Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (A)
To : All
From : Daryl Stout
Date : Thu Apr 01 2021 07:43 pm
Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2266, for Friday, April 2, 2021
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2266, with a release date of Friday,
April 2, 2021, to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. The UK prepares to resume in-person license exams.
A worldwide balloon launch marks the equinox -- and the "Last Man Standing"
special event goes out with a bang. All this and more, as Amateur Radio
Newsline Report Number 2266, comes your way right now.
***
BILLBOARD CART
**
ARCTIC DXPEDITION PACKS UP BENEATH NORTHERN LIGHTS
NEIL/ANCHOR: Our top story takes us to a frozen Arctic island, where the
rewards of a physically grueling DXpedition included something even more
than the thousands of contacts logged by the team. Graham Kemp, VK4BB,
brings us that story.
GRAHAM: The RI0Q (R EYE ZERO Q) DXPeditioners have arrived back on the
mainland following a challenging but successful activation of the rare
Arctic IOTA, AS-152. The island, named Bol'shoy Begichev (BEG-i-chev) after
its discoverer Nikifor Begichev in 1908, held many discoveries for the team
during their one-week activation. Challenges included making a large part
of the trip by snowmobile. Once they arrived on March 20th, they remained
constantly vigilant for polar bears, wolves and incoming blizzards
especially as they were setting up for operations.
By March 26th, as the activation was winding down, they were able to enter
into their online diary that they'd logged 6,913 QSOs representing more
than 4,000 unique callsigns.
Their departure came just as a blizzard was supposed to come blasting in.
There was one event they did not miss, however, nor did they want to miss
it — because it was spectacular. DXworld-net reported on its Twitter feed
on March 27th: [quote] "The RI0Q team are already back on the mainland. As
they left the island, the Northern Lights started to show. Looks like they
left at the right time!" [endquote]
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Graham Kemp, VK4BB.
(DXWORLD-NET, RI0Q DIARY)
**
'LAST MAN STANDING' TRIBUTE WRAPS UP ACTIVATION
NEIL/ANCHOR: Congratulations to the activators of the "Last Man Standing"
special event which went QRT on Wednesday March 30th. Starting on March
24th, the team logged more than 85,000 QSOs, contacting 1,850 counties in
50 states and 138 countries. There were 134 contacts using moonbounce;
and yes, there were pileups. The multi-mode effort was also a multi-media
one, featuring livestreaming of operators as they navigated pileups.
Coordinated by Lou Maggio, NO2C, and Salli Rosato, K2RYD, of the Great
South Bay Amateur Radio Club, and the show's executive producer, John
Amodeo, AA6JA, it was an experience many of the dozens of operators in
both the US and Canada said will remain with them even as the studio
goes dark after the show's final day of production. "Last Man Standing"
featured Tim Allen, KK6OTD, as Mike Baxter KA0XTT, and was celebrated
for putting amateur radio in a positive light in the public eye.
**
IN-PERSON EXAMS TO RESUME IN UK
NEIL/ANCHOR: In the UK, the Radio Society of Great Britain has resumed
booking in-person exams. Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, gives us those details.
JEREMY: Examiners in the UK have begun planning the resumption of exams for
amateur radio candidates wishing to sit them in a club setting with in-
person invigilation.
With this in mind, the Radio Society of Great Britain said it anticipates
bookings for the in-person exams from club examination secretaries once the
government has lifted all COVID-19 restrictions in their part of the UK.
The booking process is expected to be more streamlined than previously. The
remote invigilations, which began last year during the pandemic lockdown,
will continue as an option.
Mandatory practical assessments at Foundation level will remain suspended
until a review led by the Examinations Standards Committee and Exam and
Syllabus Review Group can determine their long-term future, clarifying
whether they should continue and, if so, in what form.
In yet another sign of post-COVID life in the UK, the RSGB Contest
Committee began accepting portable entries in contests from stations in
England, provided the stations strictly follow local COVID measures.
England dropped its "Stay at Home" restriction on the 29th March, meaning
portable operations can resume. The RSGB cautions however, that portable
multi-operator entries must comprise people from the same households
because vans, cars and tents are considered indoor environments and indoor
mixing of households is still prohibited.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jeremy Boot, G4NJH.
NEIL/ANCHOR: In other business that has caught Newsline's attention: Paul
Devlin, G1SMP, the joint winner with the Radio Society of Great Britain of
the 2020 Amateur Radio Newsline International Newsmaker of the year award
for the "Get on the air to care" public campaign, is standing for election
as a director of the RSGB board at the upcoming AGM in April. As there are
two nominees for two positions, I think we can say Paul will be elected and
we at Newsline would like to be the first to congratulate Paul and wish him
well in his new role.
