Massachusetts STM Report for February 2023

A belated report for February 2023 has been posted at https://ema.arrl.org/massachusetts-stm-report-for-february-2023/.

Please note new appointment of Peter Doherty, KC1HHO, as Assistant Section Traffic Manager (ASTM) for Training. Peter has created a training program in message handling and I believe will be a great asset for the section. 

Also note training is beginning in handling of the ICS 213 form as adapted for transport via the National Traffic System. A special session will be conducted Tuesday, April 4 at 7:00 PM on the Boston 145.23 repeater. Note that this format has been in a testing phase before formal documentation is adopted. Traffic nets will be seeing more of this type of messaging in the weeks and months to follow. Come learn what it’s all about.

W9XT: “Antennas—The Third Dimension” at Billerica ARS Meeting Online, April 5, 2023

Billerica ARS logoGary Sutcliffe, W9XT, will give a presentation “Antennas – The Third Dimension” [at the Billerica Amateur Radio Society meeting on April 5, 2023 at 7 PM.]

Gary was licensed as WN9FRG in 1970. Other calls he has held: WB9FRG, WB9FRG/6W8, W0XT. He also has an FCC General Radiotelephone Operator License (Commercial). He has achieved number one on the DXCC Honor Roll, 5BDXCC, with over 100 countries confirmed on each band 160-10M (except 60M) His main radio interests include contesting, experimenting, designing, building equipment and antennas, so he is well versed in what makes a great antenna system for your QTH.

Topic: April 5 BARS meeting Gary Sutcliffe, W9XT, “Antennas – The Third Dimension”
Time: 7:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Every month on the First Wed
April 5, 2023, 07:00 PM

[For Zoom conference details, email Bruce Anderson, W1LUS, at w1lus -at- hotmail -dot- com.]

NWS Boston/Norton SKYWARN Training in New England

SKYWARN logoRob Macedo, KD1CY, writes on the SKYWARN_Announce list:

For the first time since the COVID19 pandemic started in March 2020, NWS Boston/Norton is now offering live/in-person classes for 2023. In addition, one virtual SKYWARN Class will be offered as well.

Additional SKYWARN Training classes are in planning. This includes the following locations:

New Bedford/Acushnet Mass area
Gardner MA
Walpole MA
Northeast HamXposition in Marlborough, Mass (Late August 2023)

The following is the current 2023 NWS Boston/Norton SKYWARN Training Class Schedule for the spring season. Please distribute widely to anyone interested in becoming a SKYWARN Spotter and we will update as additional classes are confirmed! We also noted that 1 class is full and waitlisted and we may consider additional classes near those areas later this year. Links to the schedule showing the full class list and the full class list appears below:

SKYWARN Training Schedule – 2023 – WX1BOX Link: https://wx1box.org/skywarn-training-schedule-2023/

SKYWARN Training Schedule – 2023 – NWS Boston/Norton Link: https://www.weather.gov/box/skywarn#fragment-2a

Full SKYWARN class list below:

Tuesday April 18th, 2023 – 630-830 PM:
Sandwich Police Department
255 Cotuit Road
Sandwich MA 02563
Taught by: NWS Forecaster
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-581484685347

Wednesday April 19th, 2023 – 630-830 PM:
Spencer Town Hall – Great Hall
157 Main Street
Spencer, MA 01562
Taught by: NWS Forecaster
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-581490302147

Thursday April 20th, 2023 – 600 PM-800 PM:
UMASS – Lowell Mark & Elisia Sabb
Emerging Technologies and Innovation Center
40 University Avenue
Lowell, MA 01854
Taught by: NWS Forecaster
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-581490673257

***This class is geared toward the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community***
Wednesday May 3rd, 2023 – 630-830 PM:
The Learning Center for the Deaf
848 Central Street
Framingham, MA 01701
Taught by: NWS Forecaster
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/deaf-and-hard-of-hearing-skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-581492599017

***This class is geared toward the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community***

Thursday May 4th, 2023 – 500-700 PM:
Providence Emergency Management Agency
591 Charles Street
Providence, RI 02904
Taught by: NWS Forecaster
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-581492087487

Saturday May 6th, 2023 – 930-1130 AM:
Whitman Police Department
20 Essex Street
Whitman, MA 02382
Taught by: Amateur Radio Coordinator
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-597779242807

**Class Full – Join Wait List**
Tuesday May 9th, 2023 – 600-800 PM:
Springfield Public Safety Complex
1212 Carew Street
Springfield, MA 01104
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-581494203817

**Class Full – Join Wait List**

Saturday May 13th, 2023 – 930-1130 AM:
Virtual SKYWARN Training Webinar via GoTo Webinar
Registration is required through the GoTo Webinar process at the
following link:
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/4366456872229693022

Tuesday May 16th, 2023 – 500-600 PM (Note: This class is limited to one
hour due to facility time constraints):
Oak Bluffs Public Library
56R School Street
Oak Bluffs, MA 02557
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-581495517747

Tuesday May 30th, 2023 – 600-800 PM:
Elmwood Community Center
1106 New Britain Avenue
West Hartford, CT 06110
Registration is required via Eventbrite at the following link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/west-hartford-skywarn-weather-spotter-training-tickets-597918258607

Again, we will provide updates when new SKYWARN training classes are added to the schedule. Also, if specific groups are interested in a live or virtual class, the Amateur Radio Coordinator team would be able to support those groups as needed. Thanks to all for their support of the NWS Boston/Norton SKYWARN program!

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
https://ares.ema.arrl.org
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Reminder: Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net – Monday April 3rd 2023 at 830 PM on the MMRA Repeater System

Hello to all…

The April Eastern Massachusetts ARES section net will be Monday April 3rd, 2023 at 830 PM on the MMRA Repeater system.

For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site detailing the repeaters that will be linked in through Hub 1:
https://mmra.org/repeaters/repeater_linking.html (Click the ARES box to see the repeaters and other systems linked)

We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net. We will have several announcements for the net Monday evening.

Thanks for your continued support of ARES!

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
https://ares.ema.arrl.org
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Reminder: April 3rd, 2023 MEMA RACES/ACS Communications Test Net

Hello to all,

      This email is a reminder that tomorrow evening, April 3rd, 2023 is the first non-holiday Monday of the month and, as such, is our RACES/ACS/Preparedness Net night. We will be holding our sector nets on the normally assigned frequencies.

      As always, I am looking for Net Control stations to staff our sector nets for the evening. I will be able to provide net control operations for the Sector 2A net. I am looking for NCS operators to lead the Sector 2B (Plymouth County) net. Sector 2D has already arranged for an NCS operator for this month’s net and Sector 2C is a Winlink only net on a monthly basis.

          The 6-meter net has generally been a very informal net. We have received an update that repairs have been implemented on the repeater. Please report any comms testing on the repeater so that those repairs can be verified.

              For any operators interested in performing the duties of Net Control Station (NCS), there are materials available to make the task fairly simple and straight forward. The net pre-amble and role call lists are available at http://wc1mab.org/RACES_R2_Interim_Preamble.pdf and http://wc1mab.org/Month.php with the role call lists on the left column near the bottom. If anyone is worried that they mess up running a net, please remember that, in many cases, a less than perfect net is WAY better than no net at all! At the conclusion of any net, any operator that acted as Net Control Operator should send a note to WC1MAB@gmail.com letting me know who ran the net and who checked in so that the proper numbers can be reported to our served agencies. We can not always count on our normal net control operators to be available in the event of a large scale emergency, so every RACES operator should be prepared to act as NCO if needed when disaster and emergency strikes!

Winlink Net Instructions From Don Rolph: 

*Winlink Net*

To participate:

– create a check-in form using the Winlink standard checkin form

– send via Winlink after 6 AM EST Mon. Apr 3rd  and before midnight EST April 4th (any mode, but include mode in check-in form) to KF1D

   I continue to ask that any operators who have the time, please try to check into sector nets from near-by sections. This will allow our Net Control Operators to practice fielding nets with a strong check-in count and will also serve to help practice with relays or modified sector assignments in the event that a single repeater is out of service. 

   For those operators who serve as Net Control Operators, please try to remember to send me a list of the stations and communities that check into your nets. The numbers are reported to MEMA to show them our level of participation. I am continuing to work on a graphical map based report to show which parts of our section have strong coverage and which areas may need a more targeted recruitment campaign to improve our ability to provide back-up communications in an emergency.

The Region #2 and State Net Schedule for this evening is as follows:

Net Frequency/Offset Time
Sector 2A 147.00 /+0.60  PL 19:30 Local
Sector 2B 145.39/-0.60  PL 67.0 20:00 Local
Sector 2C Winlink Net Check-In 6AM-Midnight Local Time
Sector 2D 146.865/-0.60  PL 103.5 19:30 Local
6-Meter State Net 53.31 / -1.0  PL 71.9  

 

Note: 53.31 has been reported as being repaired and back online. Please report tests on this repeater so that we can verify the repairs/improvements made to the repeater.

19:00 Local
MA RACES HF Net 3930 KHz LSB moving up to 3955 KHz until there is a clear frequency 18:45 Local
MA MEMA NBEMS Net Frequency:  3584.5 MHx, Center Frequency: 1500 Hz, Initial mode: THOR22 19:00 Local

    I appreciate you all answering the call to help our communities remain prepared. Thank you all for helping us keep things on track and prove that we remain a consistent source of communication capability to the Commonwealth. This net provides a monthly reminder to our communities and served agencies that we stand ready with a quiet professionalism prepared to serve as a voice to whomever needs one to get help and resources to where they need to be.

 If you know someone who would benefit from being on this list, please have them contact me at   WC1MAB@gmail.com and I will add them to this distribution. Thank you all!

      If anyone has any questions or comments I can be reached by e-mail or cell phone. Thanks for being a part of our team and I look forward to hearing back on who can participate this month.

Sincerely,

Michael Leger (N1YLQ)

MEMA Region #2 RACES Officer

C: 386-566-7666

Massachusetts RACES Nets – Monday 4/3/23 for HF, Region 2D VHF, NBEMS & Winlink – Times and Details Below

Don Rolph-AB1PH, Walpole area ARES Emergency Coordinator writes:

The MEMA RACES nets are held on the first Monday of the month, unless the first Monday is a holiday, when it is delayed one week,
For April 2023, the RACES nets will be held on Mon April 3.
The RACES nets will be held on Mon April 3 at:

********************************************************************************

The HF net will start at 6:45 PM ET: using the following frequency plan:
We will start at 3930 KHz moving up to 3955 KHz until there is a clear frequency,
Marc Stern WA1R will be net control.

*********************************************************************************

Region 2D VHF net:
7:30 PM ET VHF net on 146.865 MHz PL 103.5 (Sharon Repeater)
We will have a general call up of any RACES, ARES, or other interested stations. If there is time, we will have a simplex test.
Jim Repetti WJ1R will be net control.

********************************************************************************

HF NBEMS net:
7:00 PM ET
Dial Frequency: 3584.5 MHx
Center Frequency: 1500 Hz
Initial mode: THOR22
We will have checkins, followed by an ICS-213 format message using FLMSG.
Don Rolph AB1PH will be net control.

*********************************************************************************

Winlink Net:
Between 0600 ET on Mon April 3 and 2400 ET on April 3, please send a Winlink checkin form to Bryan Marcotte KF1D

We look forward to you checking in!

73,
AB1PH
Don Rolph
_._,_._,_