Wellington VHF Group, Inc: Online.

Emergency management & local Amateurs

The past two branch meetings have focessed on the role that Amateurs may take in times of emergency. We have hosted two presentations to the VHF Group by Mike Mendonca of Wellington City Council, who is Director of City Operations including Wellington Emergency Management Office (WEMO), and Trevor Farmer of Porirua City Council, who is Manager of Porirua Emergency Management Office (PEMO).

Both have expressed a will to work with Amatuers in preparing for emergencies. As a means of starting this process we have arranged a special meeting in early September, to get the ball rolling. See the notice in th August issue of Q-Bit.

Public service is one of the main reasons we enjoy the spectrum and other privileges that we do as Amateurs. Participating in emergency response is another sure way of giving something back to the community, based on our special skills and knowledge.

As I have noted elsewhere, this is different, and separate, from other services provided by Amateur Radio to the community. For instance it is different from Amateur involvement in Search and Rescue, where Amateurs support the professional services of NZ Police and & Search and Rescue organisations via AREC. It is also different from public-event services provided by Amateurs, such as marshalling and communications roles during sporting and community events, for example the “Bike the Trail” event.

Future events

In September the VHF Group will run the Doug Gorman Memorial Frequency Measuring Contest. This is the premier NZART contest in this area of amateur speciality. This year will see a new approach, so please give this contest your support.

At their meeting this month your committee reviewed the early planning for the joint running of the EXPO 2011 and VHF Convention, both of which we will be run in Wellington next year. The venue is almost settled, and work will commence shortly on the programme. It is exciting to see how these two iconic events can be meshed together. If any of you have any ideas, or would like to contribute to either the planning,or to the programme, please contact Rob ZL2WAL our Secretary.
I would be particularly interested to hear any suggestions you may have for a keynote speaker.

Special Interest Group

This month the focus was on the Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS). John ZL2HD gave a very interesting presentation to around 15 members, and fielded many incisive questions during subsequent discussion. The interest level was high, and I don't think that it's stealing anyone's thunder to announce that a kitset project is being looked at. (Watch this space).
If any of you have a topic you would like for a special interest group meeting, I'd be pleased if you would give me a call, or email. I'm sure we can find an expert on pretty much any topic from amongst our members.

Another hurdle for Amateur Television

As a consequence of the Goverment's planned closure of analogue-modulated TV in March 2015, our ATV station must be re-engineered in the interim to higher standards, if it is to keep operating till the closure date. This new spectrum licence is more rigorous and is not a trivial matter, involving three times more work than the previous licence. There's new fees involved too.
Your committee has negotiated an agreeable fee with a local ARE, and we will be applying for our spectrum licence in September. However it is regrettable to note that the cost of doing ATV is increasing.

73
Dick ZL2TGQ, President