Learn About Amateur Radio

Updated Sun 03-Mar-2024 00:30 UTC--------------------------------------- 

Hello, friend... you recently asked me for information regarding using the amateur radio service for contingency communications in case of a loss of cellular networks and/or landline capability. This is a good idea because the amateur radio service will provide communications capability entirely independent of commercial and utility services. 

Obviously, amateur radios can communicate worldwide. But that doesn't mean you can expect to buy a radio off of Amazon for $25 and talk around the world. Of course, that's not going to work. You probably won't able to talk across your town, right out of the box, either. You will need to learn a thing or two to talk any useful distance with these things.

OK, first things first...

To legally use amateur radios, you must be licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Don't worry! It's NOT complicated, won't take long, and doesn't cost much!

Besides just being legal, it's an excellent idea to have the license... because to get it, you have to study and learn basic things about how radios work. This is important because you will learn about the capabilities and limitations of different kinds of radios, antennas, and other things you might need to operate your radio. 

You should know that there are three levels of license: Technician, General, and Extra. The higher you go in licenses, the more power you can operate with, and the more frequencies you will have use of. I recommend getting at least the Technician-level license so you will understand how things work. Getting just the Technician license course will cost you $24.50. 

The good news is that all three courses are not prohibitively expensive; they're actually pretty cheap. Also, because you will have lifetime access to the course content, getting the all-access pass for all three courses at once is a good idea. The cost of that would be $69.30.

With about 15 to 30 minutes of study a few times a week, you can get your license within a few weeks. You can take the license exam remotely (in your own home). Here is a very brief example of a lesson.

An examination fee must be paid to sit for an examination. The fee changes occasionally, but typically ranges from $10 to $15.  You may take multiple examinations at your scheduled session as the fee is a “session” fee. You can go from “zero” to “hero” by passing all three exams on the same night! This fee is paid online via credit card or PayPal. 

If you pass your examination, you must pay a $35 FCC online license application fee directly to the FCC. 

Okay, here's how it will work. For a limited time, I can get you a 30% discount off of online ham radio licensing courses from hamradioprep.com. 

I will have to purchase the course for you to get the discount, and then you will receive the access pass in your email.

You can use PayPal, Zelle, or a similar service to reimburse me for it.

So I'll need to know what course you’d like, your email address, and your approval to do it. 

The cost for the three courses is shown down below. For these reasons, I like the All-Access Pass option:

• You get lifetime access to all three courses. That means you can take your time getting the licenses. When I did mine, I took the  Technician and General in one sitting, and then six months later, I took the Extra exam. (I studied for the General for only about 6 days before taking the exam!) This learning method is so effective that I only missed two questions on the Technician exam, and ACED the General and the Extra exams. 

• You will also get the 'BaoFeng Basics Course' for free when you buy this course. (BaoFeng is a brand of radio that you can buy for as little as $24 on Amazon. The course will be very helpful to you if this is your first radio, and there's no reason it shouldn't be.)

If you’d like to proceed, just send me a message, and we can get you started. 

Don't worry, I will be available to help you through the courses (although you won't need it) 

- we'll get through this together, I promise!

Finally, here is my page on QRZ.com. QRZ.com is a website where you can post a bio about yourself so that other amateur radio operators worldwide can learn about you.