300 Registered for ILLW

With a few weeks to go until the 2016 International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend, more than 300 stations have registered from 35 countries.

The 300th station was K2QS, QSY Society from Esopus Meadows Lighthouse, Hudson River, New York.

The event takes place over the weekend of 20-21 August 2016. Registrations are still open for stations to join.

International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend - http://www.illw.net

Radio Caroline Special Event Station

Over the weekend of 5-8th August 2016, amateur radio operators from the Martello Tower Group will be running the GB5RC special event station to celebrate offshore radio station Radio Caroline.

Now an online service, Radio Caroline started as an offshore “pirate” station over five decades ago.

The Martello Group will be operational from MV Ross Revenge, using verticals for 40m, 20m (adjustable to 17m), 15m (adjustable for 12m) and 10m upon the stern of the ship.

Special QSL cards will be available.

Radio amateurs were instrumental in keeping Radio Caroline on the air in the 1960's and 1970's. Among them was Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society member Carl Thomson G3PEM who was Chief Radio Engineer on both Radio Caroline North and Radio Caroline South in the mid 1960's.

QRZ Entry - https://www.qrz.com/db/GB5RC

Martello Tower Group - http://www.martellotowergroup.com/

International Air Ambulance Week 2016

This year's International Air Ambulance Week will take place between 17th - 25th September 2016, with the focus on supporting and generating donations for flying medical services around the world.

The event covers two weekends, giving amateurs a great chance to get involved and support the event.

Whilst Amateur Radio Operators / Stations are encouraged to promote the donation causes, it is requested that any donations generated go to the stations chosen local or national cause.

Registration will be mandatory and all stations taking part will be issued a registration number which will be listed on this website. The registered number needs to be quoted by each station regularly. Included in the list alongside each registered station will be a clickable link enabling those wishing to donate, to donate directly to the charity of the service they wish to support.

The event is primarily intended to help support public donation funded flying medical services, whether part or entirely donation funded, though not restricted entirely to those. The location of the special event station can be anywhere you choose to set it up – club, home or if you can manage the permissions to do it, a public place.

No costs will be involved in registering or taking part and a free series of Awards will be available for those who support the event as detailed below..

  • An award for having registered and taken part in the event.
  • A Bronze award for having logged a minimum of 5 IAW station.
  • A Silver award for having logged a minimum of 10 IAW station.
  • A Gold award for having logged a minimum of 15 IAW station.
  • Awards for SWL will follow the the above requirements

More than one award may claimed.

Claims for the awards will need to be made to the IAW’s Award Manager byde3ear@darc.de) including an excerpt from the log as proof of a valid claim.

The event’s date has been set to coincide with the UK’s own funding drive week for its own helicopter ambulance services. Almost all of these, around 30 in number, are entirely public donation funded.

The event is intended to commence on the fourth weekend of September annually and is to be run by the same team which operates the well established International Museum Weekends.

Event Website - http://www.radio-amateur-events.org/IAW/Registration.htm