South Orkney Islands DX-pedition VP8PJ (AN-008) Press Release #10

Permits: Landing and camping at South Orkney requires permission from several government agencies. This multi step process takes months to complete. We recently received our final approval, the “Antarctic Conservation Act Permit” from the National Science Foundation. Other agencies in the process were: the US Department of State and the Environmental Protection Agency. We appreciate the cooperation and assistance we received from these agencies to complete and submit the detailed applications and other required documentation.

New Corporate Sponsor: Joining the list of corporate sponsors is The DX Store, a supplier of quality products for the amateur radio market.

Equipment Status: After 8 weeks our sea container arrived in Punta Arenas, Chile on January 13, 2020. Read More

5Z4/G3AB QSL Preview

The QSL for 5Z4/G3AB Andy in Kenya has been designed and will be sent to the print room.

H40TT QSL Design

The H40TT operation by Grant KZ1W & Rob N7QT from Pigeon Island, (part of the Reef Islands Group in Temotu Province) QSL has been designed by Max ON5UR. The QSL has now been sent to the print room. We are printing 1,000 double QSL design for Direct QSL’s and there will be a single QSL for Bureau.
To make sure you get your double QSL go to OQRS to request your QSL.
Direct QSL posting expected end of January.

 

 

QSL Refresher Blog

As there are new DXer’s out there all the time i thought it best to do a QSL’ing refresher blog, as some new QSL’ers are unsure how to request the QSL
Your first place of call should always be the OQRS, (Online QSL Request System) check that your QSO is correct in the log.

If the QSO is not in log, or you think it is a busted call then on the search page you will need to click the “Not in Log” button and fill in the form.

You can find in my “How To QSL” drop down menu a list of “Help Instructions” about “OQRS Hints & Tips”. If you get stuck just read the Instructions. You can also try the “Search” bar at the top of the page to find specific information on this site.

To request a QSL on OQRS is very simple just follow the instructions on each page. You must enter the correct QSO data in the correct QSO fields. We do not use your PayPal address, instead we use the address on the OQRS form we ask you to fill in. If you don’t correctly enter your FULL address then the QSL will not be delivered. I strongly advise USA full 9 digit Zip codes to be used.

Read More

5Z4/G3AB QSL Via M0URX

5Z4/G3AB Andy is QRV from Kenya. Andy’s log has been uploaded to OQRS and is now live. Andy is currently waiting for a 5Z4 callsign to be allocated so until the new callsign arrives will be QRV as 5Z4/G3AB. The log will be uploaded weekly to OQRS. LoTW certificate will be requested soon so please do not email us for questions on LoTW. It wil be uploaded to LoTW as soon as possible.
QSL cards will be designed very soon.
Busted / Missing Call enquiries must only be sent using the “Not in Log?” Button on OQRS.
Please do not send emails for enquiries about logs or LoTW. Thank you
Further information and updates will be published here and sent to DX Bulletins.
Bureau cards Must only be requested using OQRS. Please do not send us Bureau cards.
5Z4/G3AB QSL Via M0URX OQRS Preferred. 

TX7T QSL Design

The TX7T Marquesas Island, Hiva Oa Island, QSL card has now been designed by Max ON5UR.  Four Sided Double QSL cards for the first 2,000 Direct requests and a Single QSL card for Bureau requests. Direct QSL posting expected end of January.
TX7T QSL

MC0SHL Weekend Statistics

Despite conditions being very challenging during the weekend activity at MC0SHL both Chris and I were very pleased with the effort that we made on air.

805 QSOs logged in total with the following statistics

FT8 was good to USA with 31 USA states worked.
61 DXCC worked over the weekend as MC0SHL. 55 DXCC on 40m & 39 on 20m
38 DXCC on SSB with 27 each on 40m & 20m, and 1 QSO with HB9 on 10m.
50 DXCC on FT8  – 40 DXCC on 40m and 32 on 20m.
For those of you that were monitoring our live OQRS you were able to see straight away that the call was logged. I am pleased to say that this works flawlessly and is available to all stations that I manage if they request it.
Equipment used: Kenwood TS590 transceiver, Acom 1000 at 400W, Hexbeam at 10m and a Carolina Windom for 40m.

South Orkney Islands DXpedition VP8PJ

Press Release #9 Jan 2, 2020
South Orkney Islands DXpedition VP8PJ
We are pleased to announce the call sign for the Perseverance DX Group’s expedition South Orkney 2020 will be changed to VP8PJ. In past years it was relatively easy to get a preferred VP8 call sign for the British Antarctic Territory. After a licensing administrative change, we were unable to obtain a VP8 call sign for operation from South Orkney and were advised to use /VP8. 
Alan, VK6CQ, a recent addition to the team, holds the call sign VP8PJ that was issued to him for operation from the British Antarctic Territory. After submission of a copy of Alan’s license, ARRL has issued us a new LoTW certificate for the use of this call from South Orkney for the duration of our expedition.
73, Team VP8PJ
Please direct your questions to: [email protected]

MC0SHL Club Station Wales

Chris G1VDP, and myself Tim M0URX, will be operating from “The Farm” also known as our Club House at Strumblehead Amateur Radio Klub on the Pembrokeshire coast of Wales as MC0SHL from Friday 3rd January to Sunday 5th January 2020.
N 51°59’413” W 5°04’537” IARU Grid Locator: IO71LX 265 ft ASL  Worked All Britain WAB: SM83 – WFF: GFF-015

We will be testing out the Band Activity and Real Time Log search as you see below. Please join us for the testing, you can read more about this facility on our “OQRS Hints & Tips” page on the top menu.
In the DX Station Box enter MC0SHL, this should then bring the screen up as in the image. When the operators are active this will show you the frequency (move mouse over green dot on mode) and will also show any split frequency. 

You will also be able to check your QSO is valid and has been logged by entering your call and it will show the band and mode that you have worked them. OQRS will be open to request the QSL card. Band Activity and Real Time Log Search is available to roll it out to any DXpeditions and call signs that we manage.

Logging QSOs Time on – Time off

One of the most common time miss-match issues, is caused by “Log On” time when the DX’er starts calling the DX, then “Log Off” when the QSO is made. Always make sure that you LOG the UTC Time at the time you work the DX, not the time you started calling. This is the most common cause of OQRS and LoTW time miss-match. It is very important to understand when you are requesting QSL’s or uploading to LoTW that there is a built in time tolerance.