Iranian Special Event Station Honours Persian Gulf History

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Iranian Special Event Station Honours Persian Gulf History

Proof positive that amateur radio can - and should - be above politics. Always. Proof positive that amateur radio should be about friendship, education and building bridges.  It was a proud moment for 11 ham radio operators in Iran who got on the air on 7th June 2025, calling CQ on SSB as special event station EP2PG. Using modest, home-based equipment with 100 watts of power or less, the operators faced less-than-ideal conditions on the HF bands during their 16-hour operation in this politically charged part of the world.

Still, it was a proud moment as the hams of Echo Papa two Persian Gulf celebrated the historical and cultural significance of the Persian Gulf itself and shared it with the world. One of the operators, Morteza EP5APP, told Newsline that the team's focus was on making as many DX contacts as possible in the interest of friendship and unity and, of course, to share the story of the Gulf, which is one of the world's oldest maritime regions.

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Indiana Emcomm Group in Debate Over Digital Switch

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With emergency communications embracing digital modes more and more, operators increasingly find themselves navigating the tricky landscape of system access and compatibility. 

In April of this year, the Dubois County Office of Emergency Management in Indiana made the decision to migrate from analogue FM to C4FM digital for their 147.195 repeater during activations. The change was made to reduce noise during operation and increase the quality of the copy.

“Our new Fusion repeater system was thoroughly tested to confirm its superior performance when using C4FM.”
— Gary Fritz, WB9LIB

When the announcement was made to the Patoka Valley Amateur Radio Club, not all the club members were enthusiastic. Since some of them did not own a Fusion-compatible radio, this decision would exclude them from emergency operations with SKYWARN.

Fritz told AR Newsline that the change has brought about the desired results in message quality, as proven by recent SKYWARN activation during severe weather.

“We found that by using C4FM, combined with a reasonable reduction in repeater transmit power, our units are now able to check in crystal clear from locations that were previously impossible.”
— Gary Fritz, WB9LIB

A number of local amateurs remain unconvinced regarding the move to digital. Reuben Montgomery, KA9RCM, told Newsline that his main concern is centred primarily on the lack of access to emergency communications by hams without Fusion radios and by visitors who are passing through the area. With the variety of digital platforms, he also sees great difficulty in picking one mode to the exclusion of all others. Regarding participation, Fritz reported that a staff of trained EMA weather spotters comprise the vast majority of those participating in local SKYWARN nets, which are 100% focused on in-county reports when they are under a warning.

Fritz also said that the public and all amateur radio operators can continue to monitor net communications through audio streaming over Broadcastify.

Broadcast Honors Armstrong's Demo of FM Radio

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Broadcast Honors Armstrong's Demo of FM Radio

Be listening on 19th June 2025 for a special FM radio broadcast celebrating Edwin Armstrong's development of FM radio. 

The callsign W2XMN is etched in cement atop the doorway of the small brick transmitter building in New Jersey, not far from the radio tower where history's first FM broadcasts began in 1938. Those steady transmissions became a reality only three years after engineer and inventor Edwin Armstrong had given a public demonstration at an engineering conference, showing that frequency modulation radio could deliver static-free sound, graced with a remarkable fidelity that was previously unheard of.

FM broadcasting will return temporarily to W2XMN's original VHF low-band frequency, 42.8 MHz, beginning at noon on Thursday 19th June. The northern New Jersey tower once used by W2XMN will broadcast a repeat of programming first aired in 2005 to commemorate Armstrong's successful FM demonstration in 1935. The content includes interviews wth Armstrong's niece, Jeanne Hammond, and with Tom Lewis, author of the book, "Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio."

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