I’m writing this a day after my return from the Friedrichshafen Ham Radio event (see my report in this issue). It was great fun although yet again I suffered at the hands of an airline, this time Lufthansa! Thanks to delays I missed my onward connections in both directions, including, on the return leg, having to stay the night in an airport hotel at Frankfurt. The things I do for amateur radio!
But, as I say, it was an enjoyable event and great to catch up with lots of old friends as well as some of the latest products and ideas. At home I’ve been continuing to operate on the 6m band and have also been active again on 4m, as you’ll see from my brief report in Tim GW4VXE’s VHF column. I get the impression, though, that the Sporadic E season hasn’t been as good as the last two years, something which has been commented on before insofar as it seems the more sunspots we have, the less Sporadic E we enjoy. Can anyone explain why?

Rockall

Most of you will be aware that Nobby Styles G0VJG (see The Face Behind the Call, June) and others were active from Rockall, managing to pull off this extremely hazardous challenge. We are
able this month to bring you the first account of Nobby’s stay on the rock and the amateur radio operation conducted by him and Emil DL8JJ. I managed an easy contact on 40m SSB – it was quite remarkable how good their signals were considering the limited resources at their disposal but I guess being surrounded by nothing but sea does tend to help!
Nobby had been planning to return when ‘Cam’ Cameron was due to leave to rock, but just before going to press we learned that Cam had been airlifted from Rockall due to bad weather and without setting the new record. However, he has certainly raised plenty of money for the nominated charities.

Ofcom Consultation

The big news for amateur radio in the UK is the release of the Ofcom consultation document Updating the amateur radio licensing framework. The introduction to the document on the Ofcom website says “Ofcom’s changes are designed to provide radio amateurs with greater operating freedoms to reflect how the hobby has evolved. At the same time, we are seeking to make getting and using a licence simpler, as part of a broader effort by Ofcom to streamline, standardise and where possible further automate elements of our licensing work”. The consultation is open until 4 September, after which Ofcom will review the responses and, hopefully, implementation will be in the early part of 2024.
Unfortunately but perhaps inevitably given that the document runs to 101 pages, a lot of hot air has already been seen on various internet forums and the like, from folk who have heard the headlines but have failed to read the detail. I have tried to summarise the main points in our News pages but I do recommend downloading and reading the whole document, especially if you are minded to make a formal response.
Incidentally, and much to my surprise, the headline figure for UK amateur radio licences in force at this time, according to Ofcom, is 101,000. I hadn’t
realised the numbers were now above 100,000 but, again, this also reflects the fact that many operators have ended up with multiple callsigns (for example, by retaining their Foundation callsign having upgraded to Intermediate or Full), something which Ofcom are wanting to put an end to.
My other surprise, it has to be said, is that Ofcom have actually issued such a document, given that I have commented with regard to one of this month’s Letters that I consider Ofcom have much more important issues to deal with these days. So, actually, the arrival of this consultation document, shortly before we go to press, is a welcome reminder that Ofcom do still consider our hobby worthy of attention.
My personal view, while still not having read every page of the document, is that the changes suggested are broadly to be welcomed. But I realise that some of them will be divisive.

This Month at Practical Wireless Magazine August 2023 Issue

Due to the welcome arrival of our report on the Rockall operation and my being able to put together a quick report on the Friedrichshafen event, I have unfortunately had to hold over a couple of items that were advertised for this month. Please be patient – they

Don Field G3XTT
Editor, Practical Wireless Magazine

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