The Ohio/Penn DX PacketCluster
DX Bulletin No. 546 BID: $OPDX.546 January 21, 2002 Editor Tedd Mirgliotta, KB8NW
Provided by BARF-80 BBS Cleveland, Ohio
Online at 440-237-8208 28.8k-1200 Baud 8/N/1
Thanks to the Northern Ohio Amateur Radio Society, Northern
Ohio DX Association, Ohio/Penn PacketCluster Network, AB5K &
the AR TelNet Clusters Network, KZ1Z, NC1L, K2JXW, WA2VUY, W3UR
& The Daily DX, N4AA & QRZ DX, KH6BZF, KI6T, N6DHZ, K7BV,
K8YSE, N8BJQ, N9AG, 9K2HN, CE6TBN, DL1EK & DX News Letter,
DL2VFR, DJ5JH, ES1FB, F5NQL & UFT, F6EPY, GM4SUC, PA3GIO,
PS7AB, PY3FBI, PY5EG, VA3RJ & ICPO, VU3DMP and YT6A for the
following DX information.
DXCC COUNTRY/ENTITY REPORT: According to the
AR-Cluster Network for the week of Sunday, 13/January, through
Sunday, 20/January there were 231 countries active. Countries
available: 3A, 3B8, 3C, 3D2, 3D2/r, 3V, 3W, 4J, 4L, 4S, 4W, 4X,
5B, 5H, 5N, 5R, 5V, 5Z, 6W, 6Y, 7Q, 7X, 8P, 8R, 9A, 9G, 9H, 9J,
9K, 9L, 9M2, 9M6, 9N, 9Q, 9U, 9V, 9Y, A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7, A9,
AP, BV, BY, C2, C3, C6, CE, CE9, CM, CN, CP, CT, CT3, CU, CX, D2,
D4, DL, DU, EA, EA6, EA8, EA9, EI, EK, EL, EP, ER, ES, ET, EU,
EX, EY, EZ, F, FG, FH, FJ, FK, FM, FO, FP, FR, FW, FY, G, GD, GI,
GJ, GM, GU, GW, HA, HB, HC, HI, HK, HK0/a, HL, HP, HR, HS, HV,
HZ, I, IS, J2, J3, J7, J8, JA, JD/o, JT, JW, JX, JY, K, KG4, KH0,
KH2, KH3, KH4, KH6, KH8, KL, KP2, KP4, LA, LU, LX, LY, LZ, OA,
OD, OE, OH, OH0, OK, OM, ON, OX, OY, OZ, P2, P4, PA, PJ2, PJ7,
PY, PZ, S2, S5, S7, S9, SM, SP, SU, SV, SV5, SV9, T32, T7, T8,
T9, TA, TF, TG, TI, TK, TL, TR, TU, UA, UA2, UA9, UK, UN, UR, V2,
V3, V4, V5, V6, V7, V8, VE, VK, VP2E, VP2M, VP2V, VP5, VP6, VP8,
VP8/h, VP8/o, VP8/s, VP9, VQ9, VR, VU, XE, XU, XW, YA, YB, YI,
YJ, YK, YL, YN, YO, YS, YU, YV, Z2, Z3, ZA, ZB, ZC4, ZD7, ZD8,
ZD9, ZF, ZK1/s, ZL, ZP, ZS.
* PLEASE NOTE: The report "could" contain
"Pirate/SLIM" operations. As always, you never know -
"Work First Worry Later" (WFWL).
9K, KUWAIT (Special Activity). Members of the
Kuwait Amateur Radio Society (KARS) were signing 9K2RA/AE this
past week to celebrate the return of "His Highness the Amir
of Kuwait Alshaikh Jabber Alahmad Alsabah" from his
successful medical treatment trip, on Tuesday 15th of January
2002. If you worked them a special QSL card will be available. By
the way, the suffix "/AE" stands for "His
Highness" callsign 9K2AE.
A5, BHUTAN. Ray, G3NOM, continues to be
active as A52OM. He was heard over the past weekend on 80 and 40
meters CW, as well as 15, 17 and 20 meters. Reports indicate that
he is there with his XYL, E21UHL, on an invitation from the
Department of Telecommunications in Bhutan. During the next four
weeks they will prepare 20 local HAMs for the their amateur radio
licence exams. QSL via G3NOM.
ATTENTION LOW BANDERS! Lee, KH6BZF,
propagation guru, reports that according to some data, watch
January 30th - February 2nd for possible good to excellent Low
Band propagation conditions. All is based on a 27.5-day
rotational data of the sun's affect on geomagnetic conditions.
CARIBBEAN ACTIVITY (C6 and J6). Gary, KI6T,
will be operating from Bahamas and St. Lucia. His schedule is as
follows:
Look for C6AGS from February 12-17th.
Activity will be on SSB/CW, 40 through 10 meters (IOTA
NA-80). Operation will include the ARRL DX Contest.
Look for J68GS from March 21st through
April 2nd. Activity will be on SSB/CW, 80-10 meters.
Operation will include the CQ WPX SSB Conest with J6DX.
QSLs for C6AGS and J68GS are via KI6T,
either direct or via bureau.
DAYTON HAMVENTION DX DINNER. The Southwest
Ohio DX Association is pleased to announce the Seventeenth Annual
DX Dinner to be held on Friday, May 17th, 2002 at the Crowne
Plaza Hotel, Dayton, Ohio. There will be a cash bar at 6:30 PM
and dinner at 7:15 PM. Tickets are $33.00 and must be purchased
in advance. Groups wishing to sit together must order as a group.
A table seats eight. Please make your check or money order
payable to SWODXA, and send an SASE for ticket return. Seats will
be assigned in the order that requests are received. Seats will
be assigned on 16 March 2002. Seating is limited. Please order
tickets from Steve Bolia, N8BJQ, 7354 Thackery Rd, Springfield,
OH 45502. For information on the dinner, check the following Web
site at: http://members.aol.com/SteveB4622/. Or
contact Steve Bolia, N8BJQ, at (937) 788-2803 or sent E-mail to: n8bjq@erinet.com.
DXCC NEWS. Bill Moore, NC1L, DXCC Manager,
reports that the following operations were on hold for DXCC
credit pending receipt of documentation. Documenation has been
received and they are OK for DXCC credit:
CAMBODIA (2001): XU7ABZ, XU7ABW, XU7ABY, and XU7ACA
GUINEA (2001): 3XY6A and 3XY8A
If you had these rejected in an application, you can contact
DXCC for an update (dxcc@arrl.org),
or, just include it with your next submission.
FG, GUADELOUPE. Remember to look for Pierre,
F6FXS, to be active from here now through February 7th. His
callsign will be either FG/F6FXS or FG5/F6FXS. Activity will be
on all HF bands including the WARC bands. He will use an
IC-706MKII (100 watts) and wire antennas. This will be a holiday
style DXpedition. QSL via his home callsign direct or via bureau.
H40, TEMOTU PROVINCE (Update). During the
period from March 28th through April 12th, Nick, VK1AA, will be
organizing a DXpedition to Temotu Province. The team will be
active in CQ WPX Contest as Multi/Single and will be active on
all amateur bands from 160-6 meters, all modes. The team consists
of VK1AA, YT6A and probably YT6T. They are still looking for a
few good CW/SSB OPs, well experienced, and ready to join team to
do their best to contribute to the final goals of the DXpedition.
You can visit their WEB page at: http://www.qsl.net/vk1aa/temotu.
All questions and requests can be sent to VK1AA at: watchman@tig.com.au. QSLs
are via VK1AA.
IOTA NEWS...
AS-NEW. The VUIOTA group, which had a
successful IOTA operation at St. Mary's Island (AS-096),
is back to activate a new island off the coast of Kerala
State. The name of the island is Sacrifice Rock and has
never been activated. The VUIOTA team (Manipal and
Mangalore Hams) will start their activity at 0800z
January 26th - January 27th. The team consists of VU2SBJ,
VU2RDQ, VU2MTT, VU3DMP, VU2PAI, VU2RDJ, VU2JIX, VU2JRO,
VU2NJN and SWL Laxminidhi. The team will be active with
three station on 80-10 meters CW/SSB on the IOTA
frequencies. There will be 6 meter activity for the first
time on the island. Please visit the following Web page
for more information about their activity at: http://www.vuiota.com.
QSLs will be handled by each operator with their
respective callsign. Cards can be sent direct (SASE) or
via Bureau. All the direct requests and the Bureau cards
for the previous IOTA (AS-096) St. Mary's island
operation have been despatched last year. (Please note
that there is no suffix /p (portable) with the callsign
as there was some confusion during AS-096, IOTA
operation.)
SA-067. Operators Carl/PU1NEZ,
Pete/PY1NEW and Lima/PY1NEZ will activate the lighthouse
(LH-0244) on Frances Island, January 24-27th, as
PU1NEZ/PP1, PY1NEW/PP1 and PY1NEZ/PP1. Activity will be
on 40-6 meters CW/SSB. Suggested frequencies are: CW -
50110, 28040, 24920, 21040, 18098, 14040 and 7030; SSB -
50110, 28460, 28370, 24950, 21260, 18132, 14260 and 7055.
QSL home callsign direct or bureau.
LIGHTHOUSE NEWS/ACTIVITY...
INTERNATIONAL LIGHTHOUSE/SHIP WEEKEND 2002.
In a press release, Mike, GM4SUC, announced that the
International Lighthouse/Lightship Weekend 2002 will take
place from 0001z on Saturday, August 17th until 2359z on
Sunday, August 18th. Last year's activity had 348 amateur
radio stations established at lighthouses and lightships
in 46 countries. A full list of stations that were active
with their QTH and QSL information can be found at: http://vk2ce.com/illw/2001.htm.
The complete ILLW press release will be sent to all OPDX
InterNet Subscribers as an additional bulletin.
The Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society (ARLHS),
the world's largest organization devoted exclusively to
maritime communications and light beacons, is proud to
announce its "Patriot Award." This award
commemorates the disatrous events of September 11, 2001,
in New York City and Washington, DC. It is available to
anyone worldwide who establishes radio contact with a
lighthouse or lightship in each of the USA's original 13
colonies. Shortwave listeners may also apply for the
award by submitting written confirmation of having heard
a light beacon in each colony. A list of the original
colonies and the lights in each, along with complete
details about applying for the award, is available on the
Society's web page at: http://www.waterw.com/~weidner/arlhs/index.html.
For further information, visit the Web site or send an
E-mail to the ARLHS founder and president, Jim, K2JXW,
at: k2jxw@arrl.net.
OFFICERS FOR 2002. The following elected
amateurs will serve as officers in the Southern California DX
Club (SCDXC) for 2002:
The official mailing address for all SCDXC correspondences
during 2002 will be: Southern California DX Club (SCDXC)
Attn: James Shryne, N6DHZ, Secretary
10301 Maybrook Ave.
Whittier, CA 90603-2620
Email: n6dhz@qsl.net
Please visit the SCDXC Web site for the latest club
information at: http://www.scdxc.org.
The SCDXC is hosting the 53rd annual "International DX
Convention". For complete information and registration,
please visit the convention Web site at: http://www.qsl.net/visalia2002.
OPERATOR NEEDED. Scott, N9AG/J68AS, reports
that the J6DX team is looking for one more full-time operator for
its 2002 CQ WPX SSB Contest M/M effort. They currently have 5
full-time ops (W8QID, K9JE, W9CEO, KI6T and N9AG) and 2 part-time
ops (K5ZM and K3LP). If you are interested in this March 20th to
April 3rd operation/vacation in a nice villa, please contact
Scott at: scottal@erinet.com.
OY & TF, FAROE ISLANDS AND ICELAND.
Tom/DL2RTK and Ric/DL2VFR will be heading northbound again and
will be taking a ferry to OY and TF. Their schedule is as
follows:
May 20-22nd -
They will sign OY/homecall from Streymoy Island
(EU-018) in the Faroe Islands. Activity will include
activation of a coast based lighthouse (details later).
May 23-24th -
They will sign TF7/homecall from Vestmanneyjar Island
(EU-071) from Iceland.
May 25-30th -
They will sign TF1/homecall from Iceland (main
island) (Eu-021). Activity will possibly include an entry
in the CQ WPX CW Contest, and an activation of
Lighthouses possibly between May 27-30th for one or two
days from Grimsey Island (EU-168), and activation of WLH
LH-0140 as TF5/homecall.
They will work CW and SSB on 160-6 meters. RTTY and PSK
activity will depend on actual demand. Other operators might join
the team for some days (to be announced later).
P5, NORTH KOREA. According to the KK6DO Web
site, dated January 19th, Ed, P5/4L4LN, is back from vacation. Ed
should be back on the air in several weeks, maybe sooner. He is
going to build the Butternut Vertical and test it. However, due
to the severe cold weather, it might take him a while to mount
the antenna on the roof. Operations should be on 15m phone. The
Bencher Keyer is going to be tested and so is Ed's keying
ability. When he is comfortable, CW operations will begin, and
the band will be announced. So, watch the Web site for his
operating schedule at: http://amsatnet.com.
PW0T, TRINDADE ISLAND. Excerpts from two
press releases by Atilano, PY5EG, state the following (Complete
press releases will be sent to all OPDX InterNet Subscribers as
an additional bulletin): "The Araucaria DX Group, with
unprecedented cooperation from Inepar S.A company and its
Chairman Oms PY5EG, the Brazilian authorities and Navy, is proud
to announce that it will sponsor a major DXpedition to Trindade
& Martin Vaz Archipelago, the most eastward point of
Brazilian territory...... This will be the first lengthy
DXpedition in several years to this much-needed DXCC entity.
Trindade & Martin Vaz Archipelago currently appears in the
Top 30 on the "Most Wanted" lists.... The team expects
to be on the air some time during the late hours of February 18th
and to operate non-stop with as many as four stations until their
departure on March 2nd.... With the special callsign PW0T...
Operations on 160 through 6 meters including the WARC bands will
include RTTY, PSK31, and SSTV. Amateur satellite activity is
uncertain at this time. Special plans have been made to insure
that the low bands and 6 meters are activated with appropriate
antennas and experienced operators dedicated to overcoming the
challenges these bands offer. DXpedition Leader Andre PY0FF,
taking over after months of delicate negotiations by Oms PY5EG,
has gathered the following operator team: PY5CC, PY5HSD, PT7BZ,
PY7XC, PY7ZY, PY7ZZ, PY0FF, N6FF and W9VA......." Their QSL
Manager will be Steve, KU9C. Dennis, K7BV, will head up the
Publicity and Fund Raising with assistance from Bill/W9VA and
Steve/KU9C. They request to please send early individual support
contributions to K7BV: Dennis Motschenbacher, 4357 Appollonio
Way, Carson City, NV 89704. Your kind contribution can also be
sent with your QSL-SASE to KU9C. The DXpedition Web site is at: http://www.Trindade2002.com.
Also, please visit the Araucaria DX Group Web site at: http://araucaria.inepar.com.br/.
QSL INFO AND NEWS...
IRC OR USD? THAT IS THE QUESTION. Wolff,
DJ5JH, wants to remind everyone that the use of a
"greenstamp" instead of the IRC, because the
"buck" is often cheaper than one IRC, is not
really true in all countries. There are many countries,
like Germany, where one US-Dollar no longer covers for an
airmail letter overseas. So the choice is not one IRC or
one USD, but two USD. So then the IRC is the cheaper
solution. Wolf states he receives regularly direct QSL
wishes with only 1 USD because many are not aware that
airmail postage in Germany is 0.51 EURO within Europe,
but 1.53 EURO (equals at present 1.37 USD) overseas.
Also, in some countries, it is forbidden to own dollars;
another reason that it is often better to use IRCs.
LU2CN is the QSL Manager for LU1ZA.
LU2CN address is: S.A.R.A., Avenida Del Libertador 8209,
Cap Fed. 1429, Argentina
Bert, PA3GIO, informs OPDX that direct
QSLs for VK9XV, VK9CQ, VK9LO and VK6GIO/5 are in the
mail. The Web site is updated with the QSLs, new pictures
and and with some QSO Audio clips from VK9 recorded in
the USA. About QSLs, Bert states there was about 151,000
QSOs, and he confirmed 91% without waiting for incoming
QSL, that is about 138,000 (not everyone seems to reply
to his QSLs). On his last trip, 20,000 QSOs were made,
18,000 QSOs were confirmed on January 14th (about 2000
seemed not to reply, and these will be confirmed). There
was 4000 direct QSLs which have been sent and 14000
Bureau QSLs should be in every country in about one
month. Bureau QSL were dropped off at the bureau around
January 19th.
Angel, WA2VUY, reports that he received
YA5T QSL, via KU9C, for a November 30th QSO.
SOUTH PACIFIC DXPEDITION (5W and YJ).
Michel/F6COW and Dominique/F6EPY are planning to be active from
Samoa and Vanuatu during the months of February and March. Their
operations will be mainly CW. The focus will be Europe on the low
bands (80/40m), WARC bands (30/17/12m) and the digital modes
(RTTY/PSK31/MPSK/MP63) in order to provide 5W and YJ to many EU
radio hams. Their suggested operating frequencies are:
Their equipment includes: Xcvr 1 - ICOM 706 MK2G (main) / ICOM
706 (spare); Xcvr 2 - Yaesu FT100D (main) / ? (spare); Amplifier
1 - YAESU FL-2100B; Amplifier 2 - YAESU FL-2100B; Antennas - Top
loaded Butternut HF2V vertical monopole with 15 x 10m radials on
seawater for low bands, Butternut HF9V vertical monopole with 15
x 10m radials on seawater, Vertical polarized quad loop on sea
water and 2 element HB9CV for 6m. Their schedule is as follows:
February 19-28th -
Look for 5W0MP (Michel/F6COW) and 5W0DA
(Dominique/F6EPY) from Upolu, Samoa (OC-097).
March 4-15th -
Look for YJ0AOW (Michel/F6COW) and YJ0APY
(Dominique/F6EPY) Vanuatu (Efate and Espirito Santo)
[OC-035].
A Web site is available at: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/dominique.auprince/.
QSL via direct (home callsigns of Michel Perrin, F6COW, or
Dominique Auprince, F6EPY, as in callbook) or via the French
bureau.
SPECIAL EVENT. Look for special event station
ZY3WSF to be active January 31st through February 5th, from Porto
Alegre, Brazil, during the World Social Forum (http://www.forumsocialmundial.org.br).
Activity will be on 10-80 meters CW and SSB. QSL via the bureau
or direct to: Gilberto Silva Pacheco Filho, Rua: Fabio A. Santos
1245 ap 310 Bloco 2 Bairro Nonoai, Porto Alegre, rs 91720-390
Brasil.
T30, WESTERN KIRIBATI (Update). It has been
reported that due to airplane problems, Eric, T30ES, is currently
off the air and back in Tarawa. His new battery has been
purchased and is being shipped to Butaritari Island. He has made
arrangements for the battery to be picked up, charged and ready
to go upon his return January 28th. His current schedule is
Saturdays at 1900z and Thursdays from 2330z around 14288 kHz.
(Note time change from previous schedule)
VP8, SOUTH SANDWICH ISLANDS. The DXpedition
is now active as VP8THU. The team landed on the island Friday,
however, their Zodiacs were damaged slightly during the trip.
They were on the air late Friday. The length of the operations is
unknown, but hopefully after reading this, activity will continue
a fews more days before they head to South Georgia Island. Most
of the activity has been on 40-10 meters, including the WARC
bands, on CW/SSB. QSL via VE3XN.
XU & XW, CAMBODIA AND LAOS. Jaak, ES1FB,
informs OPDX that he will be active as XU7ACE January 27th for 2
weeks. He plans to be on 80-6 meters, mostly SSB, and some CW.
Also, he will be going to Laos (XW), for 3-4 days. Dates and
callsign are not known yet. QSL via ES1FB.
XW, LAOS. Mauro, IN3QBR, is expected to be
active as XW3QBR from January 21st through July 31st in
Vientiane. Also, Fabrizio, IN3ZNR, is expected to active as
XW3ZNR from April 20th through May 10th in Vientiane. No details
were provided of bands/modes activity.
YA, AFGHANISTAN. According to the YA5T Web
site, Peter, ON6TT, should be in Pakistan by the time you read
this (January 21st) and should be back in Afghanistan for one
week on January 23rd. After that he will be in New York for one
week and fly back to Pakistan after that. Peter should be in and
out of Afghanistan for the next two months. Robert, S53R, is
expected to leave Slovenia and should be in U.A.E. (A6) by the
time you read this before moving onwards to Pakistan a couple of
days later. He should be in Afghanistan around January 31st for
two months. Mats, SM7PKK, is in A6 for a couple of weeks. He
might be going into Afghanistan after one or two months. Mark,
ON4WW, is in Pakistan and should be flying into Afghanistan by
January 31st for at least a couple of weeks. PLEASE NOTE: All
YA5T activity after December 2nd, 2001, until now was bogus.
Again, it should be noted that all operators are there for their
work with the UN World Food Programme. Their activity might be
limited, the equipment they use is QRP, and their humanitarian
work has priority. Meanwhile, Nick, G4KUX/YA, continues to be
active on 20 and 10 meters SSB. Check around 14194 kHz after
0300z and around 28487 kHz after 0630z.
SPECIAL NOTE BY EDITOR: If you are having a problem receiving
bounced mail by sending mail to me via "kb8nw@barf80.nshore.org",
please send mail to me via "kb8nw@arrl.net"......
TNX de Tedd KB8NW
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