The ARRL Letter Vol. 13, No. 10 May 26, 1994 League urges action on call sign selection The ARRL has filed reply comments in the FCC's proposal to institute a "vanity" call sign program (in PR Docket 93- 305). The League said that the vast majority of the 109 comments filed on the proposal favored it, in general, with the major concerns being how to fairly administer it. There were fewer than five comments opposing the proposal and, while they made what the League called "thoughtful and important points," they did not seem to represent more than a small minority opinion. One commenter was concerned about the cost of the program to taxpayers, the reissuing of call signs of deceased amateurs, and the diluting of the practice of issuing call signs more or less chronologically, which thus makes a person's call sign an indication of how long she or he has been licensed. The ARRL in its reply comments said that the issue of cost already had been settled, in that amateurs themselves would pay for the privilege of selecting a call sign. Regarding Silent Key call signs, the League said that by giving family members and clubs the first opportunity to apply for such call signs, "well known and respected" amateurs' call signs could be preserved. Finally, the League said that a program allowing amateurs to select a call sign would enhance the fraternalism of the service and promote a sense of accomplishment (regardless of how long a person had been licensed). One of the commenters on the proposal was Frederick O. Maia, W5YI, who proposed that the Commission establish a "Vanity Call Sign Administration" program in the private sector. Maia suggested that administrators could be appointed by the Commission and permitted to charge a fee for preparing an application for a special call sign. The ARRL said that, while nothing prevents entrepreneurs from providing such a service, including the useful one of making available the latest database of available call signs to applicants, the FCC has no authorization from Congress to "accept the voluntary services of private sector entities in the administration of [such a] program." The League said that Maia's proposal was flawed in that it suggests that the average radio amateur is incapable of filling out the paperwork necessary to apply for a vanity call sign. The League told the FCC that radio amateurs are fully capable of correctly completing Commission forms and submitting them with payment. The League said that if there were to be a "flood of calls" to the FCC's Gettysburg facility, from amateurs asking questions about the program, then that would be an indication of problems with the instructions or the application form, or both. "Maia's proposal is cumbersome," the League said, "bureaucratic, and adds not a whit of value to the entire application procedure from the point of view of the applicant." The League urged the Commission to proceed with a Report and Order on the "vanity" call sign proposal, incorporating the minor modifications suggested in the earlier ARRL comments. Ideas sought for Novice Roundup A call has gone out for suggestions for a possible revamping of the ARRL Novice Roundup. The ARRL Contest Advisory Committee welcomes comments on how this event, which has fallen on hard times in recent years, can be resuscitated. CAC Chairman Mark Beckwith, WA6OTU, observes that the goals of the new contest aren't changed, ie, to introduce newcomers to on-the-air competition and to see if the "contest bug" bites, and to improving operating skills. The event should include no-code Technicians in some way, too, and there's the rub, since they have no privileges below 30 MHz, and Novices have very limited spectrum above 30 MHz. "I am a proponent," Beckwith says, "of two different types of events run at the same time, one for Novices and one for code-free Techs, with separate entries and separate reports in the same issue of QST. I guess an enterprising "Tech-plus" could go out and win both categories if he were really sharp." The CAC is collecting comments on the Internet contest reflector; and you can submit written input to the committee via ARRL HQ. Broad agenda for ARRL volunteer committee The ARRL Volunteer Resources Committee met in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 23, 1994. The committee: * Recommended to modify the Amateur Auxiliary logo to include the League diamond. * Reviewed the status of the Field Organization Volunteer of the Year Award. * Declined a proposal from REACT International to conclude a memorandum of understanding between them and the ARRL. * Supported cooperation between adjacent ARRL Sections as the best means of incorporating a "jump team" concept into the existing ARES framework. * Reviewed a staff report on a memorandum of understanding with the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) and decided to take no action until more ARRL Field Organization NDMS-related activity is evident. * Reviewed a staff report on the League's participation in the National Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) and recommended that membership be extended for a year while monitoring the activities of NVOAD more closely. * In response to Minute 41 of the 1994 January board meeting, the committee reviewed a staff report and recommendations regarding the feasibility of a system of technical awards and development of a set of criteria. A draft has been sent to the Future Systems Committee and Long Range Planning Committee for review and approval. * Approved a new policy to accept electronic filing of Field Organization appointments with the Field Services Department. FSD now can accept new appointments in any form, an aid to Section Managers. * Agreed to possibly pursue the idea of "Amateur Radio Good Samaritan Laws" at the state level, beginning with input from General Counsel Chris Imlay, N3AKD, subject to review by the full ARRL Board of Directors. * Agreed that the responsibility for ensuring that affiliated clubs do not abuse the 51% ARRL membership rule lies with the appropriate ARRL Director, during the application process. * Reviewed a report on volunteer examiner availability in Alaska and expressed its feeling that the situation is being satisfactorily managed. * Discussed the possibility of allowing ARRL volunteer examiners to review exam results with failed applicants. * Asked for language to be added to convention rules regarding the changing of dates for ARRL-sanctioned conventions and hamfests. * Discussed the cost of travel for ARRL officials in the Pacific and Virgin Islands Sections. Students lunch with ham-astronaut N5RAX By Joe Lynch, N6CL ARRL Oklahoma Section Manager Among the several school students who were able to communicate with the astronauts the Shuttle Endeavor during the recent STS-59 SAREX mission were ones from the Anthony Elementary School in the small town of Anthony, Kansas (population 2500). On Sunday, April 10, Gary Gerber, KB0HH, the school's principal, assembled a group of students, their parents, and nearly 200 townspeople, for the students' eight minute opportunity to ask Astronaut Linda Godwin, N5RAX, questions about what it was like to be in space. Sixteen of the students were able to make contact with Linda. While students communicating with astronauts in space by Amateur Radio has become somewhat routine, what followed this contact was a bit extraordinary. As the ARRL Section Manager for Oklahoma, I was on the mailing list for the West Gulf Division convention announcement. When it reached me, I noticed that Astronaut Linda Godwin was to be the special guest of the convention. I called Gary Gerber to ask if it were possible to transport the school children to the convention, which was to be held in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He replied that it probably would be, subject to the school board's approval, which was subsequently easily obtained. I then called Vince Moore, N5RFW, chairman of the Green Country Hamfest, the sponsoring committee of the convention, and asked if he could arrange a special meeting for the children with Linda. He replied that not only could he arrange a meeting, he probably could make it a lunch meeting, and he found Ollie's Restaurant, ideally suited to school children. After the three-hour drive from Anthony, the children arrived around 11 AM. Having a bit of time before lunch, the children's first stop was the flea market. Because for some of them, it was their first trip away from Anthony, the flea market was the biggest shopping spree they had ever been on. Following lunch, not having the time constraints of shuttle communication, the students were able to freely ask questions of Linda, and ask they did. Questions such as "Did you feel closer to God in space?" and "Why did you you become an astronaut?" were graciously answered by Linda. Then the children got Linda to autograph everything from napkins to their special T-shirts. Following lunch it was back to the convention center for everyone and back to the shopping spree in the flea market for the children. Among the items purchased were a pair of CB hand-helds that two of the students used to communicate with each other between cars on the trip home. While none of the students are yet hams, it is entirely possible that at least these two have been bitten by the bug. I feel that I have been a "lucky link" in the chain of events in this adventure. I found out about Gary's school being involved with the SAREX mission when I saw Jerome Doerrier, K5IS, at the Mooreland, Oklahoma, Hamfest that Sunday afternoon in April. When I enquired about his wife, Bobette, N5UDJ, he replied that she and two of her students from the elementary school in Perryton, Texas, were in Anthony awaiting the contact with Linda. It was only by happenstance that I found out about the common link (Linda Godwin) of the two events. Because of that I was able to put key people in touch with each other and they made things happen. Seeing the faces of the children as they interacted with Linda will remain one of the most vivid memories of my tenure as an ARRL Section Manager, indeed, of my career as a ham! FCC ACTS ON THREE AMATEUR RADIO PETITIONS The FCC has denied two petitions for reconsideration that sought a broader definition of permissible communications by amateurs, as well as one seeking changes in the amateur service rules to reduce the number of license classes. The first two petitions, by David Popkin, W2CC, and Rolland D. Cummings, WA0EDA, sought expansion of FCC rules changes that went into effect in September 1993, in PR Docket 92-136. Those new rules, the result of an ARRL proposal, give amateurs greater flexibility in providing noncommercial communications for public events and permit paid teachers to use Amateur Radio in their classrooms. The new rules also allow personal communications such as making appointments and "ordering pizza." The two petitions sought permission for amateurs to retransmit certain US government broadcasts, such as time signals. Popkin's petition also sought a wording change to the new rules, from "classroom instruction" to "instructional activity." The FCC said that the ideas expressed in the petitions already had been aired and considered during the public comment period for PR Docket 92-136. And on May 13 the FCC denied a petition from the Cass County (Indiana) Amateur Radio Club (CCARC) that would have eliminated the Advanced and Extra Class amateur licenses. The FCC said that the key contention of the CCARC petition was that "the majority of amateur operators are dissatisfied with the current operator license class structure. "The CCARC states," the FCC said, "that most other countries already have a three class license structure." The CCARC petition proposed to combine the present General, Advanced, and Extra Class operators with Technicians who have passed a 5 wpm Morse code exam, granting them all full privileges. "We believe," the FCC said, "however, that the views previously expressed by members of the amateur service community through thousands of comments in numerous rule making proceedings continue to be valid. "Hence," the FCC said, "in our view, the amateur community, by and large, is satisfied with the current structure, the fundamental purpose of which is the encouragement and improvement of the amateur service in the United States through rules that provide for advancing skills in the the communication and technical phases of the art." BRIEFS * Anne Rinaldo died May 17 in Virginia. The wife of ARRL Technical Relations Manager Paul Rinaldo, W4RI, she was injured in a fall on May 1 and never fully regained consciousness. A memorial service was held on May 20 in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania. * In our story in the last issue about New Hampshire House Bill 1380, exempting Amateur Radio towers and antennas from real estate property taxes, we neglected to report that Tom Kirby, W1EJ, a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, was a co-sponsor of the bill, along with Ralph Rosen, W1HSB. * The ARRL Outgoing QSL Service reminds DXers that the fee for users is two dollars per pound or portion of a pound. The fee is one dollar for ten or fewer cards. This must be paid in currency or check (no stamps, no IRCs). And help your incoming bureau, too, by sending only 5 X 7.5 inch or 6 X 9 inch envelopes, with plenty of stamps. * It's once again ARRL election time. July QST will carry the announcement, with ARRL Directors and Vice Directors up for election in the following ARRL divisions: Central, Hudson, New England, Northwestern, Roanoke, Rocky Mountain, Southwestern, and West Gulf. * Publishing the E-mail address for The ARRL Letter -- -- has generated some activity from club editors. Great! The text of The ARRL Letter can be downloaded from the ARRL HQ landline BBS (Hiram), in slightly expurgated form (without the photo captions). Hiram's number is 203-666-0578. When you have news that might be of interest around the country, be sure to get it to us right away, too. Thanks! We are getting new computers here (your editor spent several nonproductive days last week learning new software and tricks) and most of us will go to PC school for a day next month. And speaking of Hiram, his human overseer is Jay Mabey, NU0X, who has been promoted to Senior Assistant Manager in the Field Services Department (and will be the next victim of our QST "Behind the Diamond" pillory). * John DeVoldere, ON4UN, visited HQ earlier this month, with Roger Vermet, ON6WU. John is the author of Low Band DXing, just out in a very revised second edition. John spent much of his time here staring at antenna modeling programs on the computer screen of Senior Assistant Technical Editor Dean Straw, N6BV. * And HQ staffers Mark Wilson, AA2Z, and Zack Lau, KH6CP, attended the West Coast VHF Conference in Cerritos, California. Zack competed in the preamp measuring activity. * Members of the ARRL Board of Directors met in Savannah, Georgia, on May 6 and 7, to begin developing a strategic plan to guide the ARRL in preparing for the opportunities and challenges of the 21st century. The ARRL Long Range Planning Committee had recommended that because of the importance of strategic planning, the effort should be initiated separate from the regular business of a Board meeting. The process that was begun in Savannah will be continued, with the objective of completing a draft plan by the end of 1994. * Attention 75-meter DXers: as of May 20, 1994, Japan has a new subband, from 3747 to 3754 kHz, in addition to the two existing bands at 3500 to 3575 kHz and 3791 to 3805 kHz. * Stu Meyer, W2GHK, died May 21, 1994, at his home in Vienna, Virginia. He was 76 years old and and a Charter Life Member of the ARRL. According to information provided by Joe Lynch, N6CL, editor of the Quarter Century Wireless Association's QCWA Journal, Meyer was past president of that organization and was president of the Radio Club of America. He was a former chief engineer for the Hammarlund Corp, later its president, and also had been employed by the E. F. Johnson Co. Meyer was well known to DXers as a driving force behind Hammarlund's "DXpedition of the Month" operations in the 1950s and 1960s. He leaves his wife, Lottie, and two daughters. Memorial contributions may be made to the Radio Club of America or to the QCWA. * Another recent death was that of Joseph M. Mergen, N9GID, of Mishawaka, Indiana. Mergen, 77, was the retired president of Piper Aircraft Corp. According to newspaper reports, he held 18 patents, including several for propeller design for World War II aircraft and for gas turbine helicopter engines. Among his survivors are his wife, Margaret Mergen, KE9MU. * Jim Stafford, W4QO, an ARRL registered instructor and speaker at Educational Activities Department workshops, has been named winner of the 1994 Advanced Electronics Applications Amateur Ambassador Award. * The FCC has canceled a fine of $2,000 against a Florida woman for unlicensed operation on 2 meters. The May 1993 Notice of Apparent Liability was against Margaret G. Taylor of Windermere, Florida, for operation on 145.53 MHz. The FCC database now lists a Margaret G. Taylor in Windermere as a Technician class licensee, KE4IMC, effective December 21, 1993. Taylor, 47, appealed the fine, saying she should have received a warning and that she was unable to pay a fine because of her age and financial condition, the FCC said. The FCC canceled the fine on these grounds and because Taylor had no previous FCC violations. * The 1994 AMSAT-NA Annual Meeting and Space Symposium will be held October 7 to 9, in Orlando, Florida. AMSAT seeks papers for the symposium and can provide authors with help in editing and graphics, if needed. Papers are welcome even if the author is unable to attend the symposium. Topics for all amateur satellite disciplines are sought, including introductory tutorials, satellite operations, Phase IIID design and development, and new applications and techniques. Sign up now and request an author's kit, then compose a short abstract by July 1. Final drafts are requested on or about August 26. Direct inquiries to: Steve Park, WB9OEP, 12122 99th Av North, Seminole, FL 34642. Tel (813) 391-7515; Internet: SKPA@QMGATE.ECI- ESYST.COM * The ARRL/VEC had 174 exam sessions registered for ARRL's Spring National Exam Day on May 14, 1994. A half- dozen or so were coordinated under other VECs, with the remainder being ARRL/VEC. The 10th anniversary of the ARRL/VEC is coming up this summer; July QST will feature a remembrance of the genesis of the Volunteer Examiner System by the League's first VEC manager, Curt Holsopple, K9CH. * FCC Chairman Reed Hundt has once again expressed his support for a self-funded commission, according to Broadcasting and Cable magazine. Hundt told a press briefing that user fees would have to increase by as much as $70 million for the commission to pay its way, the magazine said. (Amateurs are presently exempted from user fees.) * SAREX shuttle flight STS-65 is scheduled for lift-off July 8, 1994, for a 14-day mission on Columbia. Crew members include Mission Specialist Donald A. Thomas, KC5FVF, and Robert D. Cabana, who may have an amateur license in time for the mission. The SAREX configuration is "C," (KC5FVF on FM and W5RRR-1 on packet). Send reports and QSLs to ARRL EAD, STS- 65 QSL. The Lake County Amateur Radio Club in Munster, Indiana, has volunteered to manage the cards for this mission. Participating schools for STS-65 are located in Hawaii, California, Arizona, Louisiana, Texas, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Germany, and Japan. For further information contact ARRL EAD. * The FCC has upheld an action against Joseph Sawchuck IV, W3OLN, to cancel his commercial license and fine him $5000. Sawchuck had served as sole radio operator aboard the vessel Patriot; FCC regulations require two radio officers on board unless the radio officer has received a six month service endorsement to his First-Class Radiotelegraph Operator's Certificate. Sawchuck did not have such an endorsement. He argued that the fine was too high in light of the FCC's downward adjustment criteria. The FCC denied the appeal. Sawchuck, 76, is an Advanced class licensee in Pompano Beach, Florida. * An Amateur Radio film has been named a finalist in a professional film competition. "Ham Radio Horizons," a video introduction to Amateur Radio by CQ Productions, is a finalist in the Association for Visual Communicators' 1994 CINDY awards competition. The 49-minute program also was a finalist in the New York Festival video competition earlier this year. The Association of Visual Communicators is a non profit professional association formed in 1957. This is the 35th annual CINDY competition, which honors outstanding productions in all fields of nontheatrical video programming, including radio, television, cable and non-broadcast categories. "Ham Radio Horizons" is a finalist in the non-broadcast "public service and information" category, according to CQ. "Ham Radio Horizons" was written, produced and directed by Rich Moseson, NW2L, who is executive producer of the CQ Video Library and ARRL Northern New Jersey Section Manager. * You worked the DXpedition, now read the book (that is, buy the book). 3Y0PI Peter I team member Bob Schmieder, KK6EK, has written a fascinating, 227-page book about this historic operation, with enough charts and graphs to keep you busy for hours, if not days. Lots of photos, too. All profits from the sale of the book go directly to help pay off the debt still remaining from the February 1994 expedition. The paperbound book costs $20 (plus $2 shipping in the US, $15 elsewhere), from Robert Schmieder, 4295 Walnut Blvd, Walnut Creek CA 94596. 10 years ago in The ARRL Letter Oscar 11 revives after 10 weeks of silence. The amateur satellite, the second built in Surrey, England, with help from Radio Amateur Satellite Corp (AMSAT) volunteers from around the world, had been dead since its launch March 1, 1984. Hams at the Stanford Research Institute in California and at the SRI listening post in Greenland heard faint signals from the satellite, enabling Surrey to send commands to Oscar 11 on May 14. General class licensee Randy L. Ballinger, WB6MMJ, has his station license revoked and his operator license suspended for a year for jamming on 2 meters. Participants in a net there had complained of interference on and off for two years and the FCC's Long Beach, California, field office tracked down Ballinger as the source. Ballinger complained that it was he who was being jammed. Ballinger today is licensed as N6MNU. The ARRL and AMSAT formally propose that astronaut Tony England, W0ORE, be permitted Amateur Radio operation from a space shuttle flight scheduled for March 1985, with a goal of "involving as many amateurs as possible," and to include contacts with school club stations. England would follow in the footsteps of the first amateur in space, Owen Garriott, W5LFL. (Last month Tony England participated in a forum on the 10th anniversary of Amateur Radio in space at the Dayton HamVention.) Rod Newkirk, W9BRD, editor of QST's "How's DX?" column is inducted into the CQ magazine DX Hall of Fame; the FCC appoints another volunteer examiner coordinator: the Boeing Employees Amateur Radio Society of Seattle; the League asks the FCC for a waiver to allow W1AW station operators to use the station for two-way contacts when not sending bulletins or code practice; and the 1984 Olympic Torch Relay begins, including a visit to ARRL HQ by several hams in the Olympic Torch Relay Caravan.