Subj : Newsline Part 1 To : ALL From : Daryl Stout Date : Thu May 19 2016 11:11 pm Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2012, May 20, 2016 Amateur Radio Newsline report number 2012, with a release date of Friday, May 20, 2016 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. One of SATERN's founders becomes a Silent Key. A veteran ham's Dayton Dreams. National Parks on the Air from down under ... the bridge! And a sad goodbye to a tireless promoter of amateur radio. All this and more, in Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2012, coming your way right now. (Billboard Cart Here and Intro) ** SATERN COFOUNDER BECOMES SILENT KEY JIM/ANCHOR: We open this week's report with news that hams throughout the Salvation Army's international emergency response network known as SATERN, are grieving the loss of one of SATERN's founding fathers, Maj. Patrick E. McPherson, WW9E. Here's Paul Braun, WD9GCO. PAUL: Maj. Patrick E. McPherson, WW9E, who cofounded the disaster response and relief arm of the Salvation Army, has become a Silent Key. SATERN, or the Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network, began in 1988 as a project McPherson undertook with three other radio amateurs. It has long since grown to be an international emergency communication and assistance organization, and an official program of the Salvation Army. In fact, barely two months after its creation, SATERN already secured a prominent place on the disaster-assistance map by facilitating communications between Jamaica and the United States during 1988's Hurricane Gilbert. McPherson had been SATERN's director for more than 23 years, leaving the post only 5 years ago. He died on May 14 in St. Joseph, Michigan. His legacy continues, however: The SATERN Net meets weekdays on 14.265 MHz at 1500 UTC. McPherson is also slated for a posthumous honor: He will be given the Salvation Army Certificate in Recognition of Exceptional Service - a national-level award he was scheduled to have been presented with later this year. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO. JIM/ANCHOR: SATERN has grown to have a global presence in North America, Asia, the Caribbean and elsewhere. McPherson's reach has not only touched the world, but influenced his own family. We should note that his wife, Carmella, is also a ham, with the call sign KB9YSQ, as is his brother Larry, call sign KA0QEO. Maj. Patrick E. McPherson was 70 years old. (SATERN, ARRL) ** NPOTA: A BRIDGE TO GOOD CONTACTS JIM/ANCHOR: Our next story follows up on a recent special event station operating as part of the year-long National Parks on the Air celebration. This one was set up in West Virginia, and I'm happy to say I was a part of it. But I did take time out to file this report for Amateur Radio Newsline. JIM'S REPORT: The National Parks on the Air Special Event Station under the New River Gorge Bridge in Fayetteville, West Virginia on Saturday, May 15, was a great success. Ten hams were part of this unique event, using the West Virginia DX Association call W8AH. I was privileged to be one of the operators, and took time out to talk to event organizer Randy Damron, N8XEA. RANDY: (N8XEA Sound Bite) "Well, today we're known as amateur radio trolls, because we are indeed under the bridge! It has been a great day for us. It all started with an idea back in December. I happened to catch the ARRL website about promoting the partnership with the National Park Service 100th anniversary, and they were encouraging amateur radio operators to pick their favorite national park. In West Virginia, we have two - one up in the panhandle and, of course, the New River Gorge National River". And over the New River Gorge National River is the New River Gorge Bridge that is 3036 feet long, and the middle of the arch is 876 feet off the river. It's a very unique structure. We're very proud of it here in the state. It's also featured on our state quarter. It seemed to make sense not just to be under the bridge for our station - but the unique thing about our station today is that we're suspending two end-fed antennas under the catwalk of the bridge. That makes us pretty unique. We're running 20 meters, 40 meters - we're also running VHF on two meters, and we've had some six meter contacts as well. JIM: Randy says over 300 contacts were made during the six-hour event -- a successful day, in spite of the wind, rain and cold! For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jim Damron, N8TMW, reporting. (WEST VIRGINIA DX ASSOCIATION) ** 40M CONTEST BEATEN BY THE BAND JIM/ANCHOR: Meanwhile, hams in the UK had high expectations for the recent 40 meter Counties Contest. But the forces of nature had other plans. We hear from Amateur Radio Newsline's Jeremy Boot, G4NJH. JEREMY: Amateurs in Ireland had been hopeful for good scores in the 40 meter Counties Contest held on 8 May by the Irish Radio Transmitters Society. But a geomagnetic storm that hit earlier that morning changed everything. During the three-hour period of contesting, hams struggled, especially the ones operating EI and GI stations. And the valuable contest multipliers suffered as they worked for contacts with one another. There were better results with signals from overseas stations however - and those contacts did improve toward the final hour. But organizers report that, in the week following the contest, submission of contact logs was sparse. The IRTS urges all hams who participated to submit their logs by the deadline of Sunday 22 May. Yes, even logs with limited results. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, in Nottingham, the UK. (IRISH RADIO TRANSMITTERS SOCIETY) --- þ Synchronet þ The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, AR - wx1der.dyndns.org .