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The ARRL Letter

September 28, 2017
Editor: Rick Lindquist, WW1ME

 *  "Force of 50" Steps Up to Assist Hurricane-Ravaged Puerto Rico
 *  Amateur Radio Volunteers Filling Communication Gap in the Caribbean
 *  Amateur Radio Reports: Arecibo Observatory Dish Sustained Serious Damage
    from Maria
 *  The Doctor Will See You Now!
 *  Round-the-World Flyer Brian Lloyd, WB6RQN, Spearheading Dominica Airlift
 *  Ohio Radio Amateurs Support Annual Air Force Marathon
 *  Past QCWA General Manager, Former ARRL Staffer Jim LaPorta, N1CC, SK
 *  The K7RA Solar Update
 *  Just Ahead in Radiosport
 *  Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions

____________________________________________________________________________

Advisory: Requests for Information from the Public and the Press

Many individuals have loved ones in Puerto Rico, and they are understandably
hopeful that Amateur Radio operators can relay messages to them. As a result,
some are contacting amateurs with requests to pass message traffic to the
island.

At the same time, individual amateurs and clubs have reported that local media
representatives have contacted them to request information about Amateur Radio
involvement in Puerto Rico. This likely will increase as word spreads in the
national media about our activities.

For inquiries from the public, ARRL advises that these individuals be informed
that amateurs traveling to Puerto Rico to support the American Red Cross effort
 will be tasked with handling outbound traffic only. Members of the public
concerned about family and friends in Puerto Rico should access the American
Red Cross Safe and Well Website. Status information from friends and relatives
in Puerto Rico will be entered into the system as it arrives from amateurs
stationed there.

For media inquiries, please ask reporters to contact ARRL directly. A system
has been established at ARRL Headquarters to respond to media inquiries in a
timely and accurate manner.

____________________________________________________________________________


"Force of 50" Steps Up to Assist Hurricane-Ravaged Puerto Rico

Members of the Amateur Radio community have volunteered to assist in the
ongoing recovery from Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico and
Dominica and, to a lesser extent, the US Virgin Islands. This week, 50 of the
most accomplished US radio amateurs responded within 24 hours to a call from
the American Red Cross (ARC) to deploy to Puerto Rico and provide emergency
communications assistance there. At the ARC's request, ARRL rallied the US
Amateur Radio community to provide up to 25 two-person teams of highly
qualified hams. ARRL CEO Tom Gallagher, NY2RF, said that more than 350 answered
 the call, from nearly every state.

"This generous outpouring of response represents the finest qualities of the
Amateur Radio community," he said. "These individuals are dropping whatever
they are doing now, heading off to an extended hardship-duty assignment, and
offering their special talents to Americans who have been cut off from their
families, living amid widespread destruction and without electrical power since
 Hurricane Maria struck the Caribbean region last week."

The group's principal mission will be to move health-and-welfare information
from the island back to the US mainland, where that data will be entered in the
 Red Cross Safe and Well system. The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio
Network (SATERN) has been asked to assist these operators when they check in
with tactical, health-and-welfare (H&W), and Safe and Well messages.

SATERN and other active nets are not accepting incoming H&W inquiries. The
Caribbean Emergency and Weather Net (CEWN) is taking incoming H&W inquiries via
 e-mail for Dominica. The Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration (PRFAA) is
 taking inquiries (only one per sender) via e-mail for Puerto Rico. Inquiries
should include the full name and location of both the sender and the
individual(s) being sought and the sender's e-mail address.

The group will be in Puerto Rico for up to 3 weeks. ARRL has equipped each team
 with an HF transceiver, software, a dipole antenna, a power supply and all
connecting cables, fitted in a rugged waterproof container. In an unprecedented
 and crucial move, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) agreed to
help get the Ham Aid gear to Puerto Rico.

The League also is sending two VHF repeaters, a dozen hand-held transceivers,
five mobile radios, what Gallagher described as "5 cubic feet of batteries," a
number of small 2-kW portable generators, and solar-powered battery chargers.
The hams and their equipment will be sent to Red Cross shelters extending from
San Juan to the western end of the island.

In addition, ARRL has committed to purchasing up to $50,000 worth of new Ham
Aid gear for this and for future emergencies.

ARRL's Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U, said this was the first
 time in the nearly 75-year relationship between ARRL and the ARC that such a
request for assistance had been made. "Hurricane Maria has devastated the
island's communications infrastructure," Corey said. "Without electricity and
telephone, and with most of the cell sites out of service, millions of
Americans are cut off from communicating. Shelters are unable to reach local
emergency services. And, people cannot check on the welfare of their loved
ones. The situation is dire."

The Yasme Foundation announced this week that it has made a grant to ARRL's Ham
 Aid fund, in support of the Amateur Radio response to the recent hurricanes in
 the US and Caribbean. The Ham Aid fund was created in 2005 in response to the
need for equipment and resources to support the Amateur Radio response to
hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma.

A September 27 CNN report documented the personal impact of the storm on Puerto
 Rico and Amateur Radio's role in the recovery.

____________________________________________________________________________

How You Can Help

ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, has asked for contributions to ARRL's Ham
Aid fund. "Equipment has been flying out the door since Hurricane Harvey struck
 the US mainland," he emphasized. "From meeting requirements in aid of
Hurricane Irma victims in the US Virgin Islands and Florida, our store of Ham
Aid kits has been depleted."

ARRL's Ham Aid program loans Amateur Radio equipment kits to established
Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES(R)) groups and partner agencies during
disaster responses, in order to establish Amateur Radio communication support.
Ham Aid is supported by donations from individuals and corporations, including
many of our ham radio industry partners.

ARRL has previously staged Ham Aid equipment in Texas as well as supplied kits
to Florida, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. With the Ham Aid inventory
depleted, donations are needed now. Contributions to Ham Aid are 100% tax
deductible. To donate online, select "Ham Aid" from the ARRL donation form. To
donate by mail, print a donation form, and mail it with your check payable to
ARRL, noting "Ham Aid" on the memo line of your check. Mail to ARRL, 225 Main
St., Newington, CT 06111 USA.

____________________________________________________________________________


Amateur Radio Volunteers Filling Communication Gap in the Caribbean

Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands both suffered substantial damage from
Hurricane Maria, although Puerto Rico took the bigger hit, and it is there that
 Amateur Radio has been filling a huge telecommunications gap. The FCC said at
mid-week that 91% of cell telephone sites were still out in Puerto Rico. In the
 US Virgin Islands, the figure is about 60%.

"The situation in Puerto Rico is very devastating across all the island,"
Puerto Rico SM Oscar Resto, KP4RF, said over the weekend. "Communications via
land phone or mobiles are almost nil." Repeaters are down, he said, and hams
have been using the 2-meter simplex frequency of 146.52 MHz, although he hoped
to see some repeaters come back on line (the 448.225 repeater in Bayamon has
been online, handling health-and-welfare traffic).

With police repeaters also down, law enforcement has been using 2 meters as
well.

American Red Cross Headquarters suffered the loss of its emergency generator
due to flooding. A temporary ARC headquarters has internet and cell service, he
 said.

Resto said radio amateurs have also been assisting Puerto Rico's Electric Power
 Authority (Autoridad de Energía Eléctrica) using 146.52 MHz to dispatch line
crews and coordinate fuel deliveries for the authority's offices at the
Monacillo Control Center and at several power plants. "The power system is
fully shut down for all the island," he said. Drinking water and proper
sanitation facilities are also in very short supply. Resto said Puerto Rico
needs "everything...solar panels, repeaters, and most important, transmission
lines and antennas. Some base or mobile VHF/UHF radios, a 1- to 2-kW power
generator." Fuel for generators as well as vehicles is still in short supply on
 Puerto Rico.

Radio amateurs in Puerto Rico have been operating brisk and busy ad hoc
health-and-welfare traffic nets on 7.175 and 14.270 MHz, as has the Salvation
Army Team Emergency Network (SATERN) on 14.265 MHz. Gerry Hull, W1VE, reported
that the net on 14.270 MHz has handled thousands of messages in the past week.
Hull has also been active on the SATERN net. Today will mark Day 11 of the
Hurricane Maria activation for SATERN, surpassing the 8-day SATERN operation
for Hurricane Irma and making it the longest activation since Hurricane Katrina
 in 2005.

"Calls to family are very emotional," he told ARRL. "I am getting all kinds of
calls day and night for people desperate to hear about family in Puerto Rico,
but hams cannot provide inbound traffic." He directs them to the Red Cross
website. "Lots of contesters are helping with their big stations," he said.

US Virgin Islands Section Manager Fred Kleber, K9VV, said the USVI are in much
better shape than Puerto Rico. "They really got slammed hard," he said. Kleber
said he still has antennas that were not destroyed by the storm and that he can
 hit Puerto Rico on 2 meters from his location. He also plans to deploy some 20
 mesh wireless network nodes to provide connectivity between key USVI
government locations. "We have used every trick in our comms bag of tricks to
make stuff work," he said.

Kleber said pictures in the news and social media don't do justice to the
wholesale devastation in parts of the Caribbean. In the USVI, he said, trees,
power poles, transformers, and telephone lines were downed all over, and debris
 blocking roadways is making travel slow or altogther impossible. He and others
 have been staffing the emergency communications center 24/7.

The Caribbean Emergency and Weather Net (CEWN) on 7.188 and 3.815 MHz has
focused its attention on the situation on Dominica.

"Truly I think that the regional agencies were not ready for a calamity of this
 magnitude," Kumar Persaud, J85K, one of the CEWN net controllers said last
weekend. "The CEWN operators have ended up filling the communications gap for
the agencies, without any prior briefing."

The net has been dealing with a tremendous volume of traffic for Dominica and
Puerto Rico, with a handful of stations handling emergency and priority
communications for a million or more people.

ARRL Santa Barbara Section Technical Advisor Ben Kuo, AI6YR -- who has been
keeping a close ear on the situation in the Caribbean -- said hams on St. Lucia
 and Dominica and from outside the region coordinated the landing of emergency
relief vessels from Barbuda and advised rescue groups on logistics. Amateur
Radio also has provided a path for government communication on Dominica, where
conditions are starting to improve.

There's more information on the Amateur Radio response on the Hurricane
Maria-Dominica Amateur Radio Communications (DARCI) Facebook page. National
Public Radio (NPR) highlighted the role of Amateur Radio in the Dominica
response in a September 21 story.

____________________________________________________________________________


Amateur Radio Reports: Arecibo Observatory Dish Sustained Serious Damage from
Maria

Articles on the National Geographic and Space.com websites last weekend cited
Amateur Radio reports that Puerto Rico's Arecibo Observatory came through
Hurricane Maria largely intact but "with some significant damage." Universities
 Space Research Association (USRA), which helps to operate the Observatory,
said it learned via "short wave radio contact" that staff and family members
sheltering at Arecibo are safe.

"The major structures, including the 300-meter telescope, are intact, though
suffered some damage when the atmospheric radar line feed broke off, and
falling debris from it punctured the dish in several places," USRA reported on
its website. "Also, a separate 12-meter dish used as a phase reference for Very
 Long Baseline Interferometry was lost."

Observatory officials are still assessing the damage, but Jim Breakall, WA3FET,
 of Penn State University, told ARRL that the 96-foot line feed antenna at 430
MHz is "historically the key piece to the observatory." It's also the antenna
that he and others have used for Amateur Radio moonbounce activities from
Arecibo. The Observatory is home to KP4AO.

"To hear that this 10,000-pound key piece to the Observatory fell and hit the
1,000-meter dish is just a huge shock," Breakall said last Saturday. "This
antenna was connected to the 2.5 million W 430-MHz radar transmitter that was a
 key to ionospheric experiments. It is a great loss for sure."

Angel Vazquez, WP3R, who manages radio telescope operations at the Observatory,
 was one of the only radio amateurs able to pass along any information; among
those he contacted was Princeton University professor and Nobel Laureate Joe
Taylor, K1JT. Vazquez was using a generator that, Breakall told ARRL, was not
working very well. "Many others have heard about all of this and have come to
help relay messages to loved ones and friends to let people know they are
okay," Breakall added.

Breakall said he's less concerned to learn that his own Amateur Radio contest
station, on a hill not far from the Observatory, was destroyed by Hurricane
Maria. "While this is sad for me and others, my concern is with the safety and
health of many friends and the people of Puerto Rico in General," he said. This
 is my second home, and many of the people there I treat as my brothers and
sisters."

USRA reported last weekend that the access road to the Observatory was covered
with debris and impassable.

Breakall told ARRL that he's worried about what might happen in the weeks and
months ahead. "I just hope that desperation does not set in, and things get out
 of hand there," he said. "It is going to be very tough."

____________________________________________________________________________


The Doctor Will See You Now!

"Soldering and Unsoldering" is the topic of the latest episode of the "ARRL The
 Doctor is In" podcast. Listen...and learn!

Sponsored by DX Engineering, "ARRL The Doctor is In" is an informative
discussion of all things technical. Listen on your computer, tablet, or
smartphone -- whenever and wherever you like!

Every 2 weeks, your host, QST Editor-in-Chief Steve Ford, WB8IMY, and the
Doctor himself, Joel Hallas, W1ZR, will discuss a broad range of technical
topics. You can also e-mail your questions to doctor@arrl.org, and the Doctor
may answer them in a future podcast.

Enjoy "ARRL The Doctor is In" on Apple iTunes, or by using your iPhone or iPad
podcast app (just search for "ARRL The Doctor is In". You can also listen
online at Blubrry, or at Stitcher (free registration required, or browse the
site as a guest) and through the free Stitcher app for iOS, Kindle, or Android
devices. If you've never listened to a podcast before, download our beginner's
guide.

____________________________________________________________________________


Round-the-World Flyer Brian Lloyd, WB6RQN, Spearheading Dominica Airlift

Brian Lloyd, WB6RQN, the Texas aviator who recently circumnavigated the globe
following Amelia Earhart's path, is spearheading "Dominica Airlift -- Angels to
 Eden" to aid residents of the storm-stricken Caribbean island nation. A
category 5 Hurricane Maria slammed into Dominica on September 18, leaving the
population of about 70,000 without power or viable telecommunications. In
addition, it wrought severe damage to homes and infrastructure, including the
island's port, but sparing at least one usable airstrip. The situation on
Dominica is said to be dire, with conditions that the Prime Minister, Roosevelt
 Skerrit, described as "worse than in a war zone." Lloyd learned this week,
however, that the relief situation on Dominica is improving.

"Our help is needed, but new information came in last night," Lloyd said in a
September 25 Facebook post. "We established contact with the emergency
operations center (EOC) on Dominica late last night. We now know that the port
is open again, and other relief materials are starting to flow into Dominica."

But, he added, even with international relief from non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) starting to come in, the EOC asked Lloyd and his airlift
volunteers to come to Dominica to help.

"Our help is still needed! We can respond to special needs faster than an NGO
can once we are in-theater," Lloyd said.

Pilots with small aircraft are still needed. "We have lots of people who want
to donate supplies, but without the airlift going, the supplies can't get to
Dominica," Lloyd said over the weekend. He hoped to arrive in Dominica on
Thursday.

Lloyd will take along portable satellite and HF radio gear to set up
communication. In addition, he has an HF transceiver on his plane, Spirit, and
is carrying a Micom 3 Fly Away HF radio with automatic link establishment (ALE)
 capability, to use as a portable disaster relief base station.

Ham radio volunteers living in areas having good signal propagation into the
Caribbean region are being asked to activate their home ALE HF stations. A call
 went out at mid-week to ALE-equipped radio amateurs in the Caribbean islands,
eastern and southeast US, Central America, and northern South America. The
activation will support the Dominica Airlift. Prospective volunteers are asked
to e-mail HFLINK. Volunteers will use the HFL (voice) and HFN
(text/data/sounding) channel sets, with 14,346.0, 7,296.0, and 5,371.5 kHz
likely to be the most active.

Lloyd has a donated Iridium satellite telephone plus a small generator to power
 the communication equipment and to charge batteries. At least two other pilots
 will assist. -- Thanks to Bonnie Crystal, KQ6XA, for some information

____________________________________________________________________________


Ohio Radio Amateurs Support Annual Air Force Marathon

When about 15,000 runners left the starting line at the Air Force Marathon,
Half Marathon, and 10K races, more than 65 Amateur Radio volunteers were on
hand in the Dayton, Ohio, area on September 16 to help ensure their safety. The
 event starts and ends at the Air Force Museum, and the course runs through
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) and on the streets of Fairborn. Net
control stations located at the start/finish line near the National Museum of
the US Air Force directed a medical net on 70 centimeters and a logistics net
on 2 meters. Hams also provided communication at the eight medical and 25
hydration stations positioned throughout the courses.

USAF Marathon Race Director Robert Aguiar said race officials consider the
Amateur Radio volunteers a vital resource and have come rely on their
professionalism and communication skills. He said it would be extremely
difficult, if not impossible, to have the race without Amateur Radio-provided
emergency, logistic, and medical communications among the race director, his
staff, the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) incident commander, and the
hydration and medical stations.

Air Force Marathon Amateur Radio Lead Volunteer David Crawford, KF4KWW, thanked
 all the Amateur Radio volunteers, some of whom have been turning out for the
event for many years.

"Their support helped ensure another USAF Marathon that occurred safely and met
 the runner's needs," he said. While most of his volunteers were from the
greater Dayton area, some came from as far away as Michigan and Wisconsin. In
addition to providing communication to aid stations, Amateur Radio operators
also served as "tail-end Charlies" for the marathon and half marathon. Each had
 an APRS transmitter, as did lead vehicles and selected runners, allowing race
officials and emergency services to have a more accurate picture of how the
race was progressing.

The Dayton Amateur Radio Association (DARA) emergency communication van served
as the command center for the race and net control for the logistics net. The
Xenia Weather Amateur Radio Network (XWARN) communication trailer housed the
medical net control. KF4KWW thanked both groups for their support. -- Thanks to
 Henry Ruminski, W8HJR

____________________________________________________________________________


Past QCWA General Manager, Former ARRL Staffer Jim LaPorta, N1CC, SK

James "Jim" LaPorta, N1CC, of Frankston, Texas, died on September 20. He was
76. He was an ARRL and Quarter Century Wireless Association (QCWA) Life Member.
 LaPorta served as QCWA General Manager from March until December 2012.

First licensed in 1956 as KN6SXX, LaPorta joined the US Army after high school
and then went to work for the Army as a civilian in 1968 in Texas. While in
Texas, he served a president of the Dallas Amateur Radio Club (1970-1972) and
was a member of the Richardson Wireless Klub. He also presented ham radio
classes, and one of his students was Jim Haynie, W5JBP (SK), who later served
as ARRL President.

Attending college full time in the evenings, LaPorta formed the Amateur Radio
Society at the University of Texas at Dallas. He graduated in 1977, while
working for the US Veterans Administration as its campus representative.

In 1978 and 1979, LaPorta served on the ARRL Headquarters staff. Later he was
the Training Supervisor for Product Information at General DataComm for 3
years, before starting a 17-year career with Motorola. After retirement, he was
 an independent insurance representative.

LaPorta's first love was DX contesting, and during his active contest years as
K6SXX, WA0ISO, DL4LA, W5QGZ, and W5LA. He was the Single Operator, Unlimited
QRP mixed-mode winner of the 2016 IARU HF Championship and made the Top 10
Single Operator list (QRP) list for the 2016 ARRL November Sweepstakes (phone).

LaPorta also was very active during the ARRL Centennial QSO Party event in
2014.

Survivors include his wife Linda, NE5LL. -- Thanks to QCWA President Ken Oelke,
 VE6AFO

____________________________________________________________________________


The K7RA Solar Update

Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, reports: The past week was a good one for HF
propagation. Average daily sunspot numbers doubled from the previous week,
rising from 13.6 to 27, while average daily solar flux rose from 72.6 to 84.3.
Average daily geomagnetic numbers were lower, with average planetary A index
declining from 21.1 to 9.9 and average daily mid-latitude A index from 17.1 to
7.6. Last Friday was the autumnal equinox, so we should see a seasonal
improvement in HF conditions.

Predicted solar flux is 91 on September 28-October 1; 88 on October 2-4; 90,
95, 90, 85, 76, 75, 74, and 73 on October 5-12; 72 on October 12-15; 71, 74,
73, 78, 80, 87; and 90 on October 16-22; 95 on October 23-November 2; 90, 85,
76, 75, 74, and 73 on November 3-8, and 72 on November 9-11.

Predicted planetary A index is 32, 26, 14, 12, and 6 on September 28-October 2;
 5 on October 3-10; 25 on October 11-13; 20 and 15 on October 14-15; 8 on
October 16-17; 5 on October 18-21; 16, 8, 20, 25, 20, 10, and 8 on October
22-28; 5 on October 29-November 6; 25 on November 7-9, and 20 and 15 on
November 10-11.

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 * Origin:  (1:3634/12.73)