<*>[Attachment(s) from James-KB7TBT included below]   
      
      
      
   	   
      
   Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2006, April 8, 2016   
      
      
      
   Amateur Radio Newsline report number 2006 with a release date of Friday,    
   April 8, 2016 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.   
      
      
      
   The following is a QST. Australia's giant electronics retailer gets a    
   reprieve. A Florida disaster drill is anything but disastrous. And World    
   Amateur Radio Day is coming. All this and more in Amateur Radio Newsline    
   Report 2006 coming your way right now.   
      
      
      
   (Billboard Cart Here and Intro)   
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   ELECTRONICS RETAILER SAVED, GOES ONLINE   
      
      
      
   DON: This week's newscast opens with an update on the troubled    
   Australian mega-retailer, Dick Smith Electronics. Amateur radio    
   operators in Australia, New Zealand and, no doubt, elsewhere, will be    
   pleased to learn that reports of its death were premature. More from    
   Amateur Radio Newsline's Graham Kemp, VK4BB.   
      
      
      
   GRAHAM: An 11th-hour rescue has saved Australian mega-retailer, Dick    
   Smith Electronics, from the dusty pages of history. Sort of.   
      
      
      
   Entrepreneur Rusland Kogan has purchased the online portion of the    
   embattled retailer's business for an disclosed amount and, according to    
   press reports, will launch Internet-based sales starting the 1st of    
   June. No purchase price has been made public. The online-only sales    
   operation will be part of a dual brand strategy alongside kogan.com   
      
      
      
   Placement into receivership of the venerable Dick Smith Holdings, which    
   has more than 360 locations in New Zealand and Australia, cost thousands    
   of workers their jobs and, in the amateur radio community, foretold the    
   loss of an important resource of electronic components. The online    
   Kogan.com site, which is Australia's single largest online-only seller,    
   offers a variety of consumer goods, such as bed linens, camping    
   equipment and home electronics.   
      
      
      
   Dick Smith will be run separately from that site, and is considered an    
   off-platform venture by the 33-year-old self-made Kogan. A native of    
   Belarus, Kogan's founder is believed to have a personal net worth in    
   excess of $350 million.   
      
      
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Graham Kemp, VK4BB.   
      
      
      
   (WIA, BBC, NEWS.COM/AU)   
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   EMERGENCY COORDINATION NO ACCIDENT IN FLORIDA   
      
      
      
   DON: In Florida, the scene spelled disaster - the crash of a bus and a    
   train. It was just a drill - but an important one. We hear details from    
   Amateur Radio Newsline's Paul Braun, WD9GCO.   
      
      
      
   PAUL: The devastating collision between a passenger train and a bus near    
   Morgan Park in Arcadia, Florida was just a test. And with the help of    
   area radio amateurs, everyone scored passing grades.   
      
      
      
   The April 1 mock disaster was organized to challenge area hospital    
   emergency departments as well as first responders. And with area hams on    
   the alert throughout, keeping their radios on 2-meter simplex, planners    
   said it proved a useful learning experience.   
      
      
      
   Hendry County's Emergency Management director Brian Newhouse, KJ4WIC,    
   led staff and reservists through the procedures, as 13 people, who were    
   made up with simulated injuries, awaited attention, triage and    
   transport. While rescue operations got under way, Hendry County CERT    
   Coordinator Margaret England KM4OVY, ARES Emergency Coordinator Frank    
   Harris WA4PAM, and Volunteer Coordinator Tony Fanska KC0SJU, helped    
   ensure safety on the roads in the Morgan Park area.   
      
      
      
   Brenda Barnes, Planning Consultant & Public Information Officer for the    
   Florida Department of Health in Hendry & Glades Counties proclaimed the    
   drill a successful training exercise and praised it for helping    
   strengthen the working relationships among the hams and the emergency    
   professionals.   
      
      
      
   It was also a great way to showcase the need for more active,    
   responsive, licensed hams. Hendry County Emergency Management plans to    
   host a free ham radio training session on Saturday, April 16, and will    
   also provide free CERT training in June. To register, call the Emergency    
   Operations Center at 863-674-5400. Because there are a lot more tests    
   awaiting everyone in the future.   
      
      
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO.   
      
      
      
      
      
   (ANDREW FRAME, WD4RCC; BIG LAKE AMATEUR RADIO CLUB)   
      
      
      
   ----   
      
      
      
   THE EYES OF THE HURRICANE   
      
      
      
   DON: Spring brings the start of gardening season and yes, hurricane    
   season. The Hurricane Watch Net isn't just on the lookout for storms -    
   but for licensed hams too. Here's Amateur Radio Newsline's Stephen    
   Kinford, N8WB.   
      
      
      
   STEPHEN: May isn't that far away and neither are hurricanes in some    
   parts of the country. According to the Hurricane Watch Net, the eastern    
   Pacific storms' season begins May 15 and ends Nov. 30. Hurricanes also    
   become more of a likelihood in the Atlantic between June 1 and Nov. 30.    
   But sometimes hurricanes can - and do - occur out of season.   
      
      
      
   So the Hurricane Watch Net is hoping to get a jump on the season by    
   attracting additional Net Control Operators, and hopes that radio    
   amateurs will step forward to serve as Net Control Stations and provide    
   other support. According to Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, manager of the    
   Hurricane Watch Net, experienced operators are needed, especially those    
   who are bilingual in Spanish and English. Operators need to be prepared    
   for long hours under stressful conditions. Although net control stations    
   must become members of the Hurricane Watch Net, stations servicng as    
   reporting stations or as observers do not need membership.   
      
      
      
   To assist the Hurricane Watch Net, visit the membership information page    
   at www.hwn.org   
      
      
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Stephen Kinford, N8WB, in Wadsworth, Ohio.   
      
      
      
   (HWN.ORG)   
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   SPEND YOUR SATURDAY, APRIL 16, AT A HAMFEST   
      
      
      
   The Splitrock Amateur Radio Association's annual Hamfest kicks off early    
   -- and we do mean early -- on Saturday April 16. People will be arriving    
   for setup starting at 6 a.m. at the Roxbury Senior Center at Horseshoe    
   Lake on Eyland (EEE-LAND) Avenue in Succasunna, New Jersey. Buyers begin    
   arriving at 8 a.m. Bring your QSL cards! The hamfest will have DXCC    
   card-checking available along with a VE Session if you're looking to    
   upgrade - or even get your ticket for the first time. VE registration    
   starts at 8:30 a.m. and the exams start a half-hour later, promptly at    
   9. Yes, the hamfest will also be on the air. Talk-in on the 146.985    
   repeater, K2GG, and you can be there in spirit.   
      
      
      
   For more details, visit splitrockara.org -- and make your plans.   
      
      
      
   Meanwhile, details are also being finalized for the 11th annual North    
   Central Indiana Hamfest, being held Saturday, April 16 as well. The    
   half-day event is open from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Miami County 4-H    
   Fairgrounds north of Peru, Indiana. The hamfest will also include VE    
   testing from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and as an extra incentive, anyone who    
   qualifies for a new license after the testing is admitted free.    
   Otherwise, admission is $5 at the door and free for anyone 17 years of    
   age or younger.   
      
      
      
   (ERIC BUDINGER, N2KOJ; RALPH MURRAY, KB9WSL)   
      
      
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   TWO AT THE HALF-CENTURY MARK   
      
      
      
      
      
   DON: With age comes wisdom, right? Well, two ham radio clubs are both    
   hitting the 50-year mark this year - and they're not shy about sharing    
   their smarts. We hear more from Amateur Radio Newsline's Neil Rapp, WB9VPG.   
      
      
      
   NEIL: Between them, they have 100 years on the air. On one side of the    
   Atlantic, the Mid-Ulster Amateur Radio Club in Northern Ireland is    
   marking its 50th year - and just across the Pond, so is the Montgomery    
   Amateur Radio Club in Maryland.   
      
      
      
   The club in the Washington, D.C., suburbs is doing its 50th birthday in    
   grand style, with a special event station, K5O (Kilo-Five-Oscar) running    
   through Sunday April 17 - in various modes and on a number of the HF    
   bands - and QSL card designed to mark the occasion. According to its    
   website, the club meets on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month in    
   Rockville, Maryland. For the club, which has the call sign KV3B, it's    
   been a great 50 years.   
      
      
      
   For the Mid-Ulster club, call sign MNOVFW, it's been a half-century of    
   growth - the modest-sized group now counts one member for each year    
   they've been a club. And they have a notable local track record, getting    
   involved in everything from local marathons to Scouting events to QSOs    
   with astronauts aboard the International Space Station. They've even    
   launched a program geared toward younger hams, called MUARC Youth --    
   because one of the joys of being 50 is offering a helping hand to those    
   who still have a few decades to go to get there too.   
      
      
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, in Bloomington, Indiana.   
      
      
      
   (THE LURGAN MAIL, JEFF DAHN, KB3ZUK)   
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   BREAK HERE:   
      
      
      
   Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio    
   Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including    
   Wednesdays on the WD9HSY repeater operated by the Tri-Town Amateur Radio    
   Club in Hazel Crest, Illinois.   
      
      
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   A FRIENDSHIP DAY FOR AMATEUR RADIO OPERATORS   
      
      
      
   Hams around the world may not be close enough to extend their hands in    
   friendship, so they extend their antennas instead. That's the spirit    
   behind World Amateur Radio Day, a day of even more on-air fellowship    
   than usual. That would be April 18, which falls on a Monday this year.    
   The date marks the founding in 1925 of the International Amateur Radio    
   Union.   
      
      
      
   The IARU is encouraging groups to promote their activities on that day    
   via social media, using the hash tag #WARD2016, and to make use of a    
   poster and flyer, both downloadable from their website at iaru.org   
      
      
      
      
      
   (INTERNATIONAL AMATEUR RADIO UNION)   
      
      
      
      
      
   **   
      
   HAM RADIO BOOSTS VIRGINIA BIKE RACE   
      
      
      
   DON: One of the largest bicycle races in the Mid-Atlantic region had    
   some amateurs along for the ride. But they weren't exactly pedaling:    
   these hams were riding the bands instead. Here's Amateur Radio    
   Newsline's Jim Damron, N8TMW, with the details.   
      
      
      
   JIM: There's kilocycles, there's megacycles and then there's    
   two-wheeled, multi-geared racing cycles.   
      
      
      
   And when a full racing contingent of those kinds of cycles set out    
   recently in a road race in Virginia's Albemarle County, the only thing    
   that seemed to ensure that they'd keep moving forward safely were the    
   other types of cycles, the kinds that come with radios. That's what    
   brought the Albemarle Amateur Radio Club back to help out the Jefferson    
   Cup Road Race on Sunday, April 3, as it has for more than a    
   quarter-century. The goal was to see that participants along the various    
   routes, which top off at 80 miles in length, stay safe as they follow    
   their course.   
      
      
      
   The race is one of the biggest in the mid-Atlantic. But cell phones    
   don't work reliably in that part of the county, according to Mike    
   McPherson, KQ9P , the Amateur Radio Emergency Service emergency    
   coordinator for the county. And for the cyclists to stay safe, and to    
   keep motor vehicle traffic diverted from them, reliable communications    
   was a must.   
      
      
      
   It's not just a commitment the hams make to the race, it's a trial run    
   for the real thing. McPherson told the Daily Progress newspaper: QUOTE    
   "This is great practice. With any luck, there aren't very many real    
   emergencies, so we use these events to practice our procedures and make    
   sure our equipment works." ENDQUOTE   
      
      
      
   McPherson has other goals too, that include making cconnections with the    
   ham radio club at the University of Virginia, W4UVA, and helping Elmer    
   even younger people who want to get into the science and the experience    
   of radio.   
      
      
      
   That, after all, doesn't just move bicycles in a forward direction. It    
   also keeps the hobby safely on course.   
      
      
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jim Damron, N8TMW.   
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   IN THE UK, A GARDEN OF QSOS   
      
      
      
   You can now add one more piece of equipment - or perhaps two - to the    
   array of rakes, hoes and shovels you might find in a British garden: a    
   transceiver. This new garden tool cultivates a bountiful crop of QSOs.    
   The Radio Society of Great Britain has launched a new activity known as    
   Sheds, Allotments and Greenhouses on the Air, or SAGHOTA, and the date    
   for radio operation already began on Friday, April 1 and continues,    
   informally thereafter, on the dates of the amateur's choosing.   
      
      
      
   In the same spirit as Summits on the Air and Islands on the Air, SAGHOTA    
   will encourage the cultivation of contacts anywhere, as long as they are    
   made on the same band, on the same day. Organizers are quick to point    
   out that the event also celebrates the great tradition of British    
   gardens, expressing the hope that QUOTE "tea-making apparatus, biscuits    
   (and waffles if possible). Beer and sandwiches are optional." ENDQUOTE   
      
      
      
   (SAGHOTA GOOGLE WEBPAGE)   
      
      
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   WORLD OF DX   
      
      
      
   Listen for Ben, DL1RNT, working as 8Q7NT from Embudu Island, South Male    
   Atoll through April 17. Ben is working holiday style on 40-10 meters    
   using mostly CW with some RTTY and PSK. Send QSLs via his home callsign.   
      
      
      
   Mike, SQ3PMM, is active as 9X9MM throughout Rwanda, working 80 through    
   10 meters. He is using CW and SSB. Most of his operations have been on    
   20/15 meters SSB and some slow CW. See his QSL information on QRZ.com.   
      
      
      
   In Italy, it's a Special Event that's a wartime commemoration: Members    
   of the A.R.I. Fidenza Radio Club will be active on the HF bands as IQ4FE    
   from April 18 through April 28. The station marks a World War II event    
   known as "Fornovo's Sack Battle," near Parma, Italy, in April 1945.    
   There are commemorative QSL cards available. Send yours via the bureau    
   to IQ4FE.   
      
      
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
   KICKER: QSL CARD THAT DELIVERED   
      
      
      
   DON: And finally, we celebrate the fact that sometimes it takes a little    
   longer for a QSL card to reach its destination. Sometimes years.    
   Sometimes decades. And in this case, three quarters of a century. But    
   oh, it was worth it. Here's Amateur Radio Newsline's Jeremy Boot, G4NJH,    
   with this story of a time-traveling QSL card.   
      
      
      
   JEREMY: A QSL card that ended up in the hands of Jane Walton in the UK    
   in late February had to cross not just one ocean but two generations    
   before reaching her. It belonged to a British radio amateur named    
   Clifton Trevor Malkin, call sign G5IV. Clifton had been Jane's    
   grandfather. And though Jane is not a ham and never had a QSO with her    
   grandpa, she always had fond memories of being in his shack with him    
   when she was a child in Yorkshire. She would hear him make contacts    
   around the world via radio from Barnsley and be charmed by its magic.   
      
      
      
   Two months ago, some magic happened again - but a different way. Feeling    
   nostalgic, Jane decided to type her grandfather's call sign into the    
   Google search engine and one of the responses that came up was an eBay    
   listing. It said: "QSL CARD, ham radio card" and the call sign was G5IV.    
   The card had been mailed to the U.S. long ago from Barnsley, England,    
   following a successful QSO in 1939. Now, the American seller was asking    
   $6.50 for G5IV's card.   
      
      
      
   Jane bid on the item and some 77 years later, the card is back home to    
   where it all began. The Barnsley Chronicle carried the story of Jane    
   Walton and the QSL card in its April 1 edition, creating the impression    
   that perhaps this was one of those April Fool's tales that makes its way    
   to the public this time of year. But indeed, the offering of the card    
   can still be found on eBay, in the inventory of eBay seller, Anne's    
   Books & Stuff. The seller, not surprisingly, has a number of other    
   vintage QSL cards from around the world.   
      
      
      
   But Jane Walton has the only one she wants. It's a piece of her    
   childhood, come back home.   
      
      
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, in Nottingham, the UK.   
      
      
      
      
      
   (FACEBOOK, EBAY, BARNSLEY CHRONICLE)   
      
      
      
   **   
      
      
      
      
      
   NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to ABC.NET Australia; Alan Labs; Andrew    
   Frame, WD4RCC; the ARRL; the Barnsley Chronicle; Big Lake Amateur Radio    
   Club; CQ Magazine; DX.NET; Eric Budinger, N2KOJ; eBay; Facebook; Hap    
   Holly and the Rain Report; International Amateur Radio Union; Irish    
   Radio Transmitter Society; the Ohio-Penn DX Bulletin; QSL.NET; QRZ.COM.,    
   Ralph Murray, KB9WSL; Southgate Amateur Radio News; Sheds, Allotments    
   and Gardens on the Air; TWiT TV; Wireless Institute of Australia; and    
   you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. Our email    
   address is newsline@arnewsline.org. More information is available at    
   Amateur Radio Newsline's only official website located at    
   www.arnewsline.org.   
      
      
      
   A reminder that the nominating period for the Bill Basternak Young Ham    
   Of The Year award is now open.  Full details and the nominating form is    
   available right now on our website, www.arnewsline.org.  Click the YHOTY    
   tab.   
      
      
      
   For now, with Caryn Eve Murray, KD2GUT, at the news desk in New York,    
   and our news team worldwide, I'm Don Wilbanks, AE5DW, in Picayune,    
   Mississippi, saying 73 and as always we thank you for listening.   
      
      
      
   Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.   
      
   ***   
      
   As a Service to the HAM Radio Community and HAM Operators all over the   
   world, this Amateur Radio Newline(tm) message has been gated from the   
   internet and posted to you by Waldo's Place USA, fidonet node 1:3634/12.   
   We hope you enjoyed it!   
      
   Please address all comments and questions to the ARNewsletter editor as   
   described in this posting. If you have any specific questions related   
   to the actual posting of this message, you may address them to   
   hamfdn(at)wpusa.dynip.com.   
      
   Thank you and good day!   
      
   -73- ARNTE-0.1.0-OS2 build 42   
   (text/plain utf-8 7bit)   
      
      
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