Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2386, for Friday, July 21st, 2023

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2386, with a release date of Friday,
July 21st, 2023, to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Changes in band access await hams in Australia. A much-loved electronics supplier is closing after 50 years -- and a ham
marks a DXCC achievement of two lifetimes. All this and more as Amateur
Radio Newsline Report Number 2386 comes your way right now.

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BILLBOARD CART

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BAND-ACCESS CHANGES AWAIT AUSTRALIAN AMATEURS

JIM/ANCHOR: There are gains and losses for amateurs in Australia, as the nation's regulator moves ahead with proposed changes to spectrum access. Graham Kemp, VK4BB, has that story.

GRAHAM: Advanced amateurs in Australia and overseas equivalents will be
losing their access to frequencies between 3.4 and 3.6 GHz, which have been identified for reallocation to commercial interests and for use by earth station protection zones. While proposing those changes, the Australian Communications and Media Authority is expanding standard amateurs and
overseas equivalents access to frequencies between 50 and 52 MHz, in
addition to the current 52 to 54 MHz. These modifications are contained in
the Radiocommunications Licence Conditions Omnibus Amendment Instrument
2023, Number 1.

The ACMA took its action following the submission of public comments to the consultation. The regulator said it received only six such comments, with
the majority supporting the changes.

This is Graham Kemp, VK4BB.

(ACMA)

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RSGB VIDEO EXPLAINS SWEEPING CHANGES AT OFCOM

JIM/ANCHOR: Meanwhile in the UK, hams are getting some help in
understanding the changes that Ofcom has in the works. We have those
details from Jeremy Boot, G4NJH.

JEREMY: As Ofcom undertakes the first sweeping changes in ham radio
licensing and call sign policy in 25 years, the Radio Society of Great
Britain has been hoping to make things simpler. The society is offering guidance on this consultation through a variety of materials that include a newly released video by Murray Niman, G6JYB, the society's spectrum and licensing expert.

The RSGB is hoping that clubs will share the video at their meetings and assist hams in understanding the work underway. The video can be found on
the RSGB's YouTube channel or on the consultation web page of the society
at the link found in the text version of this week's newscast.

The regulator is seeking feedback and has set a deadline of the 4th
September for comment.

This is Jeremy Boot, G4NJH.

[DO NOT READ: rsgb.org/licencereview ]

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SILENT KEY: COMPUTER HACKER KEVIN MITNICK, N6NHG

JIM/ANCHOR: A computer hacker who was once on the FBI's "most-wanted" list
- and who described himself as possessing the world's most expensive
amateur radio license, has become a Silent Key. Here's Sel Embee, KB3TZD,
to tell us about him.

SEL: Kevin Mitnick, N6NHG, whose computer-hacking skills landed him a
federal prison term with hundreds of supporters pressing for his freedom,
has become a Silent Key. Kevin died on Sunday, July 16th, of pancreatic cancer.

According to several online obituaries, by the time he was 16 years old,
Kevin had already sharpened his software skills, gaining unauthorized
access to computer systems. Ultimately, it was his illegal download of software from Digital Equipment Corporation in the 1980s that led to a
massive manhunt, his conviction and five-year prison term.

Having become a ham radio operator at the age of 13, he wished to return to the air once he was released from prison and spent more than $16,000 in
legal fees to petition the FCC for a license renewal. He succeeded, saying afterward that, as a result, he possessed the most expensive amateur radio license in the world.

Kevin was 59.

This is Sel Embee, KB3TZD.
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2387, for Friday, July 28th, 2023

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2387, with a release date of Friday,
July 28th, 2023, to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Hams call QRZ to help a flood-damaged region of
Italy. Dangerous conditions cancel a second activation on Rockall -- and a successful orbit for CubeSATS from the Philippines. All this and more, as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2387 comes your way right now.

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BILLBOARD CART

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CALLING QRZ TO RESTORE FLOOD-DAMAGED EMILIA-ROMAGNA

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Italy's flood-devastated region of Emilia-Romagna faces a
long period of reconstruction and hams are involved in providing their own kind of support. Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, brings us the details.

JEREMY: Although some hams may be more familiar with the Emilia-Romagna
region of northern Italy as the host of the recent World Radiosport Team Championship, it is actually now in the amateur radio spotlight for another reason. Remember the callsign 1A0C (One Ay Zero C). Hams will be calling
QRZ until the 2nd of August to focus attention on the charitable work being done there by the Italian Relief Corps of the Order of Malta, focusing on
the badly damaged Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. The historic deadly
floods in May displaced thousands of families, destroyed communities and threatened to wreck many local industries. A multinational team of amateurs will be on the air from the radio station at the Magistral Villa on the Aventine Hill. The Order of Malta's humanitarian projects are known
throughout the world, assisting 120 nations with medical, social and humanitarian needs. The operators include Fernando EA5C, Simone IK5RUN, Jun JH4RHF, Dmitry RA9USU and others.

At the time Newsline was being produced, the team's website was under construction. Visit the QRZ.com page of 1A0C for updates.

This is Jeremy Boot, G4NJH.

(425 DX BULLETIN, QRZ, ORDER OF MALTA)

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A TRIBUTE TO BELOVED SOTA SILENT KEY

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: SOTA activators are planning an international tribute to recall the treasured friendship of a ham who became a Silent Key last year.
Ed Durrant, DD5LP, gives us the details.

ED: From his shack in Poland, Jarek SP9MA, is leading the way among his
fellow SOTA supporters. He has issued a call to all friends of the beloved
ham known as Guru who became a Silent Key in March of 2022. Jarek wrote on
the SOTA reflector that he will begin using the callsign SP59GURU on
January 11th of next year, which would have been Guru's 59th birthday. The callsign will remain active through to March 11th, the anniversary of his death. The loss of Jose-Antonio Gurutzarri Jauregi EA2IF to cancer rocked
the SOTA community last year, most especially in Europe, where his
commitment to radio on the summits began in his native Spain in 2013.

Jarek has put out a call to SOTA activators worldwide to join him in this special event activation and to start making plans now, well in advance of January.

Though there will be no diplomas or awards for QSOs, Jarek believes the contact itself will provide a memorable moment. In that way, Guru, who left his mark also as a top contester and CW operator, will get another moment
with his SOTA brothers and sisters.

Or, as Jarek wrote on the SOTA reflector: [quote] "I just think that as
many hearts as possible would connect with the Guru at that time."
[endquote]

This is Ed Durrant, DD5LP.

(SOTA REFLECTOR)

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DANGEROUS CONDITIONS CANCEL REPEAT ROCKALL ACTIVATION

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Radios and other equipment remain on Rockall Island, where
a second attempted activation has failed. Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, brings us up
to date.

JEREMY: A second - and very brief - activation of the remote granite islet known as Rockall was called off after hazardous conditions in the North Atlantic had forced the team to return to the mainland.

Cam Cameron, Emil Bergmann, DL8JJ, and Nobby, G0VJG, set sail on the 16th
of July, only to turn back three days later after making several passes at Rockall. The hams were hoping to have a second activation - three hours of
CW and SSB - during their return trip.

The trio was traveling to recover radio equipment left there during the
June activation of MM0UKI. Emil and Nobby had called QRZ for several days before their departure, leaving Cam on Rockall. In a challenge to benefit charity, Cam was hoping to break the previous 45-day stay record set in
2014. He had called for rescue in late June after 32 days of exhaustion and hypothermia.

Describing the team's failed attempt to return, Emil wrote on the Rockall DXpedition's Facebook page: [quote] "Nature has said NO. We reach[ed] the Rockall without difficulty, but the waves [were] extremely high. That's the way of life." [endquote]

Don't be discouraged: The team plans another recovery attempt.

This is Jeremy Boot, G4NJH.

(FACEBOOK, DX-WORLD.NET)
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)