Class Licence Structure Arriving in Australia

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From February, hams in Australia who previously held an apparatus licence will become holders of the new class licence.

The Australian regulator has sent letters to hams announcing that the transition to the new class licence structure takes effect on the 19th of February. The letter permits hams with valid apparatus licences to continue operating under the same band and licence conditions as before and assures hams who renewed the apparatus licence after the 9th of December that they are eligible for a pro-rated refund if they surrender the apparatus licence on or after the 19th of February.

The ACMA plans to check every five years that assigned callsigns are still being used as authorised. Calls with a one-year expiry, such as special event callsigns, and those calls with a VK0 or VK9 prefix, will receive additional instructions in February regarding either renewals or expirations.

These changes, which the regulator announce last year, also mean that there are no fees for the licences. The ACMA will also take oversight of the administration of amateur radio licence exams and callsign issuance previously delegated to the Australian Maritime College.

ARRL Urges Comments to FCC on 60-Meter Band

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ARRL Urges Comments to FCC on 60-Meter Band

The National Association for Amateur Radio (ARRL) is asking that all radio amateurs urge the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to continue the existing use of the 60-meter band. A public comment period is open until 30th October 2023. ARRL encourages expressions of support to the FCC for the current 100 W ERP power limit (instead of reducing the power limit to 15 W EIRP) and continuing secondary access to the current channels.

ARRL has assembled a web page with instructions on how to submit your comments, as well as background information on the issue - http://www.arrl.org/60-meter-band.

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Belgium to get 40 MHz allocation

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The UBA proposes to grant the radio amateur service access to the frequency range 40.660 – 40.690 MHz under the following conditions:

On a secondary basis

  • For holders of a class A operating certificate (HAREC licence)

  • A power limit of 5 W ERP

  • A bandwidth limit of 3 kHz

  • On individual basis, after prior approval from BIPT

  • It is mandatory to keep a logbook in which all transmissions are noted

This is an important development as Belgium now joins Ireland (EI), Slovenia (S5) and South Africa (ZS) with official amateur radio allocations on the 40 MHz band.