21 New US Hams

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The Tri-Lakes Monument Radio Association just completed another successful Technician license class resulting in 21 new Technicians plus one person that passed both the Technician and General exams.

The group have surveyed the latest class, to understand more about the background of new entrants to the hobby.

More information - http://www.k0nr.com/wordpress/2017/03/new-hams-coming-from/

Students in Belize Introduced to Amateur Radio

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Following on from successfully promoting Amateur Radio to Boy Scouts, the Belize Amateur Radio Club (BARC) has introduced amateur/ham radio to University of Belize (UB) engineering students. 

A recent BARC presentation included a summary of the club’s educational goals, a short video, and a lesson on Amateur Radio basics — such as propagation and the RF spectrum, and a question-and-answer session.

BARC President Emil Rodriguez, V31ER, encouraged the students to take advantage of the opportunities Amateur Radio offers to expand their skills in their fields of study — mechanical and electrical engineering. The introduction represented a first step toward establishing a partnership between BARC and the UB Engineering Department, which envisions that students will learn such skills as antenna construction, electronic circuits, radio theory, and radio procedures necessary to obtain an Amateur Radio license in Belize.

Following the BARC presentation, students and staff members expressed their intention to establish a UB Amateur Radio club and station. BARC said that, in addition to its educational benefits, a permanent ham station at UB would also allow students to become involved in supporting emergency communication during hurricane season. — Thanks to International Amateur Radio Union Region 2 (IARU-R2) and BARC.

Belize Amateur Radio Club - http://www.barc.bz

No Entry Level Swedish Ham Radio License

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The Sweden's communications regulator, PTS has categorically rejected the idea of an Entry-Level amateur radio license 

The SSA says it must now find new ways to motivate our young people, and even older, to participate in our hobby. Amateur radio's future in Sweden is an urgent issue that will be discussed during the upcoming annual meeting on Faro.

Full Post - http://www.ssa.se/pts-forslag-till-delegationsbeslut-och-avslag-pa-begaran-om-instegscertifikat/

In 2004 the PTS exempted amateur radio transmitters in Sweden from individual licensing. Since then the SSA has issued Amateur Radio Certificates which include the callsign. 

In 2016 there were 13,000 Amateur Radio Certificates in Sweden but this figure would appear to include all certificates issued since 2004, a large number of which might be people who have left the hobby or died in that time. It is thought only around 70 people are taking up the hobby in Sweden each year.

PTS 2004 Licence Exemption Statement - https://www.pts.se/upload/Documents/EN/Radio_amateurs.pdf

SSA (Google English) - http://tinyurl.com/SwedenSSA