The future for amateur radio in VK

[VK2ZRH]

Amateur radio in Australia will be both familiar and different in the future, under the new radiocommunications licensing scheme being initiated with the new Radiocommunications Act to be considered by the federal parliament later this year.

On Tuesday 12th April, the WIA met with four senior executives of the ACMA to scope the work to be done to design new licence conditions for amateur radio, and to discuss a variety of issues being progressed over the past year.
Read all about it: http://www.wia.org.au/newsevents/news/2 ... /index.php

[VK3ZAZ]

The mind boggles
Watch this space.

[VK4WDM]

Hi Roger

I am amazed that there has only been one reply to your post. I think that all hams in VK plus any want-to-be hams should be standing on their shack desks chapping, cheering and whistling!

If these changes are implemented, and I cannot see why they won't be, amateur radio has a very bright and exciting future indeed! I am really looking forward to my next 55 years on the bands

Congratulations to the WIA and the ACMA and all others involved

Having said that, we all need to be patient because all these things will not happen at once given the changes to the RADCOM act, re-organization of the ACMA and the need for some other spectrum users and stakeholders to make adjustments, but there is no reason why some urgent changes like access to digital modes in the foundation license and access to the whole 6m band in the standard license could not be done as a special determination under the existing act.

73

Wayne VK4WDM (Had to take a double dose of tachycardia medication after reading Roger's post ).

[VK4GJW]

I am sure the ACMA will review the submission and meeting minutes and give it their utmost attention. I mean they will give it the most serious and urgent consideration, and insist on a thorough and rigorous examination of all the proposals, allied to a detailed feasibility study and budget analysis before producing a consultative document for consideration by all interested bodies and seeking comments and recommendations to be included in a brief for a series of working parties who will produce individual studies which will provide the background for a more wide-ranging document considering whether or not the proposal should be taken forward to the next stage.

[VK3OE]

Hello Roger,

Congratulations.

Having closely followed the LCD evolution over many years and also having read the WIA submission (URL above) I must take this opportunity to congratulate the WIA board for developing such a comprehensive document.

It sets out a clear direction for the future of amateur radio and addresses all the issues. It will also make the job of the ACMA much easier due to the clarity of the arguments.

The quality of the arguments put forward shows that the WIA really has the interests of all amateur radio operators at heart, this is not a "members only document".

73

[VK4APN]

I am sure the ACMA will review the submission and meeting minutes and give it their utmost attention. I mean they will give it the most serious and urgent consideration, and insist on a thorough and rigorous examination of all the proposals, allied to a detailed feasibility study and budget analysis before producing a consultative document for consideration by all interested bodies and seeking comments and recommendations to be included in a brief for a series of working parties who will produce individual studies which will provide the background for a more wide-ranging document considering whether or not the proposal should be taken forward to the next stage.

Yes indeed Minister!

But you have overlooked the Green Paper, White Paper, Senate committee processes.

[VK3HY]

Hi Ho Roger

Congratulations to all involved. Andrew VK3OE's posting says it all. WIA members (and bloody non members) are indeed fortunate to have representation of such a high calibre.

73 Gavin, VK3HY

[VK5ZLR]

Hi Roger

I am amazed that there has only been one reply to your post.

I was holding my tounge (typing finger..).


Essentially the WIA submission is good, and it well covers the technical issuees in the Regs which are dysfunctional in 2016.

It does not cover the excessive cost to a new amateur in gaining a licence. It does not cover the timeliness of processing new lincenses. If it's too expensive for new amateurs there won't be any, and all the rest becomes irrelevent.

[VK4GHZ]

...If it's too expensive for new amateurs there won't be any, and all the rest becomes irrelevent.

Agreed.
There's also needs to be a REASON for people from similarly aligned tech hobbies to enter into amateur radio, otherwise AR will continue down the road to oblivion.

I am passionate about specifically enticing the R/C community in amateur radio.
They couldn't a flying f--k (pun intended!) about digital modes, 10W vs something else, or some new HF bands to discuss tomato plants and hip operations on.
If the new framework can offer them something, then great, expect a genuine influx into the Foundation ranks.

Want to know more?

[VK4WDM]

"Want to know more?"

Yes. The submission is not set in concrete yet. Plenty of time for you to put some ideas in Adam.

Wayne VK4WDM

[VK4SMJ]

I just spent the last hour or so reading the entire WIA PDF file, on their proposal they are going to submit(or have just submitted) to the ACMA.

I have to say, I'm rather impressed. They seem to have covered just about all the issues.

I knew the foundation license lagged somewhat behind other country permissions, but I didn't know that the Standard and even the Advanced licenses in Australia lagged behind the rest of the world.

The power limit I think is fair, the inclusion of digital modes for foundation is long overdue.

I'm just looking at the 'band access" for the UK foundation license, which apparently the AU foundation was based on, and they have a very generous frequency allocation indeed, as compared to AU. It seems to me the incentive for UK license upgrades are power increase alone with a small increase in frequency allocation.

The Standard license AU allocation is downright stingy compared to the rest of the world. In fact overall, after seeing the differences in all our classes of licenses in the WIA document, and to the rest of the world, the whole Amateur radio deal AU as offered, is very mediocre. Even the full calls in AU get a fraction of the power most of the planet is allowed.

I can't but see the ACMA agreeing with part or all of the proposed changes as put forward by the WIA. after all, it will only go part way in leveling the playing field with the rest of the amateur world.

[VK3IH]

The 1KW high power SSB trial completion included, if my memory serves me, a line from the ACMA saying that not many applied for the trial so it can't be of much interest........

This was wrong, the trial was promoted as just that, a trial for a few to try, it cost more $ and the implication was that if it was accepted it would transfer to all Advanced Licence holders so I believe many (like me ) were holding off.

Digital modes and CW should be increased closer the PEP limit, I think the US & Canada for instance have PEP and CW/RTTY limits as closer equivalent outputs, ie 1000W PEP input on SSB and 750W Carrier on CW in Canada. I imagine someone might like to comment on the EMR differences?

[VK4WDM]

Digital modes and CW should be increased closer the PEP limit

I agree that there is a cases for increasing the power limit for CW and SSB provided that power is used only when required to complete a particular contact or under contest conditions where high power might be an advantage but, I cannot see why high power is required on digital modes which are specially designed so that low power can be used thus allowing more spectrum to be shared and lowering the amount of EMR.

73

Wayne VK4WDM

[VK3IH]

Yes Wayne I agree only use the power you need should underlie this as it does in the US with their 1500W PEP limit.

However I bet there are times when more power on CW or RTTY than 120W would have allowed a contact to be made.

PS I don't see why contests are special? I would think a contact needed or desired is important to the operator regardless of whether in a contest or working DX or contacting a friend under difficult band conditions.

[VK4WDM]

I am not a contest operator but I have seen the view expressed that VK contestants are seriously disadvantaged in the major international contests because others are allowed more power. I am sure that somebody with experience will comment.

73

Wayne VK4WDM

[VK3DXE]

Digital modes and CW should be increased closer the PEP limit

I agree that there is a cases for increasing the power limit for CW and SSB provided that power is used only when required to complete a particular contact or under contest conditions where high power might be an advantage but, I cannot see why high power is required on digital modes which are specially designed so that low power can be used thus allowing more spectrum to be shared and lowering the amount of EMR.

73

Wayne VK4WDM

There's that HF-centric mentality again Wayne, and THAT is where we need to change the hobby and the perception of it. You start talking about HF to non Hams and the eyes glaze over - it's just glorified CB to them. Start talking about the things we can do with satellites and other space communications (especially mentioning the ISS), EME, meteors, aircraft enhancement, etc., and the eyes start to unglaze.... There's LOTS more we could be doing on VHF+ with higher power limits for CW and digital.

[VK3ZAZ]

This High Power boat people are rowing is flawed,.
Sadly under FOI you wont get the results of the ACMA survey that saw them cashier the original high power test.
Every site I work on even lowly ten watt translators have to have a sight and sign Site Radiation Folder (SRF) telling any visitor what antenna what power and what safe levels there are.
Safe public levels as the saying goes have never been tested in a court and hope it never will or you will find some bleating here for legal assistance.

[VK3IH]

From the WIA:

Belgium 1000 watts
Canada 2250 watts PEP or 750 watts carrier
France 750 watts PEP all modes on HF 120 watts PEP all modes on 2 meters
Germany 750 watts PEP all modes
Holland 400 watts PEP all modes
Japan 1000 watts HF, 50 watts 2 meters
Oman 150 watts
New Zealand 500 watts PEP all modes (now 1000w ?) AT THE ANTENNA
South Africa 400 watts PEP all modes
Spain HF 800 watts PEP , 200 watts carrier 2 meters, 200 watts PEP, 50 watts carrier
UK 400 watts PEP all modes AT THE ANTENNA
USA 1500 watts PEP all modes
Former Yugoslavian Countries 2000 watts

Interesting I would have thought some of the higher power countries have much higher population density Japan/Belgium/Germany and that countries with very similar densities USA/Canada/NZ also have higher power?

This is not by band wagon, I enjoy QRP as well as QRO but we appear to be down the list with the UK (400wPEP AT THE ANTENNA), Netherlands, & SA?

End of my thread highjack...............

[VK4WDM]

Hi Alan

Yes, I agree with all you said. We have a lot of visitors to the ham radio shack at the Townville RAAF Museum and we have posters on the wall about what modern hams do and it certainly gets attention and the generation of questions. Interestingly, the other thing that gets their attention is good old CW especially when they can see it printed out on a screen.

Hi Steve

We don't want to hijack this very good thread by yet another debate on EMR and power limits, but I thing we need to remember that this is hobby radio. Yes there needs to be an understanding about EMR safety and sensible guidelines in place (which we have already), but if we are going to force commercial and professional standards for hams and ham stations then it ceases to be a hobby. It is also important to recognize, as Roger points out, that most countries have had higher power limits in place for years. I have never heard of a court case being brought against a ham because of the EMR they generate.

73

Wayne VK4WDM

[VK6ZFG]

Just for information sake the LCD power conditions are:


16 Transmitter output power
(1) Subject to sections 15 and 15C, the licensee must not operate an amateur advanced station, using a transmitter output power of more than 400 watts pX, if the emission mode of the station includes:
(a) C3F; or
(b) J3E; or
(c) R3E.
(2) Subject to sections 15 and 15C, the licensee must not operate an amateur advanced station, with an emission mode not mentioned in subsection (1), using a transmitter output power of more than 120 watts pY.

(sections 15 and 15C impose lower power levels on some bands).


This means that CW, digital, FM are not permitted at the 400W level.

A quick check of EMR levels shows these power levels produce roughly similar EMR levels at a given distance when the mode duty cycles are taken into consideration.