2024 Halifax ARC Flea Market

39th ANNUAL HALIFAX AMATEUR RADIO FLEA MARKET 

WHEN – Saturday June 8th, 2024 

WHERE - NEW LOCATION 

The Royal Canadian Legion 

2234 Rocky Lake Drive, Waverley 

44 46' 38.80" N 63 36' 18.98" W 44.777 N 63.605272 W 

TIME: 

Sellers may set up after 8 AM 

Buyers allowed in after 10 AM 

GENERAL ADMISSION: 

Buyer - $5.00 

Seller - $15.00 Which includes a 3' X 6' selling space - some with power 50/50 Draw - $2.00, 3 for $5.00, 8 for $10.00 

Space is limited so book your table as soon as possible. 

Contact Fraser MacDougall,VE1WO 

ve1wo@eastlink.ca 

Phone : 902-499-2401 

Buyer entrance tickets will be pre-sold before 10 AM 

Talk in frequency – 146.685 - VE1PKT and 146.970 - VE1CDN

SMART24 Recap

Friday evening May 3rd was the beginning af SMART24 with the annual Meet & Greet at the Amherst Railway Station. Over 20 amateurs spent two hours eating, meeting and chatting with their fellow hams.

On a cool foggy Saturday morning May 4th, the annual Symposium for Maritime Amateur Radio Technology (SMART) began with the doors opening at 7am for volunteers and venders.

At 8am the doors open for the registered hams and the building began to hum with amateurs picking up their name tags, buying 50/50 & Raffle tickets and heading out to the arena to take in the flea market.

After opening remarks and welcome from Cumberland County Mayor Murray Scott the classes began at 9am.
There were ten classes throughout the day including Internet Radio Linking Project (IRLP),  Taking care of your Transmission Line; Logging, contesting & software;  Antenna, feedline & radials; Digital Modes, slow scan, ft8 etc.; Parks on the Air (POTA); Digital Mobile Radio (DMR); Amelia Earhart radio signals update and Winlink Global Radio Email.
I want to thank the presenters of the classes including Brent Taylor VY2HF, Bill McMaster VY2WM, Craig Seaboyer VE1DSS, Bill Karle VE1YY, Robert Schofield VE1RSM,  Chris Pye VA1PYE,  Sean Bridge VE1XOP,  Stuart Crawford VE9SRC, Tobie Boutot VE9XAB and Al Penny VO1NO. 

At 12:30 lunch was served by Subway Springhill who catered this years SMART with individual box lunches which included a sandwich, chips and cookie. Thanks to Mike Embree VE1MY and Garrett Orr VA1OR for picking up and delivery of the order.
For the next hour, amateurs had time to relax, chat with other hams and explore the flea market tables.

At 1:45 the afternoon classes began and continued till 4pm.
After the last classes, everyone came out to the arena to take part in the prizes before closing the event.

I would like to thank the following for their gracious offers of door prizes. The WestCumb ARC for their two PEI Bridge Passes and gas card,  Mike Caissie VE9MTV for the donation of a Quansheng handheld radio, Scott Davis N3JFP for his annual donation of the logging and contest software,  Jose Ros EA5HVK for the VARA high speed modem license, Moncton & Area ARC and the Kings County ARC for gas cards, Radioworld for their four gift cards, James Salamone VE1JCS for the thermal mug with personal name and callsign engraved and Yaesu USA for the ballcaps. The Quansheng UV-5R Plus handheld radio was re donated by Matt VE9MV and also by Gordon VE9GC and was won by Don VE9ZP.

Winner of the 50/50 was Gino Mazerolle VE9GM.

The raffle prizes were donated this year by the WestCumb ARC (ICOM IC2730 Dual Band Mobile), ICOM Atlantic Rep Grant Saffarek VE9CXT  (IC-V86 Handheld Transceiver) and Denis Grisak K0TX for the Digirig Soundcard certificate.
The winners were Jean-Pierre Ouellette VE9ADV who won the ICOM mobile radio, Ron Bickle VE1BIC  the ICOM Portable radio and Gino Mazerolle VE9GM the Digirig.

S.M.A.R.T 24 Photos

Here is the link to Ron Bickle's VE1BIC Dropbox for photos from SMART24.  CLICK HERE

Now to thank everyone who participated in this years event. Apologies if I miss anyone.

First of all the County of Cumberland and the staff at the Dr. Carson and Marion Murray Community Center in Springhill for their continuing support and help throughout the event.

Kushal Trivedi and the staff at Subway Springhill or the making of 150 box lunches Saturday morning for the event.

Atlantic Superstore for the donation of water.

Bambino's Pizzeria & Fine Foods in Amherst for the rental of the building for the M&G.

Stuart  Crawford VE9SRC posted a YouTube video on his trip to SMART.  CLICK HERE

The following amateurs donated their time to volunteer for SMART24.
Dana Rushton VE1VOX who looked after the licenses and one of the door prizes, Mike Embree VE1MY who looked after the talk-in frequency for Friday night and Saturday morning and also filled in at different tables when needed,  Terry & Sue Duncan VE1AS/VA1SIS who looked after the entrance fee, Borden Chapman VA1CBC who gave out the name tags, Colleen Orr VE1CEO at the raffle table, Mike Caissie VE9MTV at the 50/50 table, Mike Johnson VE1MWJ who manned the coffee table, Kevin Burke VE1KEV flea market tables,  Frank Marks VE1FSM for looking after the club table, George Dewar VY2GF for the lineup of presenters for SMART, George Dewar VY2GF & Gordon Cotton VE9GC who introduced the presenters, Ron Bickle VE1BIC and Robert Mannette VE1CA for the audio & recording of the classes, Tom Hughes VE1TWH who set up and operated the WINLINK lab upstairs throughout the day, Steve Orr VE1OR who also helped Tom from his mobile Winlink station outside the arena.

Finally to all registered amateurs who signed up and attended the event. THANK YOU!
Without all of you SMART would not take place.

Jim Langille VE1JBL
Coordinator SMART24

MFJ Closing Down after 52 Years.

Posted April 26, 2024

Taken from The DXZone

In an email that resonated deeply within the amateur radio world, Martin F. Jue, the founder of the iconic MFJ Enterprises, announced the cessation of on-site production for MFJ and its sister companies, including well-known brands such as Ameritron, Hygain, Cushcraft, Mirage, and Vectronics. The Starkville, Mississippi-based operation will officially stop production on May 17, 2024.   For the rest of the story, CLICK HERE.

"This is When" story of Mutiny on the Bounty and Silent Key "Spud Roscoe VE1BC (SK)

According to Bruce Nunn's book "The History Of Nova Scotia, With A Twist" Spurgeon Roscoe VE1BC played the part of the radio operator in the 1962 MGM motion picture "Mutiny On The Bounty" starring Marlon Brando. 

The replica of the "Bounty" was built in Lunenburg Nova Scotia and several Nova Scotians had small parts in the movie. 

However Spurgeon had a larger part to play in real life, saving the film production crew and the replica of the "Bounty" during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.

Spurgeon George “Spud” Roscoe VE1BC passed away December 28, 2023 in Halifax

His story was the subject of the feature "This Is When" on Community Radio CFTA 107.9 in Amherst on April 4, 2024.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/dtjcant8a3nikh7xo03xp/THIS-IS-WHEN-APR-05-Spurgeon-G-Roscoe-VE1BC-SK-Mutiny-On-The-Bounty.mp3?rlkey=2nxc548m5ag7ngowdljsrdulz&dl=0

VE1PKT VARA-FM Digital Repeater is "On the Air"

Posted March 26th, 2024

Here is information thanks to Neil Hughes VE1YZ.

A reminder there will be a VARA HF & VHF station active throughout the day at SMART24 for all to see.

  Location:  Halifax (Hammonds Plains)

                                                   Frequency:  145.03 MHz

                                                   Coverage:  All of Halifax County and beyond.

                                                   Connects to VE1TWH or VE1YZ VARA FM Winlink Gateways.

                                                   Sponsored by NSARA and VE1YZ.

                                                   For more information contact VE1TWH or VE1YZ. 

Changes to Parks on the Air.

Posted March 14th, 2024

In order to support our continued growth, both in scale and global coverage, we are in the process of doing some cleanup and reorganization in the way the Programs, Locations, DX Entities, and Parks are stored in the database.
All Canadian parks now start with a prefix of "CA" instead of "VE" 

CLICK HERE for the full story.

Maritime VHF VARA gateways

Posted March 8th, 2024

Here is the list of stations I took a picture of today which includes a new gateway VE1WAR-10 hosted by Steve VE1OR at his home in Warren Nova Scotia just outside Amherst.

RCAF 100 Year Centennial Special Event Station

Posted March 5th, 2024

Hi, my name is Rick Brown VE3IMG/VA3YV, president of the London Amateur Radio  Club (VE3LON). We will be running a special event station VE3RCAF this April to celebrate the Royal Canadian Airforce 100 year Centennial. We are looking to collaborate with a club, contest group, RCAF amateur operator or individual Ham to make it a national event. This would be a substantial commitment with some expense to organize a team of individuals to operate as much as possible for a minimum of one week. VE7RCAF, VE6RCAF, VE5RCAF, VE3RCAF, VE2RCAF, VE9RCAF, VO1RCAF, and VY2RCAF are registered. We are having trouble finding support for Nova Scotia. Can you help?

In order for this national event to be successful, in my opinion the prime group or individual for the province or territory needs to:

1)  Obtain a special VE suffix call (RCAF) for your province or territory for the period of April 1 2024 to April 30th 2024. ($60)

2) Maintain a QRZ page for the call.

3) Coordinate and schedule the use of the call from a club, contest station or individual home or combination thereof. Consideration should be given to any other club, RCAF amateur or any other responsible ham outside your group wanting to operate the call.

4) With respect to point 3, logging should be standardized on a program like N3FJP or N1MM+. The individual holding the call will need to collect and merge the logs for that call if the event is run from multiple locations. This will probably be the case where there is no club station.

5) Consider uploading the logs to qrz daily to enable hams to verify their contact.

6) Provide/pay for a standardized QSL card for all contacts made with that call. Possibly a pdf certificate could be an alternative.

7) The London Amateur Radio Club would volunteer to provide an All Worked RCAF pdf certificate if we have enough cross Canada participation.

8) Once we have determined interest and who is operating in the event, I would like to establish a zoom meeting or Groups IO group to disseminate information and coordinate activities.

For information on the  RCAF 2024 Centennial itself, check out https://rcaf2024arc.ca/ .

If you or your club is not interested, please pass this information onto someone who may be. Please respond ASAP. Thanks for your interest and hope to see you on the air.

Rick Brown VE3IMG/VA3YV

President London Amateur Radio Club

email: ve3img@gmail.com

LARC Web: https://www.larc.ca/ 

SMART24 Website ONLINE

Posted February 21st, 2024

There is a new website for SMART24. 

smart24.ca

The site carries all the information about SMART24 and also has the recaps of past events, directions to the event and motels in the area.
The registration form is NOW active.

At this time everything is still very fluid so keep checking back to the website for updates.

History of the NSARA 

Posted February 6th, 2024

Stan Parsons VE1RY and Leigh Hawkes VE1GA have written an article about the history of the Nova Scotia Amateur Radio Association.

The article can be found on Stan's new website CLICK HERE 

Digital Modes

Posted February 3rd, 2024

My name is Sean VE1XOP and I’m located in Pictou County and I’m reaching out to all the Clubs in the Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island .

I was curious to know if any of your members or even the club would be interested in learning more about how to get set-up on:

• FT8

• SSTV

• PSK31

• Understanding some open source software to use these modes

I’ll be hosting an online via Zoom Session/ Screenshare and I will also be interested in hosting some in person sessions with a club or a series of clubs. The objective is to gain more traction per the Digital Modes and demo out some of the neat features of what can be learned, performed and communicated via the various amateur radio frequencies. The focus would be using open source based software, keep cost only to the use of time.

I’m learning it’s hard to get people involved in Ham Radio, and I feel with more learning and showing others what’s available, would be helpful.

If you or the club feels this would be of value to your members, please let me know. I’d like to get several sessions running in the next 30 days.

Questions? Please ask. I’m very open to ideas.

Thank you,

Sean

Website: VE1XOP

Landline: 902-701-1588

Mobile/ WhatsApp: 902-616-0143

History of Silent Keys

SMART24

WestCumb ARC now on Facebook

Posted January 17th, 2024

Just a note to let you know the WestCumb ARC in Amherst has set up a social media page on Facebook.

Westcumb Amateur Radio Club | Facebook 

Thanks to Robert VE1CA for setting this up.

Maritime Fusion Net, 4th anniversary recap 

Posted December 31st, 2023

The Maritime Fusion Net finished its forth year of operation in the "CQ Maritimes Room" on December 27th, 2023 with 39 check-ins including 21 Nova Scotia, 16 New Brunswick, 1 Prince Edward Island and one from outside the area.

Contacts were down again this year.  Average net total was 32 check-ins, down from a high of 42 check-ins  in 2021.

Year   - NS - NB - PE - OS  -  TOTALS

2020 - 838 - 698 - 117 - 33 -  1755
2021 - 913 - 969 - 128 - 157 - 2167
2022 - 861 - 818 - 98 - 162 - 1939
2023 - 780 - 645 - 92 - 131 - 1648

I would like to thank everyone who checked into the net over the year and thank the other NCOs: Mike VE9MTV, Robert VE1CT and Rob VE1CA for taking time out of their day to host the net throughout the year.

Hope to hear many of you "On the Air" in 2024

Below is the online feed of the Maritime Fusion Net that is recorded live each week thanks to Robert VE1CA on his YouTube channel at "Robve1rmj"

Happy New Year from the Maritime Amateur.

Jim VE1JBL

Saltscapes Magazine "Airwaves Ambassadors" by Deborah Carr

MARCAN Packet Network UPDATE

Posted December 24th, 2023

MARCAN Packet Network Operational /Non-Operational Nodes Status

Nova Scotia 

VE1HAM VE1KIL VE1GYS VE1RTI VE1HR VE1HR-1 VE1TRO VE1TRO-1 VE1TAL VE1TAL-1 VE1TAL-2

VE1AEH VE1AEH-2 VE1WN VE1WN-1 VE1NSC-1 VE1NSC-2 VE1NET VE1NET-1 VE1NET-2 VE1NET-3 VE1NET-4 VE1CDN VE1CDN-3 VE1DAR VE1DAR-1 VE1DAR-2 VE1PKT VE1PKT-2 VE1MHR VE1AEH VE1AEH-1 VE1WN VE1WN-1 VE1BO VE1EKV VE1EKV-1 VE1VO VE1YAR VE1YAR-1 VE1SCR VE1SCR-1 VE1VO VE1VL VE1LUN VE1LUN-1 

New Brunswick

VE9SJW VE9SIX VE1PRM VE1PRM-1 VE1PRM-4

Prince Edward Island

VE1CRA-1

***** Non- Operational *****

VE1NSD VE1NSD-1 VE1NSD-4 (off air) all nodes for check-repairs May 6 2023 (ve1bxk)

VE1MHR

This does not include Gateways, Switches, BBS or AIPCOM/EMO (220) packet nodes currently accessible to the MARCAN Network. 

Lorne Anderson

VE1BXK

December 24 2023

New Brandmister Talkgroup "Atlantic Canada"

Posted December 15th, 2023

I’m the Atlantic coordinator for Brandmeister Canada, and we had a request for a new talk group for the Atlantic province’s.
We discussed it and approved the creation of talk group 30205. This new talk group is labelled as “ Atlantic Canada” and is now available for use!
73 VA1RF BRANDMEISTER.NETWORK 

Matthew Gillie VA1RF
va1rf@outlook.com

If anyone has any questions you can also contact Stephen Conard by email @ ve9sc@ve9sc.com I am the owner of the new TG30205 I made the request and Matthew and Beniot approved it.

So if anyone has any questions I am very open to answering them. We also are planning a weekly net on the TG in the future when we determine the best date and time slot. We now have a few and don't want to overlap.

Stephen VE9SC

Winlink Global Radio Email

For more information about Winlink  CLICK HERE

Youth On the Air Camp 2024

OTTAWA, Ontario, Canada – December 8, 2023 

Youth On The Air Camp Comes Back to Canada!

Radio Amateurs of Canada is pleased to announce that the Youth On The Air (YOTA) Camp will once again be held in Canada!

Attention all young Amateur Radio operators! YOTA Camp is back and better than ever! After the success of the YOTA Camp in Ottawa in July 2023, Radio Amateurs of Canada has teamed up with Youth On The Air Americas to bring YOTA back to Canada.

YOTA Camp 2024 will be held at the Mount Saint Vincent University campus in Halifax, Nova Scotia from July 7 to July 12. Modelled after the successful Youngsters On The Air program in Region 1 of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU), this will be the fourth YOTA Camp in the Americas with past camps being held in Cincinnati, USA (2021 and 2022) and Ottawa, Canada (2023).

YOTA Camp is open to Amateur Radio operators between the ages of 15 and 25. A total of 50 campers will be accepted to this year’s program, an increase from last year. Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity!

Come to YOTA Camp and we’ll teach you all kinds of cutting-edge technology that can be used with Amateur Radio and connect you to other young operators and mentors in North, Central and South America. Through this program, young Amateurs will learn and practise essential skills taught through STEM principles such as electronics and radio wave propagation. The program will also prepare young Amateurs to contribute during emergencies and provide numerous opportunities in their own communities and future careers.

Are you already an expert? We are seeking young Amateurs who are willing to take their knowledge to the next level and share their past experiences with other young Amateurs. The camp will primarily focus on building strong relationships with peers and mentors, as well as developing new radio skills. Campers will operate a special event station featuring cutting-edge HF and VHF/UHF radios and a wide array of antennas that many only dream of using.

Applications are now being accepted! Applications submitted by January 15, 2024 and first-time attendees will be given priority. We will accept applications through May 31, 2024.

The application process is free. The cost of the camp is $100 USD plus transportation to and from the Mount Saint Vincent University campus. The $100 USD fee will not be payable until after acceptance. Should a potential camper not be able to afford the fee, they may apply for a scholarship or waiver.

Sponsorship: This is an excellent opportunity for Amateur Radio clubs to help build the leaders of tomorrow. Radio Amateurs of Canada is also pleased to introduce the new “Send A Youth to Camp Campaign” which will run from February 1 to June 1 in which proceeds collected will be disbursed to assist campers with travel expenses. More information will be available in January on the RAC website.

Important: YOTA Camp 2024 organizers will provide updates on our website and through social media if there is any impact on the camp such as the need to reschedule.

For complete details about the camp and/or to sign up for updates by email, please visit the camp webpage provided below or contact yota2024@rac.ca.

For additional information, please contact:

Camp Director Neil Rapp, WB9VPG: director@youthontheair.org

YOTA Camp 2024 – https://youthontheair.org/halifax2024/

Youth On The Air – YouthOnTheAir.org

IRG CTCSS Repeater Tones - updated to 04-December-2023 

Posted December 6th, 2023

As of Monday, December 4, the East Zone repeaters are fully CTCSS enabled - users will need to use a PL tone of 151.4 Hz to transmit via these repeater.  This includes Moncton VE1MTN (147.090 +), Acadieville VE9ACD (145.430 -) and Sackville VE9SKV (145.230 -) 

Here is the latest list from the International Repeater Group for tones on the repeaters. CLICK HERE

Building and Operating a Transmitter from the Roaring 20s

RAC Conference 2023: Rebuilding Domestic HF Capabilities through CFARS

Posted Dec.3rd, 2023

The following presentation was recorded at the 2023 RAC Conference.

The Canadian Forces Affiliate Radio System [CFARS] has limited openings in specific regions throughout Canada and only Licensed Amateur Radio Operators that meet the outlined prerequisites will be entertained. The applicant must currently hold HF Phone Privileges and those with the authority to utilize HF power amplifiers are preferred. Questions as to your license limitations and authority may be addressed to either an Accredited Examiner or the Amateur Radio Services Branch in Ottawa at toll-free 1-888-780- 3333. 

Other basic prerequisites (at this time) include; 

[1] Long-range HF communications are (normally) required to suggest that, only those Amateur stations possessing this ability should consider applying. 

[2] Applicants with the computer and electronic knowledge to interconnect to HF transceivers that enable them to install and operate various computer programs to transmit and receive various data modes. Digital means of messaging are now a prerequisite for CFARS Membership. 

[3] Communication Operating Procedures are in place for CFARS and will be adhered to. Individuals that are unable or unwilling to operate under circuit discipline or adhere to the rules governing its operation need not apply. 

[4] CFARS members are required to maintain their radio station at an operational level and normally be available for unscheduled or emergency communication requirements 24/7. 

[5] Members are required to periodically participate in scheduled exercises conducted by CFARS or in support of other agencies and, they will check into the weekly HF nets. Prolonged neglect or nonparticipation of these requirements may lead to cancellation of the member's call sign. 

[6] As all of the CFARS frequency assignment fall outside of the Amateur radio bands, applicants must be prepared to have their equipment modified accordingly 

Thanks to Steve VE1OR for the info.

Parks on the Air (POTA)

Posted Oct.7th, 2023

A great way to get outdoors and use off grid options for amateur radio. Very much like Field Day but you can do it at your pleasure any day of the year and as many days as you wish.  https://parksontheair.com/
There are many Maritime hams who are registered for POTA and have activated hundreds of parks across the region. Some of these hams have thousands of contacts and many awards.

Jim VE1JBL

Yaesu Fusion, Wires-X, CQ Maritimes Room,
Maritime Fusion Net, Friendly Friday Fusion Net

Updated December 24th, 2023

With the popularity of Yaesu Fusion Radios here in the Maritimes, here is some information I would like to share with anyone interested in buying a Fusion radio.

There are now over 20 Fusion Repeaters across the Maritimes and a room dedicated to Maritime Amateurs.

The CQ Maritimes Room #60207 is hosted by the WestCumb ARC in Amherst on the VE1AMH repeater 145.190 and there are several other  repeaters connected to this room including VE1CDN Halifax 442.975, VE1CRA Charlottetown 145.310, VE9MFR Moncton 146.625, VE1AEH Kentville 145.370, VE9FNB Fredericton 145.390, VE1YAR Yarmouth 444.700 and a new addition VE1RMW Antigonish 145.490. Plans are in the works for a new repeater in the Lunenburg area. Will let everyone know when it comes online.
 
NOTICE: This room is setup to be used by Fusion radios only. No access for hot spots.

There is a Maritime Fusion Net each Wednesday evening at 7pm AT and several other repeaters connect during the net so that other amateurs in the region have the opportunity to check into the weekly net. This net also has a LIVE feed via YouTube thanks to Robert VE1CA so that amateurs around the world can follow the net and take part in the chatroom. 

There is also a Friendly Friday Fusion (Triple "F") Net at 8pm AT which operates throughout the year except July and August.

For more information about Fusion / Wires-X and a list of repeaters    CLICK HERE

There is also plenty of information about Fusion & Wires-X on the VE1AIC-VE1CRA website   CLICK HERE

Jim Langille VE1JBL

Grand Prize Winners SMART23

Left to Right: Rod Bourque VE9HV Moncton NB, Garrett Orr VA1OR Warren NS, Mike Caissie VE9MTV Irishtown NB & WARC President Kevin Burke VE1KEV.

Changes to the RAC Field Organization Sections

As previously reported, on May 25 the Board of Directors of Radio Amateurs of Canada approved changes to the “RAC Field Organization” which will take effect on January 1, 2023. This will be most noticeable during Field Day.

Beginning in 2023 the Maritime Section (MAR) will be deleted from contest to be replaced by Nova Scotia (NS) and New Brunswick (NB).

Here are the new Canadian sections beginning in 2023

The end result will be 14 Sections:

• Alberta (AB)

• British Columbia (BC)

• Manitoba (MB)

• New Brunswick (NB)

• Newfoundland and Labrador (NL)

• Nova Scotia (NS)

• Ontario North (ONN)

• Ontario South (ONS)

• Golden Horseshoe (GH)

• Ontario East (ONE)

• Prince Edward Island (PE)

• Quebec (QC)

• Saskatchewan (SK)

• Territories (TER)

New Canadian Amateur Radio Frequencies

RBR-4 Update: July 2022

For immediate release:

On July 28, 2022, Innovation Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) released an update to a very important document for Canadian Radio Amateurs: “RBR-4 – Standards for the Operation of Radio Stations in the Amateur Radio Service”.

The document specifies what frequencies we may operate on and with what bandwidths.

There are two major new additions to our spectrum:

472 to 479 kHz, also known as 630 metres: on this new band, we are allowed to run a maximum of five watts EIRP, using emissions with a maximum bandwidth of 1 kHz.

5351.5 to 5366.5 kHz in the 60 metre band: this is a new worldwide allocation. Canadian Amateurs are allowed to run a maximum of 100 watts ERP, using emissions with a maximum bandwidth of 2.8 kHz.

The new 60 metre band is in addition to our existing fixed-frequency allocations at 5332, 5348, 5373 and 5405 kHz. The new 15 kHz-wide allocation overlaps our existing authority to use 5358.5 kHz. Canadian Amateurs are unique in having authority to use 100 watts ERP on the four spot frequencies and on the new 15 kHz worldwide segment. Amateurs in most countries are limited to 25 watts or less and may operate only in the new 15 kHz-wide segment.

Please note that Amateur Radio is a Secondary radio service on these bands. Amateurs may not cause harmful interference to Primary users and we may not claim protection from interference by Primary users.

There are other small changes in RBR-4 that bring Canadian Amateur Radio regulations in line with changes agreed at several previous World Radio Conferences (WRCs) of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).

Radio Amateurs of Canada would like to thank former Regulatory Officer Richard Ferch, VE3KI, for his dedicated work over several years to bring these changes forward.

You can find the English version here:

https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/smt-gst.nsf/eng/sf10650.html

You can find the French version (IPR-4) here:

https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/smt-gst.nsf/fra/sf10650.html

If you have any questions, please contact RAC Regulatory Affairs Officer Dave Goodwin, VE3KG, at regulatory@rac.ca

Dave Goodwin, VE3KG

Regulatory Affairs Officer

Radio Amateurs of Canada

regulatory@rac.ca