Club Events

Free Amateur Radio Technician License Classes offered by the
South Mountain Radio Amateur_(SMRA) Club in Carlisle, PA.
Each complete course consists of five two-hour class sessions on Saturdays from 9:00 to 11:00 AM, one VE Test Session and an additional two-hour session for those that pass the test to receive training on their new radio. It takes seven weeks to complete.

The next SMRA Technician Class in 2024 will be held at:
The Public Safety Training Room, Department of Public Safety,
1 Public Safety Drive, Carlisle, PA

[Note: A textbook ($32.00) and a VE/FCC test ($14.00) will be provided free by SMRA]

• Saturday October 5– Welcome to Amateur Radio, Radio Signals Fundamentals,
  and Electricity Components and Circuits
  Instructor: Ed Otto W3ETO
  Read Chapter 1 (no questions on exam), Chapter 2 (35 questions), and Chapter 3 (91
  questions, but many of these questions are different versions of the same calculation).
• Saturday October 12– Propagation, Antennas, and Feedlines
  Instructor: Jack NC3O
• Read Chapter 4 (66 questions)
• Saturday October 19 – Amateur Radio Equipment
  Instructor: Rick K3RTK Read Chapter 5 (56 questions)
• Saturday October 26 – Communicating with Other Hams and Licensing
  Regulations Instructor: Rick KC3DRU
  • Read Chapter 6 (63 questions) and Chapter 7 (30 questions)
• Saturday November 2– Operating Regulations and Safety
  Instructor: Jack NC3O Read Chapter 8 (32 questions) and Chapter 9 (43 questions)
• Saturday November 9 – VE Test for Technician License
  VE Team Leader: Don K3ZR
• Saturday November 16 – Students that pass and pay the FCC $35.00 fee will get
  their License will receive a UV-5R Radio and be taught how to program
  and use it.
  Instructor: Rick K3RTK
  

To register for this class contact:
Don Evans K3ZR
K3ZR@ARRL.net cell 717-418-1700

These classes are made possible by a grant from the
Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) foundation www.ampr.org

Fall 2023 Amateur Radio Emergency Service Simulated Emergency Test
Eastern Pennsylvania ARES and Pennsylvania American Red Cross

On October 7th, 2023, Pennsylvania amateur radio operators participated in an exercise to test their
ability to communicate with Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and Pennsylvania Red Cross
Regions.

ARES conducts Simulated Emergency Tests (SET) twice per year. These exercises provide ARES
organizations opportunities to train for eventual real-world activations and deployments where they will
provide emergency communication (EMCOMM) support to communities in need.

The Fall 2023 SET had two elements: 1) The American Red Cross “ARC” element, a general call from
Red Cross to Pennsylvania hams to simulate a check-in message from a Red Cross shelter and 2) The
“ARES” element. Eastern Pennsylvania ARES Emergency Coordinators (ECs) were asked to alert their
units and provide a listing of resources available to deploy.

This exercise simulated a severe Internet outage. Radio operators utilized Winlink combined with VARA HF to send email with attached ICS-213 forms via HF Radio. The day began with Andrew, W3AND and others discussing how to install and configure Winlink w/VARA HF. W3AND also provided a presentation on how the Winlink infrastructure worked. With this software, one can email other HF stations without Internet using only your PC connected to your HF Radio. If parts of the Internet were functional, it is then possible to communicate to regular email addresses as well as HF recipients.

At Noon, SMRA EMCOMM members relocated to either their home shacks or to our Field Day site at the Emergency Services Training Area (ESTA) and sent digital messages related to the exercise.

The full report is located at https://kc3smw.net/octset2023

The July 2023 issue of QST Magazine they wrote an article on the ARRL Simulated Emergency Test (SET), an annual exercise that tests the readiness and skills of amateur radio operators in emergency situations. The 2022 ARRL Simulated Emergency Test (SET) demonstrated the long-time tradition and importance of amateur radio operators training and practicing to be effective on-the-air communicators when emergency situations arise. The annual exercise was conducted at local and Section levels nationwide last fall. Leaders and participants of the Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®), the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES), the National Traffic System (NTS), and the Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) worked closely together. They trained with partners like the American Red Cross, the National Weather Service, SKYWARN®, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and their state and local counterpart agencies, such as the Military Affiliate Radio System (MARS) and many other allied groups. The following written reports and exercise results represent the efforts to be better prepared to provide needed communications.

Jack Himes, NC3O, Emergency Coordinator During the 2022 ARRL SET, members of the South Mountain Radio Amateurs (SMRA), N3TWT, club operated from four locations in Cumberland County along with other counties in the ARRL Eastern Pennsylvania Section. The SMRA members included Bob Single, N3ACP; Patti Single, KC3CDL; Robin Cartwright, W3KAT; Ed Otto, W3ETO; Paul Harig, KC3QIU; Ed Irwin, AB3X; Doug Motter, N3UTN; Deb Robinson, KC3RTP; Pat Robinson, KC3UBZ; Jeff Kisner, W3JWK, and Jack Himes, NC3O. In addition, John Jaminet, W3HMS, checked into the emergency net at the EOC from his home station, and the EOC station made radio contact with teams in Columbia/Montour counties. Our team sent and received four ICS213 and four radiogram messages each that Robin had prepared ahead of time. Each member was then asked to prepare, send, and receive their own ICS213 and radiogram message to and from other locations. Operators at each location kept an ICS-214 activity log of their traffic and other notable events. The four Cumberland County sites were the EOC RACES Radio Room in Carlisle, the Emergency Services Training Academy (EOC2) in Carlisle, the Lower Allen Fire Department and Township building in Camp Hill, and the New Cumberland Township/Police building in New Cumberland. The whole team of radio amateurs felt that this drill was beneficial, and they learned a lot about sending and receiving messages via amateur radio.

SMRA Members Jack Himes NC3O and Tracey Richard W3EH operate QRP at King’s Gap Park in Carlisle PA. QRP refers to voluntarily lowering the output power of transmitters to 5 watts or less. Operating modes can be Voice (Phone), Morse Code (CW), and Digital. Using low power makes the chase and the contact all that more exciting.

Members of the SMRA demonstrated various aspects of Amateur radio at the Cumberland Valley Ninth Grade Academy on 6 JUN 23. The Team provided a learning opportunity for the students and allowed them to get on the air! Thank you Jack NC3O, Doug N3UTN, Ed AB3X, Keith KC3JVG for coordinating an excellent demo. We hope many students come to our Field Day on 24-25 June to see even more SMRA members utilizing and demonstrating their equipment.