To All Pilots Without Radio License, Please Get One

[Mike Blankenhorn]

So the radio is going in, and this would be a good time for those who do not have a license to make a test appointment and study. The test is really not all that difficult. If all we make it a habit to identify ourselves with our call sign regularly the ham nazis will eventually go away regardless of frequency being used as has been pointed out by other club members as well.
How about making club membership/day-use dependent on radio licensing and it avoids all kinds of potential problems?

[JD]

....How about making club membership/day-use dependent on radio licensing and it avoids all kinds of potential problems?

Mike, There is no USHPA, FAA, state, county, city or any other requirement to have or to use a 2-meter or any other transceiver.

I personally feel that it is not in club's best interest to overreach and try to regulate something that no pilot is obligated in any way to participate in.

OTOH - the club may benefit from maintaining a web page dedicated to obtaining a tech license. Current links to the relevant sources for study guides, practice tests and exam locations and little else is required other than the incentive of each pilot to get licensed.

Thanks, Jonathan
my 2-meter's worth

[dhmartens]

More members might deter the FCC from auctioning off those frequencies like they did for analog TV for about $20 billion

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Sta ... um_auction

Auction 73 generally went as planned by telecommunications analysts. In total, Auction 73 raised $19.592 billion. Notably, Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility together accounted for $16.3 billion of the total revenue. Of the 214 approved applicants, 101 successfully purchased at least one license. Despite their heavy involvement with the auction, Google did not purchase any licenses. However, Google did place the minimum bid on Block C licenses in order to ensure that the license would be required to be open-access. [19]

[Mike Blankenhorn]

....How about making club membership/day-use dependent on radio licensing and it avoids all kinds of potential problems?

Mike, There is no USHPA, FAA, state, county, city or any other requirement to have or to use a 2-meter or any other transceiver.




Thanks, Jonathan
my 2-meter's worth

I personally feel that it is not in club's best interest to overreach and try to regulate something that no pilot is obligated in any way to participate in.

OTOH - the club may benefit from maintaining a web page dedicated to obtaining a tech license. Current links to the relevant sources for study guides, practice tests and exam locations and little else is required other than the incentive of each pilot to get licensed.

That's, ...dependent on radio licensing if they plan on using a radio. Sometimes what I think doesn't make it to the keyboard.
EVERY RADIO USER LICENSED + REGULAR USE OF CALL SIGN = HAPPINESS FOR ALL

[Ken Andrews]

OTOH - the club may benefit from maintaining a web page dedicated to obtaining a tech license. Current links to the relevant sources for study guides, practice tests and exam locations and little else is required other than the incentive of each pilot to get licensed.

In the blue menu bar on the left, look for the "Ham Radio" entry under "Pilot Resources", or just click here. It has been there for years.

[JD]

....It has been there for years.

Largely unnoticed, methinks. I'd found it 4 years ago because I wanted my tech license and Eric B. had alerted me to the large percentage of unlicensed radio users in the club. The rate at which pilots fail to successfully research, look up and correctly interpret useful information is alarmingly high in this sport. But this too is no more a requirement than having an FCC Amateur Tech License is.

[Busto]

SHGA website has plenty of information for preparing and gives locations for taking examinations.

This was placed in the thread, "Radio in the gazebo".

Our club members need to learn how to read and absorb what is out there.

Reading is one thing, but comprehension is another.

What does it mean!!!

[JD]

....Our club members need to learn how to read and absorb what is out there. Reading is one thing, but comprehension is another....

I think it's a lot more fun to be mentored, lead or taught rather than engage in just that much more self-study than we already have to deal with on the job or in school. It's a lot more fun to learn from others than have to figure it out on your own. This is supposed to be recreation and not more work. If we make it fun for each other, I think we'll have more pilots engaged in whatever it is we'd like to have happening.

[Chip]

Nice one Ken.

Maybe we'll turn it red for the time being.

I think it's a lot more fun to be mentored, lead or taught rather than engage in just that much more self-study than we already have to deal with on the job or in school.

Key word there, "I". I know "I" don't need or like to be led around. Feels too much like I "must" learn something. I've been a ham radio operator for a long time and was going for my general so I could work for the FAA until I started working with computers. All my real knowledge is mostly self taught through study on my own because I want to learn it. But then again, my preferred learning method, your milage may vary.

I believe having it there is better than not having it there. Thanks for having it there Ken. I'm certain if someone wants to step up and lead a class for getting a ham license, even if it were hosted by a local ham radio enthusist or club, pilots would likely attend. Might be a nice chance for a local radio club to have an outing here at our nice flight park, get exposed to hang gliding and generally just have a nice day outdoors.

As Rob Burgis is fond of saying, if you want to do it then, get it started.

[Busto]

Red is good!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fo-W1wD ... sults_main

There are a lot of people out there that are geeks in the Ham radio world. I mean this with absolute respect. I talk to them when I am curious about something I've either heard...or read.

I heard that digital repeater 147.560 automatically Id's itself every ten minutes and is picked up on 147.555, and can be interpreted as keying-up.

I was told it is called splatter.

Does anyone know anything about this?

By the way, I'm not confusing this with our problem we had a few Sundays ago.

It was also mentioned that if we changed to 147.550, this would alleviate this problem...with the repeater that is.

The jamming is another thing, but I also heard that if two gliders are in sight of each other, they can talk over the person jamming.

Is this true?

[Spitfire]

This thread has got me to move off my ass and finally study for my HAM licence. I'm using http://www.amateurradio.com/courses/technician/ that Joe told me about.

One question I had - what is the reason that radios are not mandatory (or strongly recommended) when flying. I'm thinking of in case of an emergency where information needs to be transmitted to all pilots. If we had a third channel, a quiet channel, which is for people that don't want radio chatter then a message could be sent to all three channels (club, student and quiet) to let everyone in the vicinity know of an emergency or other situation where an important message needs to get out. I'm sure there's downsides or it would have been implemented everywhere, I'm just not sure what they are.

[OP]

I would urge the opposite:

Don't join their dangerous cult. Ignore them.

Less registered ham people = less ham nazis = less hassle for everyone = world is a better place.

Let's help their religion die off into obscurity by practicing non-violent non-participation.

Active local ham channels in both 70cm and 2m are completely non-compliant with ham rules anyway. They don't have an enforcement problem.

Only enforcement I've ever heard of comes for secret internal ham-nazis that have infiltrated our club. They apparently had to undergo a bizarre and inhuman ritual that included learning a dead language of clicks/tones and then a paddling initiation.

If you suspect a member may be a ham-nazi, please contact the club's board.

[Spitfire]

I wish there was a smiley and popcorn symbol right now like on the .org

[OP]

This one works:

[jcflies]

OP, you CLEARLY need AIRTIME! The Dementors are attacking!

[Mike Blankenhorn]

If you suspect a member may be a ham-nazi, please contact the club's board.

Jawohl, being German I can help snoop them out.

[nzlinus]

I just went out and passed my Technician AND General exams! It doesn't cost any extra to sit the General. I got lucky and squeaked through with the maximum allowable number wrong.

I studied using http://hamexam.org... HIGHLY recommended. They have the latest question pools, and use adaptive weighting to make sure you're getting the questions you need to work on.

If you need to find an exam in your area, check http://www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-rad ... am-session, call the administrator and go do it...

Cheers,
Lin.

[JD]

I just went out and passed my Technician AND General exams!...

Mazel Tov Lin, on passing both exams and thanks for the heads up on the excellent exam study source.

[Mike Blankenhorn]

I just went out and passed my Technician AND General exams! It doesn't cost any extra to sit the General. I got lucky and squeaked through with the maximum allowable number wrong.

Congratulations on joining the ham cult. It just so happens I am cooking a ham in the oven right now (with glaze) which tells me that the stars are in alignment and you are officially one of us, one of us, one of us...

[OP]

I went for my extra class but failed. I apparently forgot the secret handshake after enduring the paddling; my magic underwear was binding just before I pledged alliance to Zenu on the planet Kolob. The link between Hinduism and Ham Radio has been well known, but I think requiring OT level IV is a bit much. I can't afford any more auditing. If anyone has an e-meter they have spare time on let me know.

I know it's a long road but worth it. Imagine DXing on a LF moon bounce side band with the grand wizard and the other 32nd degree free masons. What a thrill.


The only way a gazebo radio would cause a problem is from tattling on ourselves. As this forum thread exists, we know ham-naziery around the club is sufficient to cause a problem

Just for fun here is a Ham question:
Who must submit the request for a temporary waiver of Part 97.113 to allow amateur radio operators to provide communications on behalf of their employers during a government sponsored disaster drill?
A. Each amateur participating in the drill
B. Any employer participating in the drill
C. The local American Red Cross Chapter
D. The government agency sponsoring the event

Answer: Irrelevant, no one cares.