Ham Radio Exams in Austria Cancelled

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The pandemic has forced the cancellation of amateur radio exams in Austria as well as the popular Christmas Electronics and Radio Flea Market planned for 11th December 2021.

Exams planned for Vienna and Graz are among those that have been canceled due to the Covid pandemic.

Amateur radio exams in Austria are oral with amateurs asking candidates questions about the hobby. Unlike the UK, USA and Canada there is no capability to take the exam online.

Austria has 3 categories of license:

  • Class 3 Entry Level - 100 watts 144/430 MHz

  • Class 4 CEPT Novice - 100 watts 1.8/3.5/21/28/144/430 MHz

  • Class 1 CEPT HAREC 400w all bands, Clubs can run 1 kW

ÖVSV - https://tinyurl.com/IARU-Austria

Using an Arduino to Upgrade a 1970s Ham Radio

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Al Williams WD5GNR writes on Hackaday about upgrading the vintage Icom IC-245 with an Arduino

Old radios didn’t have much in the way of smarts. But as digital synthesis became more common, radios often had as much digital electronics in them as RF circuits. The problem is that digital electronics get better and better every year, so what looks like high-tech one year is quaint the next. [IMSAI Guy] had an Icom IC-245 and decided to replace the digital electronics inside with — among other things — an Arduino.

Video and Media Post - https://hackaday.com/2021/11/27/ham-radio-gets-brain-transplant/

New Law Hits AIS Beacons

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New Law Hits AIS Beacons

A new law introduced by Beijing appears to have resulted in ships turning off their automatic AIS beacons (161.975 MHz or 162.025 MHz) when in Chinese waters

Since the start of the month, vessels from around the globe, from tankers to cargo ships, have disappeared from global tracking systems as they have entered some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes close to Chinese ports.

As the ships leave Chinese waters they reappear again.

By some estimates, tracking pings from ships near China have fallen by 90 per cent in just a few weeks.

On 1st November 2021, a new law came into effect in China restricting foreign access to any data – potentially including shipping data – deemed to have a bearing on national or economic security.

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