23cm Restrictions To Be Imposed In Europe

The 67th CEPT Electronic Communications Committee (ECC) Plenary Meeting held March 24-27 approved ECC Decision (25)01 restricting Amateur and Amateur Satellite operation in the 23 Band (1258-1300 MHz) with effect from December 27, 2025.

The meeting minutes record:

6.2 APPROVAL FOR PUBLICATION OF DRAFT ECC DECISION (25)01 ON GALILEO AND ITS PROTECTION IN 1258-1300 MHZ FROM RADIO AMATEUR

The WG FM Chairman introduced the draft ECC Decision (25)01 on Galileo and protection measures in 1258-1300 MHz in Annexe 06 to 026, which was endorsed by WG FM for publication by the ECC.

24 administrations indicated their intention to implement this Decision, while 1 administration indicated their intention to implement it partially.

Germany stated that they have to determine how to implement this Decision at the national level.

The United Kingdom informed the meeting that it will implement Decision 1 (designation of the frequency bands for Galileo) but will not apply the technical conditions on amateur and amateur-satellite in Decision 2.

Safety Stand-Down: Look Up and Live

Safety Stand-Down: Look Up and Live

Electricity is a killer. About 150 people die each year at work from contact with electricity, according to the Electrical Safety Foundation International. Half of those are from contact with power lines. That data is just workplace deaths, so recreational and public service volunteering aren’t even accounted for.

In a recent article, ARRL New Mexico Section Manager Bill Mader, K8TE, shared safety concerns and processes that can be implemented at ARRL Field Day sites. I’d like to share a simple phrase that may enhance your situational awareness: Look up and live.

“Look up and live” was drilled into me and every other television news employee who worked with electronic news gathering vehicles that had a pneumatic mast or satellite dish. It was the title of an industry-standard safety video published by the National Press Photographers Association.

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Canadian Amateurs in Yukon Territory Get Separate Section

The amateur radio map of Canada has undergone a change with the creation of a new section. 

Radio amateurs who live in Canada's Yukon Territory now have a section to call their own. Radio Amateurs of Canada has separated the Yukon Territory from the overall Territories section and given it a designation of its own. It now carries the abbreviation Y U K, setting it apart from hams in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. Those regions will continue to be part of the section known as "Territories," which carries the abbreviation T-E-R. 

Radio Amateurs of Canada made the announcement in the July/August 2025 issue of the journal, The Canadian Amateur. The change took effect on the 1st of July. While the new section may have consequences for ARRL Field Day, Sweepstakes CW, Sweepstakes SSB and the 160 metre contest, the changes are not expected to have an impact on any major contests from the ARRL or RAC. Organisers of QSO parties may need to review their operating rules.