Topband: TX9 Story

[Bill Tippett <btippett@alum.mit.edu>]

        The following is courtesy of Dany F5CW, with rough
translation by Babelfish.com and FreeTranslation.com:

http://www.info.lnc.nc/caledonie/20041027.LNC1443.html?0252

An expedition of German radio hams in Chesterfield

Eight German radio hams were the origin and object of an international 
pursuit on the airwaves after two camps were installed in Chesterfield, 
where they remained a little more than one week. Their goal: to collect the 
greatest number of contacts in the world from this isolated place.

Coming by plane from Hamburg, Cologne, Nuremberg, Lubeck and Chemnitz, with 
their equipment, they departed Nouméa, October 11, aboard Bayou catamaran 
skippered by PP Avron: destination the three islands in Chesterfield, 
North-West of New Caledonia and two thirds of the way toward Australia. 
Arriving after three days,, they installed two camps on each end of Long 
Island.  "Between the two points, there was only birds and nests 
everywhere", explains Heye Harms, DJ9RR. "They did not disturb us. What 
bothered us were the hermit crabs. They come in great numbers in the 
evenings to seek their food ".  What Heye forgets to say and which the 
Caledonian guide Jean-Pierre Revercé, tells while bursting out laughing, it 
is that a part of the team had fun when a large tortoise, in the middle of 
the night, decided to lay under their tent. Without going into details, the 
animal traced its furrow on the canvas. A photograph testifies.

The technical means

During their stay, the radio amateurs or OM, according to their jargon, 
totaled close to 23,000 contacts with about 15,000 different other hams 
distributed in the whole world.  The difference comes from the fact that of 
the communications sometimes were established with the same person but at 
different times.  For the specialists, the two camps emitted different 
modes, one in voice (Single Side Band), and the other in Morse Code 
(CW).  The output power varied between 100 and 1000 watts.  An RTTY station 
also worked on the bands of 15, 20 and 30 meters.  Three generators 
furnished power.  "Our objective was to make the greatest number of 
contacts in the entire world, especially with Europe, which is most distant 
from the New Caledonia area", specifies Heye.  "We had mediocre propagation 
conditions, except during a few favorable hours.  Generally, it was best 
between sunset and sunrise.  There were also some contacts during the night 
when it was dawning in Europe.  The communications easiest to establish 
were with Japan throughout all stay.  There were some with the African 
countries, which are rare generally enough for us, and with some countries 
of the Pacific."

A rare callsign

The practice of ham radio is very regulated in the world, more or less 
according to each country, this activity being even prohibited in some. The 
team had to obtain an authorization from high commission, after which the 
authorities allotted a special code to them, TX9, valid from 8 to October 
30. Fifteen thousand QSL cards carrying this code will be sent in the world 
by the post office to confirm that the contacts took place. It is a 
tradition. The callsign TX9, unique for the period given and its 
geographical location, will become like a rare stamp for those holding the 
invaluable card. All the more rare because, like a printing error on a 
stamp, the code given by the high commission did not mention a suffix such 
as for example TX9C. That was worth many questions about the signals from 
the Chesterfield team.
Upon return to Nouméa, after four days of engine noise to mitigate the 
absence of wind, the German OM's are still deafened. "It is an exceptional 
occurrence, an adventure which I had never lived", Heye said. "It is filled 
with incredible wonder. The birds are not at all aggressive. They are 
peaceful. That feels well but one ends up accustoming oneself  to a little 
guano."

--The missing amplifier "exploded" by Roissy (France) airport security

A local Caledonian, Eric Esposito (FK8GM), in a way saved the expedition of 
the German radio amateurs.  With their arrival in New Caledonia, their 1000 
Watt amplifier was missing.  It was the local ham Eric FK8GM, who had been 
in contact with the team since a long time, that lent them his amplifier as 
well as an antenna and other materials.  The expedition had necessitated 
six months of preparation.  "Eric supported us in an extraordinary way", 
insists Heye Harms.  The epilogue of the equipment delay unfolded upon 
return to the quay when the Germans learned that their amplifier (a black 
metal box in a paperboard carton checked with their luggage) had been 
destroyed with the water cannon used by the security services of Roissy 
airport.  They will ask for an explanation upon their return in Europe.

Herve GIRARD
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