Communications Manager | April 17, 2020
Watch The Video Click Here
The Radio Society of Great Britain, working in partnership with the NHS, has launched a new campaign called “Get on the air to care” to support the emotional health and wellbeing of 75,000 licensed UK radio amateurs – just some of the 3,000,000 worldwide.
Paul Devlin, NHS England Emergency Care Improvement Support Team and RSGB District Representative, says: “Now, more than ever, we need to optimise all modes of communication to help reduce loneliness and isolation within communities. Amateur radio provides a wonderful, unprecedented opportunity to help make this a reality”.
World Amateur Radio Day on Saturday 18 April celebrates this innovative, global community. Whilst amateur radio evolves continually to include technologies which are at the forefront of modern radio communications, radio amateurs can “Get on the air to care” with a simple handheld device.
Steve Thomas, M1ACB, General Manager of the RSGB explains: “Please help to increase amateur radio activity through club and repeater group nets, chatting with your friends or just by calling CQ. If you’d like to show your support for the NHS at the same time, Ofcom is happy for radio amateurs to add “/NHS” to the end of their call signs.”
GB1NHS, the UK’s National Health Service radio communications station will be on the air as part of this campaign so listen out for it!
Our new “Get
on the air to care” web page at rsgb.org/gota2c
includes our launch video so do take a look.
As you get involved
in “Get on the air to care” by being more active on the radio,
please share your photos, video clips and news with us via comms@rsgb.org.uk
and also on social media using the hashtag #GOTA2C
GB3SH - OFF AIR
Were are sorry to announce GB3SH is of air due to a fault in the receiver,
due to the Covid 19 were not in the position to do anything about it for
some time, we do have another receiver of course but still we cant fit
it! As this is a rx based problem the TX and logic sound fine and hopefully
the CWID will keep you and me company for many weeks, meanwhile service
is normal on SU & MT.
Andy G4MYS
GB3SU CW ID
We have noticed that the cwid on GB3SU is very LOUD, were sorry about
that! as a quick work around set your CTCSS in decode also and you will
not notice the CWID
Need less to say there is nothing were going to do about it for the time
being - as its a fault in the audio generation of the pips & CWID
which is likely to be a dodgy skeleton pot in the G3RKL mk1 logic board
which is around 23 years old! which means the CWID & pips may totally
misbehave: it may go loud or soft or anywhere in between before we get
the chance to repair it.
Andy G4MYS
We were due to be set up in April at Kempton Park but as you will read this has been postponed.
IMPORTANT NOTICE FROM RADIO FAIRS TO TRADERS
With the current situation of what is now called a pandemic break-out of the Coronavirus COVID-19, it is with great regret that we have to announce that it has been decided to postpone the Kempton Rally that was due to be held on Sunday 19th April 2020. We have been able to secure a date for the postponed rally of Sunday 15th November 2020.
After a lot of thought we considered it would be prudent to do so due to health considerations. It has been postponed on the grounds that it is advisable to avoid and keep away from gatherings or events where there is an increased possibility of contracting or spreading the virus regardless of appropriate measures being taken. As you will be aware we have lots of people attending who are advancing in age and may not be in the best of health, added to which the event is normally very crowded and there is no way of avoiding close contact.
If you have booked already and payment has been made, we will hold the money over for the next event. Please keep the paperwork that you will have already received.
By November we hope that it will be business as usual.
Sorry for the inconvenience caused, we hope you will understand and continue to support us.
Paul Berkeley
Radio Fairs
Technical Update
The groups technical team has been working on getting a set of duplexers
working for GB7IV, the greatest problem here is the new cost of such units
new which is around £2,500. Second hand units have there own problems
as we have found which includes theft of parts, parts not being suitable
on the ham band, and stowage corrosion, which can be in the base and internally
on second hand kit.
In order to get just 4 filters going we have brought a number of "cans" and made the very critical length cables after a lot of careful research, and have selected the best pairs to work with. We have checked them, and need to do further work on the caverty jump cables lengths.
More alignment and testing will happen in the next two weeks, after that On air testing will happen, with the D-star repeater before its moved to the repeater site. And then even more testing will have to happen to settle down two VHF repeaters very close together. Affer all that the D-star repeater machine wont be internet connected as we are still trying to understand the Centross operating system.
We understand some
of you are asking about a Fusion repeater, the simple answer is The IV
group has a D Star repeater, We may be able to borrow a fusion repeater
to play with, but at over £1000 if you want us to run one on VHF,
then hands will have to go into pockets! Let us know its for the "fusion
fund" then we will know if these are serious "wants" or
just someone else can pay for it, and ill use it requests.
It has to noted that most of the funding comes from a small percentage
of our user base, and the efforts of the committee at rallys ....
Southampton Amateur Radio Club Meeting WEDNESDAY 18th March 2020
The Southampton Amateur Radio Club meet at The Peartree Inn Southampton on the 3rd Wednesday of every month.
We The South Hampshire Repeater Group are also there for any questions and to report progress.
You can also get information on the Radio Amateur courses for those starting and those who wish to progress.
New and old members always welcome. Good to see some of the old members coming back and returning to the airways.
WEDNESDAY Evening: 18th March at the Peartree Inn, Woolston, SO19 7GZ
19:00 for 19:30 : large car park, no worries parking!
Drink policy: we purchase our own they sell soft drinks / Coffee, water and booze! however they don't do meals.
Southampton Amateur
Radio Club Meeting WEDNESDAY 19th February 2020
The Southampton Amateur Radio Club meet at The Peartree Inn Southampton
on the 3rd Wednesday of every month.
We The South Hampshire Repeater Group are also there for any questions and to report progress.
You can also get information on the Radio Amateur courses for those starting and those who wish to progress.
New and old members always welcome. Good to see some of the old members coming back and returning to the airways.
WEDNESDAY Evening: 19thFebruary at the Peartree Inn, Woolston, SO19 7GZ
19:00 for 19:30 : large car park, no worries parking!
Drink policy: we purchase our own they sell soft drinks / Coffee, water and booze! however they don't do meals.
The new four stack antenn system being tested in Chandlers Ford. There is also a picture of the monitoring antennas that we installed for the web monitoring stream on line very soon.
Instalation of the four stack to the MT SU site will be soon whern the weather improves.
The Engineers insist on warm no wind and plenty of hot soup!
G4MYS
CLICK IMAGE TO OPEN IN FULL
Its a Brand new aerial from "Jaybeam wireless", A 4 stack "tetra" style dipole array aerial nearly 10 feet high! rated to withstand 160MPH winds and handle 200 watts of power, We will also With a the new aerial for GB3SH as well !
We'll also have an FT 100M the Yaesu Fusion mobile used to work GB7MT for your interest.
Bring your cameras!
The next meeting is at The Peartree Inn
Wednesday 15th January 7:30pm SO19 5GZ