honor of Australian amateur Ken Jewell VK3AKK who 
became a Silent Key in May.

According to the website, organizers in New Zealand and Australia have 
counted just fewer than 1,200 logs from last year's event - an increase 
of 70 percent over the previous year - so hope is high for this year's 
participation.

For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.

(OCEANIA DX CONTEST)

**
WORLD OF DX

In other DX, be listening for Rich, N0HJZ, who will be active from 
October 23rd to November 1st as C6ARW from Grand Bahama Island. You can 
expect to hear Rich on 30/17/12 meters using CW and SSB. He will be 
operating low power with wires and verticals. His plans are to be in the 
CQWW DX SSB Contest October 28th and 29th as a 
Single-Op/All-Band/Low-Power entry. QSL via his home callsign, direct 
with sufficient postage or by the Bureau.

Harald DF2WO is on the air from Burkina Faso through the 30th of October 
operating as XT2AW. Be listening on CW, SSB and digital. His QSL Manager 
is M0OXO.

Listen for Stan LZ1GC who is on a DXPedition in the Pacific, operating 
as H40GC from Nendo Island from the 30th of September to the 20th of 
October. He is in the Temotu Province of the Solomon Islands which 
counts as a separate entity for the DXCC Award. The IOTA reference 
number is OC-100. QSL via Club Log OQRS.

Victoria Island in the Barents Sea is being activated by a team of 
Russian operators with the call sign RI1F. No definite dates were made 
available by production time but they are expected to be on the air from 
October 1st through 7th. Send QSLs via Club Log OQRS. For the DXCC Award 
the contact counts as Franz Josef Land but for the IOTA Award use the 
reference number EU-190.

(OHIO PENN DX BULLETIN)

**

KICKER: WHEN HAMS MAKE CONNECTIONS FROM THE HEART

DON/ANCHOR: Finally, it's been a turbulent season of storms in some 
parts of the world and you've heard our reports about natural disasters 
and ravaged communities. You've also heard how ham radio has 
consistently met those challenges. We offer you now a bit of reflection: 
One of the many, MANY amateurs to step in with communications assistance 
this season was Stan Harts KK4WCW, a member of North Carolina's 
Hampstead Hams club. Stan joined the vast team of hams around his state 
connecting Puerto Rico's storm victims with worried relatives here in 
the U.S. Overcome with emotion after completing a successful contact on 
Sept. 23, Stan decided to share his feelings on social media - and now, 
we've asked him to share that with you. Here's Stan:

STAN'S READING:
For the past 5 years I have been into amateur radio. People sort of look 
at me like I am I crazy and ask me why I don't just use a cell phone. 
Puerto Rico is devastated by Hurricane Maria and there is no cellular 
phone system in operation. The Salvation Army is running what is known 
as a welfare net, where persons in Puerto Rico can get a brief message 
from a family locally (on paper) and relay it to an amateur radio 
operator on the U.S. mainland. Depending on a variety of conditions, 
some people hear certain signals better than others. Today I took a 
message from the net for a family with a 910 area code. I called to tell 
the person here that the family and their home was OK. Other than a 
slight language barrier and the bit of confusion as to how I got the 
message, the man started to cry with joy. About 15 minutes later, his 
wife called me back and asked for better details of how I got the 
message. It seems her husband forgets some of his English when he is 
crying. Well we were all crying. So for those who ask what my hobby is 
all about, this is it!!! The Iphone X won't reach Puerto Rico right now 
but a 1990 amateur radio on a 12V battery and a 100 foot wire strung 
between two trees in the back yard will.

DON/ANCHOR: Thank you Stan and thanks to every amateur who joined in 
these efforts everywhere. Stan's words speak for every radio operator 
doing this priceless work: Ham radio is all about connections -- and in 
these trying circumstances those connections also happen to be lifelines.

**

NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Alan Labs; Amateur News Weekly; the ARRL; 
the Associated Press; CQ Magazine; The FCC; Hap Holly and the Rain 
Report; Irish Radio Transmitters Society; Oceania DX Contest; Penn State 
University; Radio Club of America; Southgate Amateur Radio News; Ted 
Randall's QSO Radio Show; 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 Don Wilbanks AE5DW saying 73 and as 
always we thank you for listening.

Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2017. All rights reserved.


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