Operating

John Barbuto, KS1Q, writes:

Net Control for the January 4, 2020 Eastern MA Hospital Net will be W1SSH, the South Shore Hospital Amateur Radio Group.

The net will commence at the usual time of 10:00 AM using the following repeaters / frequencies in the order listed:

1. Plymouth 146.685 tone 131.8
2. W. Bridgewater 146.775 dcs 244 
3. Boston 145.230 tone encode 88.5 tone decode 100.0
4. Simplex 147.42 Mhz

The Net will then return to the Plymouth Repeater for final comments and Net closing. 

NET Protocol: Please wait for Net Control to ask for Check-ins. When asked to check in please use the standard net check-in procedure which is:  Here is.., un-key, wait 3 seconds to check for doubling, then give your or your facilities call sign, your first name, and your facility’s name.

We extend an invitation to any health care facility or EOC of any city or town that is served by one of the participating hospitals to join the Net. We also extend an invitation to any RACES or ARES member to check in during the NET.

We are always looking for groups or organizations to try their hand at Net Control duties. If you are interested in joining the group please let us know. We can be reached by sending an email to ssharg@outlook.com. The goal is to rotate Net Control practice and the experience among as many individuals and groups as possible.

We thank the repeater trustees for their generosity in allowing us to conduct the monthly nets and the use of their systems in an actual event. The following list of repeaters is available for our use. Only a few systems are used each month with the selection of those used made by Net Control for that month.  More systems are being added to the list on a regular basis.

Repeaters

Attleboro 147.195 tone 127.3 (Sturdy Memorial Hospital)
Belmont 145.430 tone 146.2
Boston 145.230 tone encode 88.5 tone decode 100.0
Bridgewater 147.180 tone 67.0
Danvers 145.47 tone 136.5
Dartmouth 147.000 tone 67.0  
Fall River 146.805. tone 67.0
Falmouth 147.375 tone 110.9  
Mansfield EMA 446.925 tone 100.0
Mansfield 147.015 tone 67.0
Marshfield 145.390 tone 67.0      
Norwood 147.210 tone 100.00
Plymouth 146.685 tone 131.8
Salem 146.88 tone 118.8        
Sharon 146.865 tone 103.5    
Weymouth 147.345 tone 110.9 (South Shore Hospital)
W. Bridgewater 146.775 dcs 244 
Wrentham 147.09 tone 146.2 

We look forward to hearing from you all on the Net.

Respectfully,

 John Barbuto – KS1Q

Good Morning Everyone,

We hope you all had a pleasant Thanksgiving, are ready for the winter weather and holiday shopping.

Net Control for the December 7th Net will be the South Shore Health Amateur Radio Group. The Net will commence at 10am utilizing the following repeaters in the order listed followed by the simplex frequency test on 147.42. After the simplex test we will return to the Plymouth Repeater for comments, announcements, and Net closing.

Plymouth 146.685 tone 131.8
Marshfield 145.390 tone 67.0
Boston 145.230 tone encode 88.5 tone decode 100.0
W. Bridgewater 146.775 dcs 244
Simplex 147.42 no tone

Regards,

John O’
K1JRO

South Shore Health Amateur Radio Group – W1SSH
55 Fogg Road, Box 42
South Weymouth, MA 02190

On Saturday November 9th, the Cape and Islands ARES district held its Exercise #65 Operation “Black Autumn”. This was an emergency communications exercise based on a scenario of a cascading power blackout encompassing all of the northeast and mid-Atlantic states. The exercise would be for EOCs and home stations using VHF/UHF, HF, and digital modes.

The exercise ran from 10am-noon. In the Cape and Islands district, the following EOCs were active. The County Multi Agency Coordination Center (MACC), Falmouth EOC, Harwich EOC, Dukes County EOC (Martha’s Vineyard), Joint Base Cape Cod EOC, Falmouth Hospital EOC. This included several home stations on Cape and Nantucket, including several that were on HF using 75m, 60m, and 40m. The VHF/UHF part of the operation was conducted on simplex with no repeaters being used. Digital NBEMS was successfully conducted on VHF in the Cape area along with the new PAC ARES digital system.

Many EOCs off Cape in MA also participated on HF, VHF or both. These included the Marlboro and Stow EOC and several home stations. South Shore Hospital, as well as, The National Weather Service station were also on the air. Statewide HF net control was conducted by several amateur operators using 75m and an experimental attempt at 60M.

Results were acceptable overall. HF propagation was reasonable on 75m, but a bit sporadic at times, with capabilities that extended well into the morning as we often see at times of solar minimum. The 60m experiment seemed to work effectively and will be attempted again in future operations. VHF simplex worked out well in most areas and emphasized the importance of being able to communicate without the help of repeaters.

Participation was excellent including the off Cape areas. Our thanks to all the stations that participated. They are too numerous to list everyone, but just a few of the participating stations include:

Ted Robinson K1QAR HF operations
Marc Stern WA1R HF operations
Bob Glorioso W1IS Stowe area
John O’Neil K1JRO South Shore Hospital
Charlie Bresnahan K1CB Falmouth Hospital
SEC Rob Macedo and W1SHS-Stu Solomon WX1BOX NWS station
N1EM Marlboro Eric Williams KV1J
Barry Hutchinson KB1TLR and Don Arthur K1DCA Cape area HF
Mike Wodynski, K2LEK Nantucket HF
Chuck Cotnoir KB1IHU Dukes County EMA Martha’s Vineyard
Frank O’Laughlin WQ1O Barnstable County Multi Agency Coordination Center (MACC)

Our thanks to everyone for taking time out of their busy schedules to help in the exercise.
The Cape and Islands ARES district will be having its Winter ARES filed exercise in late January or early February.

Respectfully submitted,

Frank O’Laughlin WQ1O
Cape Cod and Islands ARES DEC