M17 Foundation Responds to Statements made by MMDVM Project Maintainer

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The M17 Foundation has responded to a number of grievances and rumors expressed by Jonathan Naylor (G4KLX), the maintainer of the MMDVM project. Along with dropping M17 support from the MMDVM project earlier this week, G4KLX posted statements critical of the `M17 Project's management and technical implementation.

The response from M17 is a point-by-point rebuttal of G4KLX's statements.

With M17 support removed from MMDVM, amateur radio operators potentially lose access to the M17 digital voice mode via hotspots and repeaters.

The M17 Project is an open source digital voice and data protocol that is positioned as an alternative to digital modes that require use of proprietary encoders.

MMDVM is an open source project that enables amateur radio hotspots to support multiple digital voice modes including D-STAR, DMR, YSF, P25, NXDN, and POCSAG.

23cm Restrictions To Be Imposed In Europe

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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

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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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