Indiana Emcomm Group in Debate Over Digital Switch
/With emergency communications embracing digital modes more and more, operators increasingly find themselves navigating the tricky landscape of system access and compatibility.
In April of this year, the Dubois County Office of Emergency Management in Indiana made the decision to migrate from analogue FM to C4FM digital for their 147.195 repeater during activations. The change was made to reduce noise during operation and increase the quality of the copy.
“Our new Fusion repeater system was thoroughly tested to confirm its superior performance when using C4FM.”
When the announcement was made to the Patoka Valley Amateur Radio Club, not all the club members were enthusiastic. Since some of them did not own a Fusion-compatible radio, this decision would exclude them from emergency operations with SKYWARN.
Fritz told AR Newsline that the change has brought about the desired results in message quality, as proven by recent SKYWARN activation during severe weather.
“We found that by using C4FM, combined with a reasonable reduction in repeater transmit power, our units are now able to check in crystal clear from locations that were previously impossible.”
A number of local amateurs remain unconvinced regarding the move to digital. Reuben Montgomery, KA9RCM, told Newsline that his main concern is centred primarily on the lack of access to emergency communications by hams without Fusion radios and by visitors who are passing through the area. With the variety of digital platforms, he also sees great difficulty in picking one mode to the exclusion of all others. Regarding participation, Fritz reported that a staff of trained EMA weather spotters comprise the vast majority of those participating in local SKYWARN nets, which are 100% focused on in-county reports when they are under a warning.
Fritz also said that the public and all amateur radio operators can continue to monitor net communications through audio streaming over Broadcastify.
