Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1864 with a release date of May 3 2013 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. Region One of the International Amateur Radio Union meets in Vienna; a coalition of groups announces its attempting to arrange a DXpedition to North Korea; the exemption for ham radio remains as part of Hawaii's new distracted driving law; lots more news on the upcoming Dayton Hamvention and NASA to launch mission to study Equatorial electric storm propagation. Find out the details are on Amateur Radio NewslineT report number 1864 coming your way right now. (Billboard Cart Here) ** RADIO RULES: IARU REGION 1 MEETS IN VIENNA IARU Region 1 held its Interim Meeting in Vienna Austria the weekend of April 20th through the 21st. Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, of the RSGB news reports: -- H-F topics included preparations for the WRC15, which includes the possibility of a worldwide amateur allocation at 5MHz. Other proposals included trying to align some of the High Frequency band plans between Regions and the DXpedition Code of Conduct. A number of other papers covered contest matters, support for newcomers via scouting's Jamboree on the Air, operation of unmanned stations, and discussions on a possible band plan for the new 472 to 479 kHz amateur allocation. For VHF and microwaves, there were a total of 34 papers covered technical, operating, band planning and contest matters. Areas of focus were improvements to IARU contests and accommodating digital voice, beacon and TV developments. Band plans at 4m, 2m and 70cm came under particular scrutiny. Pressure on spectrum, notably at 2.3GHz, was also discussed. Several topics are expected to be further developed in time for the next Region 1 Conference in the autumn of 2014. For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jeremy Boot. G4NJH, reporting from Nottingham in the United Kingdom. -- The minutes and recommendations of the Interim Meeting will be published shortly, once approved by the Region 1 Executive Committee. (IARU - R1, GB2RS) ** BREAKING DX NEWS: DX GROUP ATTEMPTING TO ARRANGE OPERATION FROM NORTH KOREA A well known group of DX'ers say that they are working on getting permission to operate from North Korea which is the most wanted DXCC entity in the world. Amateur Radio Newsline's Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK, reports: -- The Intrepid-DX Group, in partnership with the World-Wide DX Group says that for the past four years that they have been working with professionals in the business and tourism industries who are actively doing business in North Korea. In a widely circulated press statement the organizations note that they have prepared a comprehensive, multi-faceted proposal, which has been delivered it to the North Korean officials via their emissary located in Chinese. Also that several members of the combined groups leadership and advisory team have made multiple visits to the region and are advising the overall groups accordingly. The DXers say that they are using the same techniques that were successful in opening up Kurdistan, the South Sudan and Yemen to DXpedition activity. They add that they are leveraging their ideas and contacts towards the goal of a major DXpedition over a four week period from within the North Korea border. As we go to air, no date for such an operation to take place has even been speculated. For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK, in Zion, Illinois. -- We will have more DX related news later on in this weeks Amateur Radio Newsline report. (Intrepid-DX Group release) ** RADIO LAW: HAWAII DISTRACTED DRIVER LAW WITH HAM RADIO EXEMPTION SENT TO GOVERNOR FOR SIGNATURE House Bill 980, dealing with mobile cellular telephone law for the State of Hawaii that contains an exemption for mobile ham radio operation has been transmitted to the Governor and is awaiting his signature. Like many other states, the new law in Hawaii states that no person shall operate a motor vehicle while using a mobile electronic device, however the use of a mobile electronic device for the sole purpose of making a "911" emergency communication is permitted. The Hawaii law provides that no person under eighteen years of age can operate a motor vehicle while utilizing even a hands-free mobile electronic device, except, once again for the sole purpose of making a "911" emergency call. According to Ron Hashiro, AH6RH, in addition to radio amateurs, also exempted from the law will be emergency responders using a mobile electronic device while in the performance of their official duties and those operating under FCC Part 90 Land Mobile Radio rules. Not exempted are those using Family Radio Service, users of the General Mobile Radio Service, Citizens Band radio operators, marine radio, the aviation band, text messaging and of coarse those making non emergency calls using hand held cellular telephone. Penalties include a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $200 for a first violation. A second violation within that occurs within one year brings with it a fine of not less than $200 and not more than $300. For a violation that occurs within two years of two prior violations and for the fourth and each subsequent violation regardless of when they were committed, a fine of not less than $300 and not more than $500 can be assessed. If signed by the Governor, the new Hawaii distracted driving law will take effect on July 1st. The full text is on the web at tinyurl.com/hawaii-cell-final. (AH6RH via Facebook and other published news reports) ** RESCUE RADIO: TEXT ALERTS ISSUED AFTER BOSTON MARATHON BOMBINGS Boston officials did use cellphone text messages, known as Wireless Emergency Alerts in the aftermath of the marathon bombings. That's according to Rick Wimberly of alerting consultancy Galain Solutions. The former broadcaster and current consultant to FEMA told Radio World that the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency or MEMA has the ability and authority to issue imminent threat Wireless Emergency Alerts messages and did do on April 19th. Specifically, MEMA issued a shelter-in- place order, by tweeting out a message to that effect. According to Wimberly, Wireless Emergency Alerts complement EAS system because the text messages remind users to tune in to their local broadcast stations for more detailed information. Whether or not the EAS system itself was placed into formal use in the marathon bombing aftermath is still open to debate. (RW) ** COMMUNICATIONS LAW: COMMISSIONER WANTS FCC TO LOOSEN OWNERSHIP RULES FCC commissioner Ajit Pai says that if the FCC proceeds to count some Joint Sales Agreements toward local TV station ownership caps, it would be an error. This is because Pai believes that the Commission must treat broadband as a complement, not replacement, for broadcast use of spectrum. His remarks came in a recent speech to the Media Institute. In it, Pai wants the FCC to loosen the local ownership rules, and found it amazing that the proposal currently on the table would tighten them by adding the Joint Sales Agreements and possibly shared service agreements. Pai pointed to a Joint Sales Agreement between two stations in his home state of Kansas. There, a Univision affiliate and an Entravision station were able to create the only Spanish-language newscast in the state. Another he cited was in Missouri between the broadcasters Nexstar and Mission that allowed for expanded news coverage. A Joint Sales Agreement sometimes known as a Limited Sales Agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another license holder. In essence, it is a sort of lease or time-buy arrangement. (Multichannel News, Wikipedia) ** BREAK 1 From the United States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the KC8LMI repeater serving Aurelius, Michigan. (5 sec pause here) ** WORLDBEAT: WEB RADIO EXECS MEET IN BRUSSELS FOR RAIN SUMMIT An Internet radio summit is coming to Europe next month. Amateur Radio Newsline's Jeff Clark, K8JAC, has the details: -- Internet radio executives from across Europe will meet in Brussels on Thursday, May 23rd for the second annual RAIN Summit Europe. This is according to Kirk Hansen who is the publisher of the RAIN Radio and Internet newsletter. RAIN Summit Europe will take place at the Hotel Bloom. The conference will be a daylong event featuring panels and presentations along with speakers and other opportunities for European networking executives to consider the future of radio in the digital world. RAIN conferences are educational and networking events for the Internet radio and on-line audio industries. For the past decade these conferences have been presented several times each year in North America and feature top speakers and panelists from around the world. I'm Jeff Clark, K8JAC. -- For those who may be wondering these conferences are not in any way connected with Hap Holly, KC9RP's weekly RAIN Report based in Chicago. (RW) ** ENFORCEMENT: COMMISSION UPHOLDS $17,000 FINE AGAINST BROADCASTER Turning to regulatory enforcement, word that the full commission has upheld a decision by the Enforcement Bureau and has ruled that Mt. Rushmore Broadcasting owes $17,000 for violations of the agency's EAS and public file rules. Earlier, the bureau denied the company's 2011 petition to reconsider the fine levied for failing to ensure the operational readiness of the station's EAS gear, failing to maintain a complete public inspection file for stations and failing to operate the Studio to Transmitter Link from its licensed location. Now in its final judgment in this matter the full Commission says that Mt. Rushmore Broadcasting did not dispute the facts or that the violations took place. Rather that the broadcaster had only substantially reiterated all of the arguments previously considered and rejected. The FCC also noted that Mt. Rushmore Broadcasting did not demonstrate that the Enforcement Bureau made an error in its findings. Nor did it provide financial documentation to support its repeated request that the fine be reduced or eliminated. The full commission upheld the Enforcement Bureau's original order and said payment is due within 15 days. In the meantime, the government filed a complaint in federal district court against Mt. Rushmore Broadcasting to recover the money. That case will be dismissed if the licensee makes the payment, according to the agency. Mt. Rushmore Broadcasting is the licensee of KRAL-AM, KIQZ- FM, and Studio to Transmitter link WHB734, in Rawlins, Wyoming. (FCC, RW) ** INDUSTRY NEWS: SPX DIELECTRIC TO CEASE MAKING ANTENNAS One of the nation's best known manufacturers of broadcast and two-way antenna systems, transmission lines and associated products is closing its doors. Amateur Radio Newsline's Skeeter Nash, N5ASH, reports: -- SPX Communications Technologies, formerly Dielectric Communications, will cease its broadcast television, radio and wireless antenna manufacturing operations effective June 29th. Dielectric as it is still better known had already begun letting customers know that it plans to get out of the antenna business. The company was started in 1942 as Dielectric Products Corp., which specialized in developing transmission lines for wartime radar system use. The company has been located in Raymond ME since 1954. It installed its first Digital TV broadcast antenna in 1994 and provided more than 1200 broadcasters with Digital Television transmission solutions. SPX acquired Dielectric in 2001. According to the CGC Communicator, over the years Dielectric produced some of the finest broadcast antennas made in the United States, and its closure represents a significant blow to U.S. manufacturing capabilities. For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Skeeter Nash, N5ASH. -- More on the shuttering of this historic company is on the web at tinyurl.com/dialectric-closes. (RW, CGC) ** RESCUE RADIO: ETON ZONE GUARD RECEIVER Eton Corporation has a new product that may well be of interest to hams involved in emergency response operations or those who live in regions where getting accurate emergency alerts are a necessity. Called the ZoneGuard, it is a portable battery-powered AM/FM radio that receives NOAA weather and Specific Area Message Encoding or S.A.M.E. local emergency messages. The ZoneGuard radio will also flash an internal 3 level High- visibility color alert light bar and emit warning sounds when local warning messages are activated. On top of that, it is also programmable so multiple geographic areas can be programmed into it for emergency message reception. Best of all is the price for this little gem at under $40 street and available where most consumer electronics are sold. And less we forget, the radio also carries a Red Cross identification brand on it and a portion of sales profits goes to that organization. (RW) ** RADIO READING: SPRING 2013 5MHZ NEWSLETTER NOW AVAILABLE The Spring 2013 edition of The 5MHz Newsletter is now available for free download. This edition features news about 5 MHz amateur band allocations, the latest update of the Worldwide Amateur 5 MHz Allocations Chart, plus stories on 5 MHz Web Software Defined Radios and much more. You can download your copy at tinyurl.com/dxlpgyj. (GM4WO, Southgate) ** HAM HAPPENINGS: 4 DAYS IN MAY CONCURRENT WITH HAMVENTION 2013 The 18th annual Four Days in May the QRP and Homebrew mini- convention held concurrently with the Dayton Hamvention beginning on Thursday May 16th. The venue is once again the Holiday Inn located in Fairborn, Ohio which is just about twenty minutes to the east of the Hara Arena. Guest speakers this year feature Roy Lewallen W7EL, Rick Campbell KK7B and George Dobbs G3RJV, and others. Thursday evening will include a presentation from Ten-Tec at which there will be a new product announcement. Events on Thursday and Friday evenings are free of charge. More information along with tickets for the seminars, the Buildathon and Grand Banquet can be bought online at www.qrparci.org/fdim. (W4DU, G4GXL) ** HAMVENTION 2013: ARRL AWARD CHECKING AT HAMVENTION Bill Moore, NC1L, says that the ARRL Awards Staff will be present at the 2013 Dayton Hamvention to check applications for all ARRL awards. These include DXCC, WAS, VUCC, WAC and the Extra Class Certificate. A detailed PDF file is available to help guide you through the card checking process so that everything proceeds smoothly at tinyurl.com/arrl-awards-dayton-2013. If, after reviewing the PDF file and you have questions, send an e- mail to Bill Moore, NC1L, at bmoore(at)arrl(dot)org. (NC1L) ** HAMVENTION NEWS: TECHNICIAN LICENSE CLASS AT HAMVENTION 2013 A Technician level Ham Radio Class will be held at the Dayton Hamvention on Saturday, May 18th. The session runs from 9AM until 4PM and will be held at the Hara Arena Hamvention venue. Immediately following the conclusion of the class a team of Volunteer Examiners will be on-hand to administer the Technician class exam. You must pre-register for the class and yes, there is homework. Info on what's in the class and how to enroll can be found at http://www.hamclass.net/hamvclass.htm Interested students should not delay as there is limited room and once the class fills, enrollment will be closed. The class will be again sponsored by Mitch Stern, W1SJ. If you have any questions please contact him at w1sj@arrl.net Stern tells Amateur Radio Newsline that this will be his 4th year of providing these classes at the Dayton Hamvention but that he has actually been teaching 1 and 2 days classes for 21 years. (W1SJ) ** HAMVENTION 2013: W9FIZ ANNOUNCES HE CANNOT PROVIDE ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT TEST STATION Barry Gose, W9FIZ, who had previously announced a number of free services at Hamvention 2013 has been forced to cancel a few of them. This after he was advised by a fellow ham who is an attorney that since he is not licensed, bonded, or insured to test electronic equipment that he would be exposing himself self to considerable liability. Gose says that based on this that he will not be unable to offer any service that involves testing electronic devices of any kind in any way shape or form. However, W9FIZ still plans to attend and both his free advertisement board and 2 meter paging service will still be available. (W9FIZ) ** BREAK 2 This is ham radio news for today's radio amateur. From the United States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline with links to the world from our only official website at www.arnewsline.org and being relayed by the volunteer services of the following radio amateur: (5 sec pause here) ** CHANGING OF THE GUARD: W9JUV - S.K. The changing of the guard in our world of amateur radio continues with the sad news of the passing of our longtime friend and colleague Joseph J. "Joe" Schroeder, Jr. W9JUV on Tuesday, April 30th. Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, is here with more on the life of this truly dedicated ham radio operator: -- When he passed away at age 83, Joe Schroeder, W9JUV, was perhaps best known as the founding editor of the weekly H-R Report newsletter published in the 1970's by Ham Radio Magazine. This was the first independent amateur radio news source other than the ARRL's W1AW broadcasts and its Directors Letters. In addition to HR Report, Joe was also a member of the Ham Radio Magazine editorial staff from its inception and continued with it for many years. He also served as a reporter for this news service during its formative days as the Westlink Radio News. Joe was licensed as W9JUV since 1946. An accomplished DXer, he was active on all bands from 160 meters through 432 MHz. His ham radio achievements included being on the DXCC Honor Roll since early 1970's; achieving 6 Meter DXCC, Worked All Continents and Worked All States. W9JUV was a life Member ARRL, AMSAT and the QCWA. Over the years he had held various positions with ARRL, AMSAT and the Old Old Timers Club. He was also a member of the PJ2T Contesting Group, the Northern Illinois DX Association, and the Radio Club of America. Professionally W9JUV was a former Motorola engineer and Managing Editor of Electronic Instrument Digest magazine. He was the founder of the Chicago area-based firm Consultek Consulting as well as being an authority on firearms history and gun collecting. In the latter he was the owner of Handgun Press Publishing Co. and wrote or edited many books and articles in that field. A private pilot since 1956 he was also active with Civil Air Patrol. And less I forget to mention, Joe was a close friend of this reporter for the better part of 40 years and will never be forgotten. There are some special people who touch ones life, and for me, Joe Schroeder, W9JUV, ranks at the very top. I'm Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, in Los Angeles. -- Joe Schroeder, W9JUV is survived by his wife of 55 years Janet, N9LGI; his son Brad, daughter Elizabeth Anderluh and two grandchildren. Speaking for the family, Joe's daughter Elizabeth says that a memorial service will be held for him at some point in the near future. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, 651 W. Washington Blvd., Suite 400, Chicago, Illinois 60661 or Cal's Angels, 721 Aston Lane South, Elgin, Illinois 60177. (ARNewslineT) ** ON THE AIR: FIRST CLASS CW OPS CLUB CELEBRATES 75 YEARS Members of the First Class CW Operators Club will take to the air in May with many using special calls. This to celebrate the 75th anniversary of that organization. Nearly 50 special FOC suffix calls, and 6 calls with unique prefixes will be on the bands throughout the month. The special call GB75FOC will be activated by a group of English members each day in May and special versions of the club call G4FOC will be used in non-English U.K. countries. In addition, the call M0RSE will be on the air as well. An FOC 75 award will be available at the three levels of bronze, silver and gold. For full information about the award as well as QSL routing to stations involved in this celebration, simply take your web browser to www.g4foc.org and then follow the link to FOC 75th Anniversary. (KR3E) ** ON THE AIR: CELEBRATING ST CYRIL AND METHODIUS DAY Now here' a rather interesting one. A special event station signing LZ2013KM will be activated by members of Bulgarian Federation of Radio Amateurs between May 1st and the 31st. This operation is to celebrate a national holiday known as St. Cyril and Methodius day. Operation will be on all the High Frequency bands with QSL's going only via the LZ bureau. And who were St. Cyril and Methodius you ask? Well they were the creators of the Cyrillic alphabet, and we thought you might like to know. (Z1BJ) ** DX In DX, JA9LSZ is reported as being currently active from Nepal as 9N7SZ. His operation is on the High Frequency bands only. If you work him please QSL to JA9LSZ. According to SQ8X posting on the FT5XM Web page the group hopes to set sail for Amsterdam Island on January 15, 2014 and arrive on the 24th. Landing operations will begin as soon as the sea conditions and weather allow. Once the team is ashore, they will have 18 days to set up, conduct the DXpedition, and tear down for departure. You can follow developments at www.amsterdamdx.org JJ8DEN was to be active from Puka Puka Atoll in French Polynesia From April 30th through May 7th. This will be followed by an operation from Raivavae Island in the Austral Island group as KH0PR stroke FO from May 8th to the 15th. He will be active on High Frequency bands using CW , RTTY and PSK. QSL via JJ8DEN. Members of the Dutch Society of Radio Amateurs will be active as 9H25 from Qawra, Malta between May 20th and June 4th. This in celebration of the groups 25th Holiday DXpedition to that nation. Operations will be on 80 through 6 meters using CW and SSB. QSL via PI4KGL Lastly, a DXpedition made up of members of the Oceania DX Group will activate Norfolk Island as VK9NT between May 3rd and the 13th. They plan to have 4 stations covering 80 through 10 meters operating CW, SSB and RTTY. An "Online QSL Request Service" will be available for bureau, and direct cards on ClubLog which is the preferred method. If for some reason you cannot use the ClubLog or Logbook of the World, paper QSL can go direct to VK2CA. (Above from various DX news sources) ** RADIO IN SPACE: NASA MISSION TO STUDY EQUATORIAL ELECTRICAL STORM PROPAGATION And finally this wee, a NASA funded sounding rocket mission will launch from an atoll in the Pacific in the next few weeks to help scientists better understand and predict the electrical storms in Earth's upper atmosphere. These severe weather outbursts can interfere with satellite communication, the global positioning system and other space- based communications including some used by radio amateurs. The mission is called EVEX which stands for the Equatorial Vortex Experiment. It will consist of the launch two rockets from the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands for a twelve minute information gathering journey through the equatorial ionosphere above the South Pacific. The twin spacecraft will measure events in two separate regions of the ionosphere to see how they work together to drive the ionosphere from placid and smooth to violently disturbed. Such information could ultimately lead to the ability to more accurately forecast this important aspect of space related weather. The launch window for EVEX runs through May 10th. More on this propagation study mission is on-line at tinyurl.com/nasa-storm-rocket (Space Daily) ** NEWSCAST CLOSE With thanks to Alan Labs, AMSAT, the ARRL, the CGC Communicator, CQ Magazine, the FCC, the Ohio Penn DX Bulletin, Radio Netherlands, Rain, the RSGB, the Southgate News, TWiT-TV and Australia's WIA News, that's all from the Amateur Radio NewslineT. Our e-mail address is newsline (at) arnewsline (dot) org. More information is available at Amateur Radio Newsline'sT only official website located at www.arnewsline.org. You can also write to us or support us at Amateur Radio NewslineT, 28197 Robin Avenue, Santa Clarita California, 91350 A reminder that the nominating period for the 2013 Amateur Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year Award is now open. Full details and a nominating form are on our website at www.arnewsline.org/yhoty. For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editors' desk, I'm Jim Davis, W2JKD, on Frorida's Sunshine Coast saying 73 and we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio NewslineT is Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.
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