Northern Ireland Radio Star

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Whilst football fans are preparing for Northern Irelands first major championship for 30 years, amateur / ham operators are celebrating a new star, 15-year-old Summer McCormick has passed her Advanced amateur radio exam, and in doing so became Northern Ireland's youngest advanced licence holder.

Summer, who is a student at St Patrick’s Academy in Lisburn, started on her amateur radio journey three years ago, passing her foundation exam at the age of 12. A year later, Summer gained her intermediate callsign.

Summer is a member of the Lagan Valley Amateur Radio Society. Summers advanced level callsign is MI0YLT

Media Story - http://www.lisburntoday.co.uk/news/your-community/summer-15-advanced-ham-radio-star-1-7402378

FCC Bans Custom Firmware

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Following on from the FCC’s revised rules on radio-based equipment, Chinese company TP-Link have disabled a feature from their Wi-Fi routers.

The feature to allow the owner of a TP-Link router to install customised firmware has been made illegal in the United States by the FCC.

“Devices sold in the United States will have firmware and wireless settings that ensure compliance with local laws and regulations related to transmission power. As a result of these necessary changes, users are not able to flash the current generation of open-source, third-party firmware.”
— TP-Link

The issue has arisen because the FCC's job is to make sure devices only operate on the radio frequencies they are licensed to use. Equipment, such as home wireless routers, that can be reprogrammed by their owners can be potentially configured to operate on unauthorized frequencies, which is a major issue for the FCC.

The Register - http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/03/11/tplink_kills_plan_for_open_routers/

ARRL National Field Day 2016

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San Benito County radio amateurs will hold a field day at Gilroy on 25-26 June 2016, to coincide with the ARRL National Field Day Event.

The group are educating by exploring the question of communication when their is no cell phone signal if in the case of power outages.

Field Day is open to the public and all are encouraged to attend; no license is needed to join in on the fun. The San Benito County Amateur Radio Association, along with the Garlic Valley Amateur Radio Club and the Morgan Hill Amateur Radio Society, will be setting up at the TEEC building at Christmas Hill Park, 7050 Miller Ave, Gilroy, and will be operating from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. 

Stations will be set up that will enable people to talk to faraway places like Illinois, and Canada (examples of contacts made last year).  Radios that can make international and space (International Space Station, amateur radio satellites) contacts will be set up as well.

Media Story -  
http://benitolink.com/san-benito-county-hams-help-national-field-day

San Benito County Amateur Radio Association - http://sbcara.org/
San Benito County Amateur Radio Association (Twitter) - https://twitter.com/sbcara

ARRL Field Day - http://www.arrl.org/field-day