Purpose of this article: This article describes he basics of  Getting on Air...   where to start

 

___________________________________________________________________________

Getting on the air

Amateur Radio is a hobby of experimentation, radio operation, construction and ongoing learning.  To some, Getting on Air represents the culmination of a construction project, testing activities or trying new tech.  To others, Getting on the Air is the very essence of what the hobby is all about; be it rag-chewing, contesting, chasing awards or DXing. Examples of getting on-air include (but are not limited to):

 

  • Chatting with friends on repeaters
  • Non-specific conversations on HF (colloquially know as “rag chewing”)
  • Chasing Awards on all bands
  • Chasing rare DX
  • Contesting
  • Optimising a digital station (FT8, JS8, RTTY etc)
  • Summits on the Air (SOTA)
  • Islands on the Air (IOTA)
  • Operating portable
  • Operating from rare locations – DX-peditions


Your areas of interest will, to some extent, guide your entry to getting on air. It can be aa lot easier to get on air and gain confidence if you have a specific activity to talk about.
 

 

___________________________________________________________________________

Suggestions

 

  • Spend some time listening to more experienced operators on air
  • Organise a contact with friends or local club members
  • If you’re not sure what to talk about, make a list before you start a contact (e.g. describe your station, projects, interests, technical questions, location details, related radio interests…..)
  • If you are involved in a specific project or activity then start with a brief introduction about yourself, your station and the project or activity… from there, discussion should flow more easily.

 

___________________________________________________________________________

Dos and Don’ts

Do

  • Do listen to check the frequency is clear before you transmit
  • Do ask “is this frequency in use” before you commence a call
  • Do check the Band plan to ensure you are within the agreed band segments for the mode you are using

 

Don’t

 

  • Don’t talk about politics, religion or controversial topics
  • Don’t engage with pirates.  
  • Don’t feed any trolls or troublemakers.  Move on.
  • Don’t accept bullying

 

On-air etiquette and procedures

HF

  • Be aware that for many operators English will be a second language
  • Use the International Phonetics
  • Always listen for changes to band propagation conditions
  • Leave a regular break for other operators who may wish to join your QSO and/or obtain a radio check
  • Don’t forget to announce your callsign at least every 10 minutes

 

Repeaters

  • Always listen to ensure the repeater is available before you transmit
  • If possible, once you start a QSO, consider moving to a direct channel or frequency if you are able
  • Instead of calling “CQ”, common practice is to announce yourself as “listening”… e.g. “Good morning, this is Bob VK0BOB listening”
  • Always be mindful of the timeout limit – this is a transmit limit set by the repeater owner to ensure repeaters are not monopolised and to ensure repeaters cannot be accidentally set to unintended extended transmissions.   This is usually two minutes.
  • Always leave a break between overs to allow other fair access to the repeater
  • Exercise discretion if you are considering joining an existing QSO on a repeater or simplex channel

___________________________________________________________________________

Useful links

 

Please read this Guidebook.

 

https://vkradioamateurs.org/welcome-to-ar-guidebook-for-newcomers/

 

 

___________________________________________________________________________