Message:20305 In: BCAST.WW
From: VK7AXDate: Sun, 05 Apr 26 02:22:00 Z
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Subject: VK National News 05Apr26
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VK National News 05Apr26
Weekly news from the WIA:
MP3 edition of news available at: http://www.wia-files.com/podcast/wianews-2026-04-05.mp3
Text edition:
2026 APRIL 5 WIA NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA
------------------------------------------------------------*
THE BEST NEWS YOU'LL GET ALL WEEK
THIS LINK IS A VIDEO VERSION OF NEWS COMPILED BY VK5BD BEVAN
tinyurl.com/WIA-News-Videos
------------------------------------------------------------*
IN THE EASTER EDITION OF NATIONAL NEWS THIS WEEK:-
John VK3HJQ will talk about a news app QSO-Link. -
With all the news re ARTEMIS 2 this week we rewind to the time 2 Amateur Radio Operators Tapped Into a Soviet Frequency. Did Th
ey Hear a Woman Burning Alive in Space? -
Maybe, just maybe, in honour of Mrs Slocombe we have Cat Pix on the Air celebrating International Cat Day by transmitting image
s of cats via SSTV.
VK3TCM reports on the VENUE and highlights planned for the AGM of the WIA this year . -
BUT WAIT - THERE'S MUCH MUCH MORE IN THIS EDITION OF NEWS FROM THE
WIRELESS INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA AND IT'S FOR WEEK COMMENCING
SUNDAY APRIL 5 2026
I'M EDITOR GRAHAM VK4BB
Not long before the two day VK Summit in Albury on the 2nd-3rd of May. Grab your free tickets by signing up at the VK Summit
website on
vksummit.au
The event should be of interest to anyone interested in communications and
technology. It is being held at the Commercial Club, Dean Street Albury, where there will be plenty to see from suppliers, inc
luding Icom Australia, Comtek Radio (representing FlexRadio, BHI, TET Emtron, Avair, etc.), Silvertone Test Equipment, ADSB Sup
port Professional Flight Tracking Solutions, Electrotest Test Equipment NZ featuring Rig Expert, G&C Communications and Anthony
Plumb Hearing + More.
There will also be 10 tech talks over the two days, which include POTA how to get involved, VKFF - Whats it all about, Remote R
adio Site Design and
Case Studies, Radio Direction Finding, with a special one on Sunday morning by the WIA about Band Plans. Also, on Sunday aftern
oon, experienced operators will offer introductory sessions to those that are interested in learning the art of operating porta
ble.
Saturday afternoon will feature the WIA AGM at the same spot, and Saturday night will have a dinner. Dinner tickets are just $
39 per person.
Saturday night will also have a link to the International Space Station, where school students can ask questions to the astrona
uts.
The Wireless Institute of Australia and the Australian Ladies Amateur Radio Association will be in attendance at the exhibition
so potential and current radio amateurs will have a chance to pose any questions.
Finally, POTA / SOTA / VKFF activations will take place before, during and after the event.
We look forward to seeing you on the 2nd and 3rd May. Again, Grab your free tickets by signing up on vksummit.au
(vk3tcm)
EDUCATION.
education.wia.org.au
A high school teacher in New York City, with help from the ARRL Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology (TI), has successfull
y licensed nearly 700 students in the past two years as part of a wide-ranging program that is teaching students in two schools
that radio today is a central part of just about everything! On March 12, ARRL, travelled to Staten Island Technical High Scho
ol to help lead teacher Everton Henriques, KD2ZZT, administer license exams to 143 students, resulting in 131 new hams and 14 u
pgrades.
KD2ZZT's formula for success is getting kids engaged, with lots of hands-on stuff. He says everything is project-based and ther
e is lots of crossover to the schools robotics program.
(Sourced to ARRL)
------------------------------------------------------------*
INTERNATIONAL NEWS is with thanks to Amateur Radio Daily, ARRL,
DX-WORLD, eHam, Hackaday, IARU, IRTS, NEWSLINE, NZART, RAC,
Radioworld.com, RSGB, SARL and the World Wide sources of WIA.
New Regulations for Hams in Norway
Amateur radio operators in Norway have a number of new regulations including a new entry-level license.
Remote control limitations have been lifted, specifically the limitation over remote operation in Norwegian overseas territorie
s and the 23cm band
now more closely adheres to CEPT recommendations.
FCC Warns Licensee on Out-of-Band Transmissions
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has responded to a complaint involving a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, amateur for oper
ating outside the privileges of his Technician Class license and causing interference to local emergency service communications
by transmitting on a public service frequency, 470.4375 MHz.
According to a letter released by the FCCs Enforcement Bureau, agents investigating an interference complaint from Allegheny Co
unty Emergency Services determined that the interfering signal originated from the residence of a local Ham. The letter states
that the ham gave the agents a BTech UV-Pro handheld which had been programmed to monitor the county emergency services frequen
cy. Agents determined that its Audio Relay feature had been activated, turning the HT into a simplex repeater that was retransm
itting on the Allegheny County channel.
The letter continues that this relatively new amateur licensee, surrendered the radio to the agents, who then verified that the
interference to the Allegheny County system had ceased.
He was warned that unauthorized operation and its associated harmful interference must not resume. He was given 10 days from th
e date of the March 25 letter to respond with a description of the steps he is taking to avoid a repeat violation.
Amateurs are reminded to exercise care when programming non-amateur frequencies into their VHF/UHF radios, and to ensure that t
ransmitting on those frequencies is disabled.
The Doomsday Radio is a Russian-based shortwave radio station that has been sending out a faint buzz and nothing else for 50 ye
ars.
But last week, the Doomsday Radio started sending out one keyword, again and again, that word? word Dezegator, which in Russian
translates to decontaminator or degasser.
The question is why?
We have developed new technology that places security and our privacy as the top priority, but this tech message has baffled th
e most enthusiastic radio operators. Many experts and scientists have believed for years that the Doomsday radio was a failsafe
for nuclear war.
In March of this year, the station suddenly wakes up from its slumber and sends 16 voice messages out in a single day. This is
usually associated with rising geopolitical tensions around the world.
Some fear that this could be a prerequisite for new military actions, with the station also mentioning NATO countries like Latv
ia. But despite all this, the most likely explanation is that these are merely military orders or tests.
Even as Canada moves to shut down its nationwide weather radio services, lawmakers in the US they are looking to commit funds t
hat would modernize and expand the radio network of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency.
The lawmakers in Washington, DC, have moved ahead with their commitment to invest $100 million in improved antennas and transmi
tter equipment to expand coverage for the VHF weather radio service of NOAA. A bipartisan measure that authorizes the expense w
as passed recently by members of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology.
The Federal Communications Commission has upheld a $60,000 fine against a South Florida man for allegedly operating a pirate st
ation. The FCC says Aaron Streeter for allegedly operating an unauthorized radio station on 89.1 FM known as Da Pound FM in Mia
mi Gardens, FL. Last year it proposed the fine for the violation, and after never receiving a response, the Commission has form
alized the penalty.
It was two years ago that agents from the FCCs Miami field office monitored and traced the unauthorized signal to a single-fami
ly residence with a broadcast antenna in the rear of the property. The agents talked to Streeters wife, who had her husband cal
l agents later that afternoon. He allegedly told them during the phone call that he operated the station, and he agreed to ceas
e broadcasting. However, on Jan. 8, the FCC says agents returned to the area and once again they heard Da Pound FM on the air.
In its annual report to Congress on pirate radio, the FCC also said it issued 28 notices to property owners and managers last y
ear, including 17 connected directly to pirate radio sweeps. But that was down from 41 notices issued to property owners and ma
nagers during fiscal 2024.
WEIRD AND WONDERFUL
Two Amateur Radio Operators Tapped Into a Soviet Frequency. Did They Hear a Woman Burning Alive in Space?
At the height of the Space Race, two Italian amateur radio enthusiasts claimed to have captured secret audio of cosmonauts, inc
luding a horrific death. While some Cold War columnists in the 1960s argued for the existence of lost cosmonauts, no such death
s have ever been confirmed, even after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The Judica-Cordiglia brothers always affirmed the authenticity of their audio recordings, though sceptics have raised questions
regarding their veracity.
With a bit of "sleuthing" we have, thanks to YouTube, that recording from this story published March 24 in Popular Mechanics
popularmechanics.com/space/a70782032/ussr-lost-cosmonaut/
-------------------------------------------------------------------
OPERATIONAL NEWS -
--------------
--------------
NOW CONTEST WISE:- 2026
WIA contest page :- wia.org.au/members/contests/about/
April 3 - 6 -- Pirate Hunt 2026 bbs.fmdx.online/index.php?topic=674.0
April 4 - 5 -- Indonesian YBDXPI SSB Contest
April 4 - 5 -- Spanish RTTY Contest
April 4 - 5 -- Polis DX Contest (CW, phone)
(ard/arrl)
--------------
--------------
MAY:- HARRY ANGEL MEMORIAL SPRINT May 2nd.
---------------
JUNE 6 -7 VK SHIRES CONTEST
-----------------
JUNE 20-21 VHF UHF FIELD DAY
--------------
JULY 4-5 NZART MEMORIAL CONTEST
---------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------
NOW LET'S OPEN THE DX WINDOW TO THE WORLD ------------
Despite equipment failures, winter weather closures and operator illness, the W7P Pluto Discovery Anniversary Special Event con
cluded with strong results.
The team of amateurs for W7P, while operating portable much of the time from the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, alo
ng with W7P/ and W7P/P, made over 6500 QSOs with 81 countries. In its six-year history, this event saw significantly higher SSB
results and the second highest volume of QSL cards ever received.
Doug Tombaugh, N3PDT, nephew of Clyde Tombaugh, the astronomer who discovered Pluto in 1930, along with his team of operators i
n the Kansas City area, made over 2200 contacts as W7P/, which was a 70 percent increase over last year.
(NewsLine2526)
-------------
AUGUST 8 WILL BE ONE "PURRFECT DAY"
Cat Pix on the Air (CPOTA) 2026 will celebrate International Cat Day by transmitting images of cats via SSTV.
The internet was made for sharing funny cat pictures and movies. On August 8th, International cat day, so will the radio waves!
Ham radio amateurs will celebrate this day with a special SSTV event using cat pictures only.
This contest will score the number of QSOs made by each operator. Special callsigns PD6MEOW (Netherlands) and N1C (US) are alre
ady registered. Additional special callsigns may be registered with the event.
cpota.app/
(ARD)
------------
ZL 100 C is the callsign celebrating the centenary of NZART
the New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters which was formed
on 16 August 1926.
The callsign is valid until 6 August 2026.
QSL via the bureau and LoTW.
(425dxnews)
------------------------------------------------------------*
NETWORKS
Well hello all, this is John VK3HJQ, some people might know me from the call-backs that I do on Sunday morning on the Ham Confe
rence server.
Anyway, we're here to talk about a new app that's out called QSO-Link. That's QSO-Link, so you can look it up on the internet.
It uses the SVXLink network system. Anyway, if people have played around
with QSO-Link and they think that audio is OK, and then of course you go to All-Star and they use a better codec and it's a lot
better, well boy howdy, this is just about 10 times better than that!
The audio quality is like FM, it's fantastic.
Anyway, I was so impressed with this app that we decided to put our own SVX reflector now in Australia. So for people who are
using SVXLink and currently have to either go through a UK or an American server, can soon connect up to our server here in Aus
tralia. For more information, currently it's up on my QRZ page, that's VK3HJQ, if people want to have a look there.
I think that about covers it, so thanks for listening, 73, VK3HJQ.
------------------------------------------------------------*
WORLD WIDE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP NEWS
SUMMITS ON THE AIR, WORLD WIDE FLORA, FAUNA PROGRAM,
PARKS ON THE AIR and other ADVENTURE GROUPS.
hema.org.uk/index.jsp
minesontheair.com/about-mota
parksontheair.com/
sota.org.uk
sotawatch.sota.org.uk/en/
facebook.com/SotaAustralia/
wwffaustralia.com/
OUT ON THE AIR AND UNDER BLUE SKIES
For any listeners who believe you have to be a DXpeditioner, a POTA or SOTA activator or even a Field Day participant to find a
dventure, our
story here is about to prove you wrong.
Just hear what Ralph Squillace KK6ITB has to say.
The most important connections we make in amateur radio arent the ones we solder on the workbench or fasten with a PL-259 in th
e field. So says Jacques Redmond WW1ZRD, founder of Out on the Air, an amateur radio activity that focuses on connections that
are human-to-human. You can make them on a hilltop, a sidewalk or even in your garden. Jacques created the website outontheair
dot com to encourage hams to get off their couches and out of their houses or apartments and give it a try.
The idea is as simple as sunshine itself. Or, as he says on his website, call CQ from a rooftop or a beach at midnight. He wri
tes: [quote] If you left home and you're on the air you're Out On The Air.
Jacques, whose preferred mode for now is SSB - at least until he learns CW - treasures the sound of a real human voice as it ri
ses above the noise. To him, it [quote] captures everything I love about ham radio. He said that in the week or so since the ac
tivity launched along with the website, radio operators have registered from around the world and begun working toward the diff
erent awards.
This is Ralph Squillace KK6ITB.
Its no surprise that those awards, like the operating locations themselves, are all registered on the honour system. Thats beca
use Jacques believes first in humans on the air.
(NewsLine2526)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FINAL FRONTIER
AMSAT-VK Secretary - secretary(at)amsat-vk.org
After two years of preparation, students from Lycee Vauban have successfully made live radio contact with French astronaut Soph
ie Adenot
aboard the International Space Station.
This in an educational project designed to inspire interest in science and space. The ARISS project, supported by NASA, Europea
n Space Agency and amateur radio communities, aims to inspire young people to pursue interests in science and technology.
For Lyce Vauban, a French High School located in a quarter of Luxembourg City, in southern Luxembourg the initiative appears to
have achieved that goal, from nearly 250 miles above the Earth.
International Space Station astronaut Sophie Adenot also chatted with students at The Lewis Centre for Educational Research in
Southern California. The European Space Agency astronaut from France fielded questions from nearly a dozen elementary through h
igh school students via the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station program.
(eHam)
Just two years before the International Space Station's scheduled retirement, it is expected to receive a crew of European astr
onauts delivered via a chartered SpaceX Crew Dragon mission.
The director general of the European Space Agency, said at a March 19 press briefing that that the ESA was chartering the fligh
t to give the agency's astronauts an experience aboard the ISS to conduct research before the spacecraft is decommissioned and
deorbited in 2030.
The trip is being proposed for early 2028.
Both the UAE and Australian Space Agencies' websites report that agreements were signed in recent years with the European Space
Agency committing to deeper collaboration in space-exploration initiatives.
(newsline2526)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - IOTA
OC REMINDERS
Listen for Aki operating as YJ1JXZ from Port Vila, IOTA Number OC-035, Vanuatu now through to the 3rd of April on 80-6 metres,
(newsline 2524)
---------
OC-047 - H44MS - Malaita Island in the Solomons.
Bernard, H44MS will be active from Manakwai village, nearby Maluu
(northern Malaita island) UNTIL April 10.
(dx-world)
-------------
OC-66 - TX9XG - Rangiroa Atoll.
Haru, JA1XGI has announced that he will be active from Rangiroa Atoll,
French Polynesia (OC-066) as TX9XG during April 1-8, 2026. He plans to
QRV on 40-10m; CW, SSB, RTTY & FT8 using the new IC-7300 MK2.
QSL TX9XG via Haru's home call, JA1XGI using OQRS Club Log.
(dx-world)
----------------
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS ---- MEDICAL.
INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIP CALLS CQ FOR AUTISM AWARENESS
Amateur radio's largest international cooperative special event is getting on the air for a week with an important message abou
t people with autism.
Now in its fourth year, the World Autism Awareness Week special event will again carry the message that "it's OK to be differen
t." It's a theme uniting amateurs across oceans, with callsigns that include W2A in the US and others in participating nations
such as Italy, South Africa, Russia, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Israel and West Malaysia.
This weeklong special event began on Wednesday the 1st of April.
It has gained momentum as it brings advocacy on the air for those with autism spectrum disorder - a developmental disorder seen
among people of all races and nationalities.
More details about the event and its callsigns - as well as useful information about autism spectrum disorder - can be found on
the QRZ.com page of W2A.
(newsline2526)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - MILITARY
Recordings of military transmissions can be found on the
Signal Identification Guide Wiki at
sigidwiki.com/wiki/Category:Military
youtube.com/@militaryhfradio244
open.spotify.com/playlist/28SXuX8vL2wHbnfCS0uBVF?si=d9ee366a38a4472e
Airfields, aerodromes, radar stations and landing strips are among the sites that will be activated by radio amateurs as part o
f this years Airfields on the Air activity.
The event will take place mainly over the weekends of the 4th and 5th and 11th and 12th of April primarily in England.
Amateurs can operate using CW, data modes and SSB on the HF, VHF and UHF bands. Certificates will be available for radio amateu
rs and shortwave listeners who work or hear a minimum of five registered special event stations. To find out more visit rafars.
org
(rsgb)
Members of the Hellenic Naval Amateur Radio Club are active as SZ 465 CG until Saturday the 18th of April. The team is operatin
g using CW, FT4, FT8 and some SSB on the 80 to 10m bands, as well as via the QO-100 satellite. See QRZ.com for more information
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