2026 OCTOBER 18 WIA NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA ------------------------------------------------------------* THE BEST NEWS YOU'LL GET ALL WEEK THIS LINK IS A VIDEO VERSION OF NEWS COMPILED BY VK5BD BEVAN tinyurl.com/WIA-News-Videos ------------------------------------------------------------* 2026 OCTOBER 18 WIA NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA and IN WIA NATIONAL NEWS THIS WEEK:- News is read at The JOTA event at Kurnell, part of the annual Endeavour Boree Regatta at Bonna Point, Kurnell by Scouts and Guides and recorded by the St George Amateur Radio Society (SGARS) who are operating station VK2LE at the regatta, a tradition they have supported since 1995. NOW NO WAITING BECAUSE ALL THESE SCOPUTS AND GUIDES ARE SET TO BRING YOU THIS WEEKS WIA NATIONAL NEWS .. BUT FIRST.. WIA DIRECTOR VK3FY. WIA JOIN THE WIA tinyurl.com/yyj87b9y This is Chris Dimitrijevic VK3FY on behalf of the Board of Directors of the Wireless Institute of Australia for this weeks' Board Report for WIA National News. The WIA would like to thank the Scouts and Guides for hosting this Special JOTA Edition of the VK1WIA Weekly News. Let me take the opportunity to wish all Scouts and Guides around the World on a great JOTA 2026 this weekend. The theme for this years' JOTA "A Peaceful and Inclusive World" The time for a WIA affiliated club to host the WIA AGM 2027 has come and gone. As no nominations were received. The Board of Directors has decided that due to timing constraints to host such an event. The board has made the decision that an online event will take place for the WIA AGM 2027. Exact time/dates and how to register will be advised to members beforehand via AR magazine, WIA Website, WIA National News and social media. ADELAIDE. SDR2026 brought together academia, industry, defence and amateur radio in Adelaide to explore the rapidly evolving world of SDR, RF engineering, spectrum and signal processing. Amateur radio had a strong voice, with Justin Giles-Clark VK7TW, Grant Willis VK5GR, Matt Cook VK5ZM, Gerard Rankin and Karl Fazon demonstrating the important links between amateur experimentation, professional RF engineering, STEM and citizen science. A tutorial was held over 2 days that saw 23 people at the conference gain their Foundation Licence thanks to Paul Hoffman VK5PH and the assessment team. Today the 18th October at 5pm Australian Eastern Daylight Saving Time a Governance Webinar for WIA Affiliated Clubs which are unincorporated is being held. Emails to all affiliated clubs have been sent out and the WIA looks forward to those attending this Governance Briefing. Previous Webinars were held for WIA Affiliated Clubs which were incorporated. This has been Chris VK3FY on behalf of the Board of the Wireless Institute of Australia for WIA NATIONAL NEWS. AUSTRALIANA Poor quality radio transmissions and incomplete visual scanning contributed to a runway incursion and near collision involving a Metro freighter aircraft and an airport safety car at Mackay Airport, an ATSB investigation has found. On 12 November 2025, the Sharp Airlines aircraft was rolling for take-off for a freight flight from Mackay to Brisbane. Mackay is an uncontrolled aerodrome, meaning pilots and other aerodrome users are responsible for maintaining separation via communications on the Common Traffic Advisory Frequency. As the Metro approached rotation speed the pilot observed a car exiting the runway via taxiway Juliet, ahead of them. About 5 seconds later the aircraft rotated and took off, adjacent to the taxiway. The investigation found radio transmissions from the aircraft on the CTAF were of poor quality. This was due to a combination of the pilots rapid speech and use of non-standard phraseology, as well as interference associated with the use of the aircrafts VHF COM 2 radio. Additionally, the Metro pilot did not hear a broadcast made by the driver of the safety car as they entered the runway, likely due to reduced radio reception strength, and a concurrent broadcast on another frequency. The investigation also found the airport safety officer did not scan for aircraft ground movements or keep a constant radio listening watch prior to entering the occupied runway, possibly due to being distracted while using a company-issued electronic flight bag (tablet) and not expecting the aircraft at that time. tinyurl.com/y99jfkax (Australian Flying) ------------------------------------------------------------* INTERNATIONAL NEWS is with thanks to Amateur Radio Daily, ARRL, DX-WORLD, eHam, Hackaday, IARU, IRTS, iTnews, NEWSLINE, NZART, RAC, Radioworld.com, RSGB, SARL and the World Wide sources of WIA. FROM PORTUGAL TO THE AZORES. It's already a busy year for school amateur radio clubs in Portugal and especially in the Azores which recently began coordinating joint activities and sharing their knowledge through a newly formed group with the acronym RERA. The organisation stands for Rede Escolar de Radioamadorismo dos Aores, or Azores School Amateur Radio Network. It was established last June at a meeting coordinated by Ana Braga CU2YK, a teacher at Capelas Integrated Basic School in the Azores. In addition to its educational goals, RERA is also raising the profile of amateur radio as a public service resource and aims to assist other schools in the region to establish their own student amateur radio clubs. RERA plans to hold its first regional meeting at the end of the school year in 2027 so that teachers, students and cooperating ham radio operators can present their projects and share the experiences they had during their first year of working together. USA Radio Scouting Beyond JOTA Radio scouting activity is perking up with this weekends Jamboree on the Air BUT in many areas, radio scouting is an ongoing activity. The Dan Beard Council Radio Scouting Committee, which works with Scout troops in greater Cincinnati, Ohio, and northern Kentucky, reports that it held a Morse code challenge in May for scouts heading to the National Jamboree, and that members of the Northern Kentucky Amateur Radio Club an ARRL Special Service Club put a station on the air from one of the councils summer camps for five consecutive Wednesday nights, with 87 Scouts operating and making contacts. Starting back on October 13, new Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules require online marketplaces and sellers to display a valid FCC ID for certified radiofrequency devices at the online point of sale. Platforms like eBay FCC ID Requirements and other e-commerce sites are beginning to warn that listings missing a valid ID risk being hidden from U.S. buyers. NEW ZEALAND From next year the NZART, their equivalent of our WIA, will offer a digital version of their Amateur Radio Magazine, called Break-In for those who would prefer to receive the magazine this way. Those who choose the digital-only option, can deduct $20 from their Transmitting, Non-Transmitting, Family or Student membership subscription. There is also the usual early payment discount. Get your subscription in by the end of November and those paying for Transmitting, Non-Transmitting or family memberships can deduct an even further $10. ------------------------------------------------------------------- OPERATIONAL NEWS - -------------- -------------- NOW CONTEST WISE:- 2026 WIA contest page :- wia.org.au/members/contests/about/ ----------------- The World Radiosport Team Championship Sanctioning Committee has announced that the original winner of the 2022/3 competition has been disqualified in an expanded investigation into cheating. When a pattern of cheating by certain stations in the 2026 WRTC was discovered and analysed in depth by the Judging Committee, it was determined that a similar cheating pattern appeared to have taken place in 2023 as well. In the revised results, the new winner is I 43 C (ops DJ5MW and DL1IAO), with I 49 D (ops 9A7DX and 9A3LG) in 2nd place and I 47 M (ops F8DBF and F1AKK) in 3rd. The judges determined that the operators of the two disqualified teams had their identities deliberately revealed through pre-contest frequency handoffs, violating a rule intended to prevent competitors from being identified to outside stations. The committee also found that outside stations used 21 pirated call signs to make fraudulent multiplier-enhancing contacts, (ARRL) THIS WEEKEND OCTOBER 17-18 JARL WW RTTY CONTEST As of this year the Japan Amateur Radio League will officially take over the JARTS Worldwide RTTY Contest, which has been held for 34 years, and will host it as the "JARL World Wide RTTY Contest". The first edition will take place on 17-18 October. jarl.org/English/4_Library/A-4-3_Contests/rtty_rules_en.html ---------- OCTOBER 24-25 CQWW SSB ----------------- NOVEMBER 28-29 CQWW CW CONTEST ------------- DECEMBER 1-31 VK YOTA contest. yota.fgarc.org.au/pages/about.php ------------- DECEMBER 4-6 ARRL 160 METER CONTEST. ------------- DECEMBER 12-13 ARRL 10 METER CONTEST ----------------------------------------------------------------- NOW LET'S OPEN THE DX WINDOW TO THE WORLD - C 5 R from The Gambia. Lui, YT3PL, Luc, F5RAV and Darko, E70A will be active on various bands and modes as C5R from The Gambia until 4 November, including an entry in the CQ WW DX SSB Contest. Their humanitarian work in the Gambia is ongoing so far, they have made 3 new classrooms for WILCOS school for children aged 3 to 5 years old. All the money that is donated will be invested in this project they have already spent 7500 but still need to make new toilets and add new tiles to make new floors. QSL direct to YT3PL and log search on Club Log. (rsgb/sarl) ----------- Jeff, TZ4AM will be back on the air from Mali from 22 October to 2nd December on CW and SSB via 80-6 metres. QSL via LoTW, direct to KX4R. This looks like it might be Jeff's final run from Mali. As the security situation continues to decline, he says, the primary challenge remains the local economy. With rent and utilities running over 14,000 Aussie dollars a year, maintaining the operation is no longer viable, and he is considering closing it down completely. [425dxnews) ------------- Now will your Aussie scout group be good enough to work this next JOTA station I'll tell you about? S 21 HRG S21HRG is the special callsign for the 13th Hussars Open Rover Scout Group to be active from the northernmost region of Bangladesh, 16-20 October. the JOTA station S21HRG will operate SSB, FT8 and CW on 80-10 metres and via QO-100 satellite. QSOs will be uploaded to LoTW and Club Log. (425dxnews) ------------ 8 J 7 SPO is the special callsign commemorating the Japan Sport Associations 80th Japan Games. Listen out for, and work, 8J7SPO until the 26th of October. QSOs will be uploaded to Club Log and confirmed automatically via the bureau. (sourced to rsgb) ------------------------------------------------------------* WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- ASTRONOMY (and Wireless Weather) When checking out our celestial bodies, we often have to phone home quickly. Now after decades of false starts and shifting budgets, NASA is closer than ever to finally establishing the Mars Telecommunications Network, a dedicated high-bandwidth communication relay that will ensure current and future missions to the red planet always have a way to phone home. Given the number of landers, rovers, and orbiting spacecraft that have been sent to study Mars over the last 50 years, you might be surprised to find that the communications systems in place to transmit all that critical scientific data back to Earth arent nearly as robust as youd think. While its understandable that the first craft to arrive at Mars had to operate in isolation, even the flagship Perseverance and Curiosity rovers carry their own high-gain radio systems so they can communicate directly with Earth. Given the incredible premium put on the mass of an interplanetary craft, each mission that needs to bring along its own link back to Earth effectively reduces its payload of much scientific equipment. (twiar) WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FINAL FRONTIER AMSAT-VK Secretary - secretary@amsat-vk.org Children Ask ISS Astronaut About Games, Skills and Breaking Things: If you got a chance to speak to an astronaut in space, what would you ask them? Well, a group of pupils from northern Scotland were lucky enough to put their questions to Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk as part of an historic event. The students took part in the first direct amateur radio contact between Scotland and the International Space Station. Children between the age of five and 17 had been preparing for the huge moment for months, and were able to speak live to the ISS from Wick High School in Caithness. EXPERIMENTAL SATELLITE PUTS AI DATA CENTER IN SPACE Solar-powered amateur radio satellites are welcoming a newcomer into their low-earth orbit -- but this satellite isn't for radio - it's an AI experiment and its launch will allow Google to test whether its objective - to run an AI data centre from space - can become reality. Operating with One Thousand watts of power, the solar-powered satellite is offering a trial run of Google's tensor processing units, to determine whether they can survive the harsh conditions of space temperatures and radiation. Google hopes to have two such satellites launched sometime in 2027. (newsline2553) Three German-built ERMINAZ-2 PocketQube satellites have joined the growing fleet of amateur radio satellites in sun-synchronous orbit. The trio, carrying the call signs DP 0 PQA, DP 0 PQB and DP 0 PQC, transmit telemetry and radiation data on VHF and UHF frequencies using open-source protocols. (eHam) Blue Origin has unveiled a towering solar power system designed to help provide electricity for future operations near the Moons south pole. Called the Power Tower, the vertically deployed solar array stands approximately 20 meters (65 feet) tall and is designed to generate more than 10 kilowatts of electrical power. The company envisions the system supporting future lunar surface infrastructure, where reliable electrical power will be needed for scientific instruments, communications equipment, rovers, thermal control systems and eventually crewed facilities. (amsat) It was a milestone for public education in Chile and it lasted exactly 10 minutes: the first direct amateur radio contact between the International Space Station and a public school in that nation. It will be a long time before students at the Mary Graham Bicentennial High School forget the lessons delivered to them from space by NASA astronaut Jack Hathaway KJ5NIV, who was using the callsign NA1SS. As the space station passed into visible orbit over Chile, the teenagers read the questions they had prepared to ask on space exploration, technology and microgravity. This ARISS contact was a first for a DIRECT via RF contact by a Chilean public school. (newsline2554) WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - IOTA iota-world.org/ Pohnpei, Micronesia OC-010. Masa, JM1LBO will be active as V 63 SC from Pohnpei (OC-010), Micronesia 22ND UNTIL 26th October. He will operate SSB and FT8 on 80-2 metres. QSL V63SC via LoTW, eQSL or direct to home call which again is JM 1 LBO. (425dxnews) --------- Rarotonga OC-013, South Cook Islands E51A will be active holiday style from Rarotonga (OC-013), South Cook Islands on 14-22 November. E51A's main objective will be to prepare for an all-band all-mode DXpedition to the NORTH Cook Islands planned for 2027. Anyone interested in joining this operation can contact yt5a@yahoo.com ------ Futuna Island IOTA OC-118 Gavin, (GM3GAV), will be operating as FW3GT from Futuna Island (IOTA OC-118) between October 31st and November 14th. Futuna is the rarest of the islands in the Hoorn Islands Group (OC-118) with a very low credited score to IOTA Chasers. QSL FW3GT via M0OXO. (m0oxo) --------- Cocos (Keeling) Islands OC-003 From 20th to 27th November, David VK6DS will be activating Cocos (Keeling) Islands as VK9DS (in holiday mode). (vk6ds) ---------- Christmas Island OC-002 David VK6DS will be activating Christmas Island, also as VK9DS after Nov 27 until about 4th December. (vk6ds) -------- OC REMINDERS ------------- Sands, VK4WXW has returned to Willis Island OC-007 and will be on station at the Australian Bureau of Meteorology's weather monitoring facility until late October or early November. He expects to become increasingly active as VK 9 WX in the coming weeks SSB and FT8 on 40, 20, 15 and 10 metres. QSL via M 0 OXO's OQRS. (425dxnes) ---------------- Team KH8A will be active from Pago Pago (OC-045), American Samoa from 30 October to 12 November. Plans are CW, SSB, FT8 (MSHV) and RTTY on 160-6 metres with four stations 24/7. QSL via Club Log's OQRS, or via DL4SVA; BUT full LoTW upload will be after six months. kh8a.mydx.de/updates. (425dxnews) -------------- Futuna Island IOTA OC-118 Gavin, (GM3GAV), will be operating as FW3GT from Futuna Island (IOTA OC-118) between October 31st and November 14th, 2026. Futuna is the rarest of the islands in the Hoorn Islands Group (OC-118) with a very low credited score to IOTA Chasers. Gavin will be using a multiband vertical and amplifier located at a QTH adjacent to the Ocean. QSL FW3GT via M0OXO. (m0oxo) ------------ Rarotonga OC-013, South Cook Islands E51A will be active holiday style from Rarotonga (OC-013), South Cook Islands on 14-22 November. E51A's main objective will be to prepare for an all-band all-mode DXpedition to the NORTH Cook Islands planned for 25 September-10 October 2027. (anyone interested in joining this operation can contact Hrane on yt5a@yahoo.com ) -------------- OC-195 DEAL ISLAND. John VK1AX is now active from Deal Island (OC-195) through until late November. Deal Island is in northern Bass Strait, between north-east Tasmania and Wilsons Promontory, in Victoria. John in his spare time operates FT8 mainly but some SSB on 80-10 metres. (425dxnews) -------- VK9X The Pacific Islands DXpedition Group and Youth on the Air (YOTA) have announced the VK9XY DXpedition to Christmas Island OC-002) running from 16 November to 4 December. ---------- Bernhard, DL2GAC is active again as H44MS from the Solomon Islands until November 20, and then again between 5th February and 4th May 2027. Usually he is QRV from Malaita Island OC-047 on a daily basis, with activity on 80-6 metres SSB and FT8. QSL H44MS via home call, (again that's DL2AC) direct or bureau; QSOs will be uploaded to LoTW and ClubLog (425dxn1847) WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- RADIO AMATEUR YOUNG TIMERS - YOTA (Youngsters On The Air) ham-yota.com/category/yota-region-3/ facebook.com/groups/YOTAOC/ youtube.com/channel/UClAapljf0VQ751sOgu2IzaA It's off to the USA now and to Cleveland. A nine-year-old Bay Village student named Paige just became a licensed amateur radio operator, passing the federal exam with a near-perfect score and earning her own government-issued call sign before most kids her age have finished long division. She took the Technician Class exam, correctly answering 33 of 35 questions. To pass the entry-level Technician Class exam, candidates need at least 26 correct answers out of 35, a 74 percent threshold, with questions drawn from a nationwide pool maintained by volunteer examiner coordinators. Paige cleared that bar comfortably with her score of 33, a margin that reflects real command of the material rather than a narrow pass. tinyurl.com/yncft7wu (eHam) December is Youngsters On The Air Month, providing young radio amateurs across the world to continue with the fun we know as HAM RADIO. When you hear on air a callsign GB 26 YOTA well that is a group of young timers in the UK. Youngsters on the air is a special IARU initiative that encourages young amateur radio operators to get on the air, make contacts around the world, and showcase amateur radio to other young people. Also all throughout December from right here in Australia is the VK YOTA CONTEST this month-long, marathon-style amateur radio competition is organized by the Fisher's Ghost Amateur Radio Club. yota.fgarc.org.au/pages/about.php Jamboree on the Air weekend is here and it's the worlds largest digital and radio Scout event promoting friendship and global citizenship. JOTA celebrates amateur radio among the Scout Association. If you are feeling keen to contact Scouts n Guides in the United Kingdom The Radio Society of Great Britain has compiled a list of JOTA stations which are shared in the text editions of this the WIA NATIONAL NEWS SERVICE best read on wia.org.au (sourced to rsgb front page news) WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- SOFTWARE FOR HAMS GridNomad is not another award for simply collecting Maidenhead GRIDs. The idea is to let radio amateurs create their own radio adventures and challenges and has been created by EA5JZU. An adventure could be a long campervan trip where you activate different GRIDs along the route, several SOTA summits grouped into one challenge, a sailing trip divided into different stages, a club activity, a satellite adventure, or something completely different. Adventures can be activated by one operator, a closed group, or be fully collaborative. Hunters are an important part too: activators need their QSOs to complete the challenge, while hunters can follow adventures, capture their units/GRIDs and earn custom badges created for each adventure. GridNomad can be combined with POTA, SOTA, satellites, HF, VHF/UHF and portable operating. The platform is free and available in English and half a dozen other languages. cqgridnomad.com (eHam) WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- VHF AND WAY ABOVE. Discovering Ham Radio Via Moonbounce Ham radio demonstrations typically focus on the value of amateur radio in emergency communications or the fun of talking around the world without relying on wired infrastructure. But Paul Sobon, NOT, takes a different approach, introducing the public to amateur radio through one of its most esoteric modes, moonbounce. Paul is also an amateur astronomer and president of the Deep Space Exploration Society. Kids and the greater general public can hear their own voice bounced off the surface of the moon via Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) contacts on 1296 MHz. EME is a great way to introduce young kids to ham radio since it is so unique from how they communicate today. It combines science, outer space and communications for a totally different experience. After hearing their own voice come back from space, they look at the moon very differently now. (arrl) ------------------------------------------------------------* IT'S A DATE Clubs are welcome to email text with audio for this section, nationalnews@wia.org.au Details of all WIA affiliated clubs and societies can be found on the WIA website, including email addresses and website links. --------------------- SOCIAL SCENE 2026 ------------------ As I LEAVE YOU FROM THIS SPECIAL JOTA EDTION OF WIA NATIONAL NEWS A REMINDER IN VK7, THE Tassie Ham-E-Con Radio Conference HAPPENS Nov 7 and 8 UTAS Sandy Bay Campus. Thanks thanks for listening and for viewing and catch you NEXT year for JOTA 2027. The flagship 26th World Scout Jamboree, taking place in Poland from July 30 to August 8, 2027 is "Bravely". This theme focuses on encouraging young people to discover their potential, be true to themselves, respect diversity, and act courageously for the planet. ...... bye byes Submitting news items If you would like to submit news items for possible inclusion in the VK1WIA broadcasts, please email your item in text to nationalnews@wia.org.au and don't JUST send url's links or posters, but take the time to pen YOUR contribution. To submit audio, email nationalnews@wia.org.au and send BOTH the audio and the text We would appreciate items certainly no longer than 1.5 mts in length as we only have a half hour. Remember the sooner you submit material the more the likelihood of it being broadcast in the very next edition of WIA National News. Each recorded item will only be broadcast once, if you want a couple of mentions, please submit different slants to keep your event 'fresh' and always if the news room is to read your item --- write it in the 3rd person. (First if YOU are reading your own item). If you are mentioning your own name / call in the story, say something like "and myself, Pat, vk11abc" Promote your local rebroadcast; details on wia.org.au/members/broadcast/contribute/ A reminder when supplying HamFest info we obviously can't plug DEALS from commercial traders "on air", but we at the WIA will put your supporters 'goods' in this text edition "no worries." We will not give blatant 'plugs' to raffles, be it raffles at the event or "on-line". ------------------------------------------------------------* Oh... and to contact us with your news because If It Matters To You It Matters To Us! Click the links below to download the most recent edition of National News, BUT this is ONLY the backup site! WIANEWS backup thanks to Brendan VK4BLP can be found on wiaq.org.au BACKUPS OF THE BACKUP!! thanks to Tony VK7AX www.vk7ax.id.au/wianews/ wia.org.au/members/broadcast/wianews/ (This is the link to the original text version and original audio on wia site) ------------------------------------------------------------* WIANews - we've reported...YOU decide. TWITTER twitter.com/VK1WIA Societies and Club News Letter Editors can EXCHANGE a feed prior to the actual broadcast date, e-mail nationalnews@wia.org.au Call-backs follow the RF editions, but also for text readers you may lodge a quick reply to let us know you read it, who knows, you might even get a "cheerio call". Thanks to our dedicated band of broadcast volunteers who utilize their time and equipment in bringing you this weekly broadcast. Who and where are they? wia.org.au/members/broadcast/where/ Promote your local rebroadcast; details on wia.org.au/members/broadcast/contribute/ The purpose of "WIANews" is to rapidly provide news of interest to WIA affiliated clubs and active amateurs residing in Australia and the globe. We strongly encourage membership in the Wireless Institute of Australia and participation in the activities of local clubs. Opinions expressed in "WIANews" are those of the writers who submit material and do not necessarily reflect those of the rebroadcasters, nor the National WIA, but IF broadcast, are done so in the spirit in which they were submitted." If you would like to see the call-backs reported each broadcast, OR have call-backs to contribute to the National News call back tally then please send through your call-backs to callbacks@wia.org.au How do I join this REBROADCASTERS List? (subscribe for an automatic feed.) Email to vk1wia-broadcasters-join@lists.wia.org.au from the email account that you wish the emails to go to. How do I join this National News List? (subscribe for an automatic weekly feed.) Email to vk1wia-news-join@lists.wia.org.au from the email account that you wish the emails to go to. How do I leave this National News List? (unsubscribe your weekly feed) Open mail program which sends mail from the address you want to unsubscribe from. Send unsubscribe to the list unsubscribe address vk1wia-news-leave@lists.wia.org.au You will be sent a confirmation mail and must follow the instructions given in that mail to complete the unsubscription. Once your unsubscription has been processed, you will probably receive a message confirming your unsubscription from the list and at that point you should stop receiving messages. ------------------------------------------------------------*