2026 NOVEMBER 8 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 ------------------------------------------------------------* I'm EDITOR GRAHAM VK4BB WITH WIA NATIONAL NEWS, WEEK COMMENCING NOV 8. We have a lot to get through today, packed with stories that may affect you. So many contributors including VK3KJ, VK2LP, 2LAW, 4FUQ, VK4JJW, VK2COD, 3FFF, 2NWT, 2SKY, and VK3GTV. So buckle up and listen quicker than usual. WIA JOIN THE WIA tinyurl.com/yyj87b9y A warm welcome to all listeners of WIA NATIONAL NEWS this week. On behalf of the WIA Board of Directors, this is WIA President Scott Williams, VK3KJ. Last weekend I had the pleasure of attend the World Wide Flora & Fauna, (VKFF) Australian chapter get together in Albury NSW. It was wonderful to see about 90 individuals come together for a weekend of activity with some individuals attending from as far as VK6 and VK4. The event had a great range of talks on the Saturday with several organisations having display tables, including the WIA. The day was rounded off with a great dinner that evening with Paul VK5PAS (VKFF National Coordinator) being recognised formally in a presentation for this long-term contribution to VKFF..congratulations Paul on behalf of the WIA. It was a great weekend and so nice to interact with so many WIA members that were in attendance. My congratulations to Paul (VK5PAS), Marija (VK5MAZ) and the whole VKFF team for great get together and event. One of the great benefits of being a director is getting out and about and meeting current and hopefully future WIA members. Three WIA Directors will be attending the Tassie Ham-E Con Amateur Radio Conference in Hobart this weekend the 7th & 8th November. Of particular interest is the true south forum on the Sunday, which will be all about exploring the future of amateur radio. If you are attending this weekend in Hobart, make sure you reach out and say hello to the WIA Directors in attendance. Finally, I want to make a special shout out and say thank you to Steve Kennedy (VK6SJ) from Comtek Radio for supporting Amateur Radio in Australia. For those of you that have attended a HamFest recently, or one of the main get together events, more than likely you would have come across Steve. Comtek Radio has attended 13 events since May 2026 and will be attending GCARC on the Gold Coast this weekend, SPARC in Sale on the 15th November and then AREG in Adelaide on 21st November before finally retuning back home to Perth. That is around 15,000 kms travelled since May on the road. This effort warrants special recognition and thank you Comtek Radio for supporting WIA Affiliated Clubs and the broader amateur radio community through your displays and sponsorship. Thats it for me this week and this has been Scott Williams (VK3KJ) on behalf of the WIA Board. I look forward to talking to you on air soon. 73 Call for Nominations as a Director of the WIA Pursuant to the Constitution of the Wireless Institute of Australia, The Board has determined that the election of Directors shall be conducted by ballot. Nominations opened on the 1st of November 2026. Four Directors retire at the conclusion of the next Annual General Meeting, which will be held in May 2027. The retiring Directors are Scott Williams VK3KJ Peter Schrader VK4EA Giles Kirby VK5GK and Peter Clee VK8ZZ. Each retiring Director is eligible for re-election. Nominations are called from persons seeking election as a Director of the WIA. A Director must be a voting member of the WIA, must hold an Australian amateur radio license and a Company Director Identification Number. Any person wishing to nominate as a candidate for election as Director of the WIA must deliver or cause to be delivered to the Returning Officer by not later than 2.30pm on 18 December 2026 a nomination form. The nomination form is available on the WIA web site and at the link in the text edition of this broadcast. You may also obtain one by emailing a nomination form request to ReturningOfficer@nationaloffice.wia.org.au. Candidate information will be posted online and emailed to members. Members are requested to ensure that their email address is correctly recorded in the WIA membership register. Nominations received by facsimile or by electronic means cannot be accepted. This has been Pete Cherry VK2LP WIA Returning Officer tinyurl.com/2c2pjp4e ------------------------------------------------------------* 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. TIME GENTLEMEN - TIME. After more than 50 years of occasionally adding an extra second to the worlds clocks, international timekeepers have decided that the leap second has had its day. For we radio amateurs, particularly those involved in digital modes, satellite communications and precision frequency measurement, the decision has some interesting implications. According to 'T.W.I.A.R." The decision, made under the auspices of the International Bureau of Weights and Measures, means the current practice of inserting leap seconds to keep atomic time closely aligned with the Earths rotation will be discontinued. The change takes effect on 20 May 2027. SOUTH AMERICA The event in the Chilean municipality of Villa Alemana was heralded as two days of "geek culture," a festival of sorts for nerds and hobbyists. Radio-controlled cars, action figures and musicians were among those stealing the scene at the popular Hobby Planet fair, where admission was free and imaginations wild. Mingling in the environment was the Radio Club Los Molinos CE 2 CQ, whose members exhibited high tech systems and also demonstrated vintage vacuum-tube radios, providing a history lesson for the youngsters. Visitors also learned how amateur radio works as a communications lifeline in emergencies. PY1NB is the amateur radio callsign of Felipe Ceglia, the well-known Brazilian ham radio operator and a developer of The Reverse Beacon Network. This RBN haxs just been awarded the latest YASME Excellence Award. Established in 2008 by the Yasme Foundation, the Excellence Award is presented to individuals and groups who, through their own service, creativity, effort and dedication have made a significant contribution to amateur radio. The award to RBN recognizes the contributions to amateur radio by the team in support of a global, volunteer-operated network of automated amateur radio receiver stations that listen to radio bands and report who is transmitting in near-real time. The network typically has 250 active nodes around the world measuring a station's frequency, signal strength, signal to noise radio, and sending speed which is then reported live to a central database. CANADA Local Council Backs Amateur Radio Request: Members from Prince Edward Island amateur radio groups approached the Town of Tignish about installing one of their antennas to the community's own radio tower to help improve backup communications across the Island. Council are aware of Amateur radio beings a licensed non-commercial radio service that can communicate both locally or long distance without cellular or Internet and during emergencies, amateur radio operators can provide backup communication support when regular telephone, Internet or cellular systems are disrupted. USA RADIO IS KING WHEN IT COMES TO "WHO'S THE BOSS". Political advertising has shattered another milestone, surpassing $11 billion in aired spending for the 2025-26 election cycle. AdImpact says $3.84 billion in political ads aired during October alone, up 54% from October 2022. With future advertising reservations included, the cycle has now surpassed $11.6 billion, making it the most expensive political advertising cycle Min US history. EUROPE Open-source software, Software Defined Radio, satellite experimentation and wireless innovation will come together at FOSDEM 2027, providing a fantastic opportunity for amateur radio to demonstrate its continuing relevance in the modern technological world. International Amateur Radio Union Region 1 has announced that FOSDEM 2027, being held in Brussels, Belgium, January 2027, will feature a dedicated Amateur Radio Developer Room. They invite radio amateurs, software developers, experimenters and researchers to contribute presentations showcasing innovative applications of free and open-source radio technology to the event. The WorldDAB organization will hold its annual summit Nov. 19 in Vienna. The meeting will be in a hotel in DC Tower 1, Austrias tallest office building and a DAB+ transmission site. On the agenda, trials, launches and rollouts in Ireland, Spain, Kenya and Thailand. WorldDAB said about a third of the worlds countries are actively engaged with DAB+, noting a call for applications for national multiplexes in Poland and the launch of permanent Automatic Safety Alert broadcasts in Germany. WEIRD AND WONDERFUL This story is via Hackaday: A Mechanical Radio, Sort Of. No this isn't about "wind up radios" (although Richard VK2SKY will crank up that story a little later re the UK.) The blog called [The Mike Stuff] has an interesting proposition. He asserts that ancient people like the Greeks could have built a form of radio that was purely mechanical. We arent sure we agree, but even if it were possible, we are sure it would have sounded awful. You can see the details in the video with its link in the text edition of this, WIA NATIONAL NEWS youtube.com/watch?v=D610xgD9iC0 The idea is that you can compress air with a waterwheel, blow it through a rotating disk with slots in it, and a valve to amplitude modulate the airflow through the disk. Horns like an old gramophone speaker would amplify the signal at both ends. The demodulation is straightforward and doesnt even require power, like compressed air. This is a fun idea, but even [Mike] notes it wouldnt be very good. We suspect youd just hear a 10 kHz buzz. On the other hand, this would be pretty easy to build if you wanted to test it. Use an electric motor to spin the disk after all, well stipulate that you could turn a disk with water power, even if speed control is a little challenging. If you build it, wed love to hear about it. Just dont use it to send us an air-radio message. Try e-mail instead, nationalnews@wia.org.au ------------------------------------------------------------------- OPERATIONAL NEWS - -------------- -------------- NOW CONTEST WISE:- 2026 WIA contest page :- wia.org.au/members/contests/about/ ----------------- ---------- 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 - Oleg ZS 1 ANF will be active as ZS 7 ANF from Wolf's Fang Runway, Which-away Camp, and possibly other sites in Antarctica starting around mid November until late February 2027. He will operate CW on 40-10 metres. QSL via RK 1 PWA and LoTW. (425dxnews1852) --------- Special callsign OT5IDPD is active December 3 for International Day of Persons with Disabilities, whose annual observance on the 3rd of December was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1992. All operators of OT 5 IDPD will be hams with a disability. The logs will be uploaded to LoTW, Club Log and eQSL; all QSOs will be confirmed automatically via the bureau. (425DXNEWS1845) ----------- Tom VK2TBC is active as VK 0 TBC from Casey Station, Antarctica until December. He will operate SSB and FT8. vk2tbc.com (425dxnews) ------------ TF 80 IRA This is the special callsign used by club station of Icelandic Radio Amateurs (IRA) to celebrate the 80th anniversary since the foundation of Iceland's IARU member society (14 August 1947). Look for activity until end of year. QSL via the bureau, direct, and LoTW. (425dxnews) ------------------------------------------------------------* WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - IOTA iota-world.org/ --------- ------ -------- WE START WITH SOME OC REMINDERS ------------- 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 2027. (anyone interested in joining this operation can contact Hrane on yt5a@yahoo.com ) -------------- New Caledonia OC-032. Listen for the callsign FK/KD6XU from New Caledonia, IOTA Number OC-032, where Barry KD6XU expects to be until the middle of November. His activation, using CW, is expected to include some POTA locations. (newsline2556) ------------- WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FINAL FRONTIER AMSAT-VK Secretary - secretary@amsat-vk.org Venusbounce (With a Message) Last week here on WIA NATIONAL NEWS you'll recall the EME (Earth Mars Earth message inbound from that red planet to VK4FUQ Felix, well -- What about EVE Earth-Venus-Earth? A series of transmissions from the Netherlands on October 17 and 18 resulted in the third-ever ( 3RD! ) successful amateur radio EVE reception, including the first-ever reception of a message, VENUS ECHO. camras.nl/en/blog/2026/earth-venus-earth-2026/ This most recent transmissions included messages in several formats and the echoes were received at multiple radio telescopes. However, the signals were so weak that it took 40 minutes of echoes to decode the entire 10-character message. The next EVE opportunity will not be until June of 2028, and the eventual goal is to complete a 2-way EVE QSO. arrl.org/arrlletterissue?issue=2026-10-29 (arrl letter) Earlier this year, she was one of four persons to be proclaimed Australian of the Year Prime Minister Mr. Anthony Albanese . Now the Australian government is hoping she's on her way to becoming the first astronaut to fly to the International Space Station under the Australian flag. John Williams VK4JJW introduces us to her. Australian officials have made a bid to the European Space Agency, hoping to secure a spot on the crew for Katherine Bennell-Pegg for a 2028 mission to the ISS. The proposal on behalf of the space systems engineer has been called a cost-prohibitive one for the Australian government and has spurred private fundraising activity. The Australian Space Agency's director of space technology completed her basic astronaut training with the ESA in 2024. Australia's science minister is among those who have noted that such a trip would be costly for the Australian government. Officials are nonetheless optimistic as philanthropists and others step forward to help finance what could amount to a trip costing several million Australian dollars. Other astronauts from Australia have flown into space - two as US citizens on NASA missions and one aboard the private Blue Origin's suborbital flight - but Katherine would be the first representing Australia. She has a reputation as a visible and vocal proponent of STEM education and has been at the helm of a national education program to encourage space studies and communications. As such, her next trip is much more assured here on earth - having completed her recent orbit through schools in the Northern Territory, the STEM ambassador talks in November to students in New South Wales. This is John Williams VK4JJW, back to you Jason.. How do astronauts go to the bathroom in space? What time zone does an astronaut use when they decide to go to sleep? Those are just some of the questions students in Canada have been developing as they prepare to speak with Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk aboard the International Space Station sometime in mid-December. Alberta's Elk Point Elementary School and F.G. Miller Junior/Senior High School have been organizing the event, which is going to be a live conversation with Joshua Kutryk, which is expected to last about 10 minutes, with students gathering in the F.G. Miller gym for the occasion. It's really exciting for our whole community, not just to talk to any astronaut, but one that is really connected to our area here, said Elk Point Elementary principal Garth Finlay. In his youth, the astronaut spent some time attending Elk Point Elementary. Finlay said contact is tentatively planned between Dec. 14 to 18, BUT WAIT. How would YOUR school like to join the average human being able to speak with the astronauts? We are joined by VK2NWT. tinyurl.com/2h7dhdj2 (eHam) This is Angelo Giuffre, VK2NWT with some ARISS news for November 8. Currently there are no upcoming ARISS contacts with Australian or New Zealand schools in the short term, however, there are several approved applications that are now awaiting scheduling in 2027. Whether you are a club or an individual that is considering arranging an ARISS contact now is the time to be out there doing your bit for introducing this exciting aspect of Amateur Radio to a local school, scout group or learning institution to gauge their interest and prepare an application. A few months ago, I approached one of the local schools in my town with the idea of an ARISS contact and they jumped at it. Their application was subsequently approved, and they are now awaiting scheduling sometime in 2027. If I can do it, anyone can! Applications for Australian and New Zealand contacts which are now handled exclusively by our Australian ARISS Coordinator, Shane VK4KHZ, must still be made several months in advance for any chance to become an approved scheduled contact. When you take into consideration that the ISS is expected to be decommissioned by the end of 2030, that really leaves only three years left to get in line with the rest of the world and to have a crack at getting an approved contact. You can find out how to apply for contact by searching for ARISS on the WIA webpage or via the links in the text version of this segment or by tuning next weeks WIA NATIONAL NEWS. wia.org.au/members/ariss/apply/ For WIA National News this is Angelo VK2NWT WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- RADIO SCOUTING. Waleed Akram, founder of onlinemorsecode.com dropped a note to those clubs already planning their JOTA-JOTI stations for 2027 have a free practice tool worth knowing about. Online Morse Code on onlinemorsecode.com, is a browser-based Morse translator that needs no installation and no sign-up handy when a Scout group arrives and the code needs to be simple. Young operators can translate their names and greetings to Morse and back, hear them as proper CW audio at adjustable speeds, and download the audio to practise away from the station. A free printable Morse chart is available for the station table, and plain-language learning guides give newcomers a gentle start before the event. The site also decodes recorded Morse audio back to text, which clubs may find useful for training nights. It operates in seventeen languages, including a Filipino edition supporting the complete Filipino alphabet. The site is free for clubs, Scout groups and individual amateurs alike, and can be found at the link in all text versions of this the WIA NATIONAL NEWS SERVICE. onlinemorsecode.com. 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 Thank you Bruce On 17th October 2026, Muhammad Salman AP2MS visited the NJV Government Higher Secondary School in Karachi, Pakistan He met with around 50 students from Classes 6 to 10 to conduct an introductory session on Amateur Radio. The session introduced the students to the fascinating world of ham radio. He explained how it works, the different modes of communication, and its importance in today's interconnected world. Special emphasis was placed on the vital role of amateur radio in emergency and disaster situations, particularly when conventional comms networks go down. The session also highlighted how ham radio promotes technical learning, experimentation, problem-solving, and a spirit of public service among young people. Muhammad wrote in his article It was truly encouraging to interact with so many young students and witness their curiosity about radio communication and its practical applications. He went on to state Introducing the younger generation to amateur radio is an important step towards nurturing future radio amateurs and raising awareness about the value of independent and reliable communication. For WIA National News, I am Alan VK2COD in Sydney, now back to you Bruce. tinyurl.com/3rkm64zc WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- RESCUE RADIO wicen.org.au facebook.com/WICENNSW x.com/wicennsw groups.io/g/vk4-emcomms AND NOW RICHARD JOINS US:- Public Service Alerts via DMR: Matt VK2FLY reports that he has updated IPSC3 to broadcast Australian weather alerts, as well as Bush Fire alerts in New South Wales. The alerts will be targeted to DMR repeaters and hotspots located near the affected areas, and will be heard on all talk groups, so that you don't miss any important safety information. The alert system will also broadcast a test message every Thursday at 1pm local time wherever you are. In the United Kingdom, wind-up emergency radios have been in short supply recently, after the government launched its "Be Ready" campaign, advising the public to increase their emergency preparedness for potential crises. Other advice is to keep on-hand a three-day supply of cash, bottled water, and tinned food. The main concern seems to centre around severe weather and power outages. Regarding any potential risks, the UK government has said that the public should be "alert not alarmed": where have we heard that phrase before? Whether this raised awareness results in a greater interest in Amateur Radio, or in RAYNET (WICEN's counterpart in the UK), remains to be seen. We're not immune to severe weather here in Australia, of course, so how would you and your Amateur Radio station fare if the grid were to go down? For WICEN NSW, I'm Richard VK2SKY. Links: Public Safety alerts via DMR: https://www.facebook.com/groups/691451895982586/posts/1651065226687910, and system test messages every Thursday: https://www.facebook.com/groups/691451895982586/posts/1654607479667018 Wind-up radios selling out after government advises public to stockpile for crisis: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/stockpile-emergency-wind-up-radios-government-b3072901.html WICEN web portal: wicen.org.au WICEN NSW on the web: nsw.wicen.org.au WICEN NSW on X: x.com/wicennsw WICEN - Amateur Radio Communications on Facebook: facebook.com/groups/124735400158 WICEN NSW on Facebook: facebook.com/WICENNSW VK4 WICEN EmComms email list: groups.io/g/vk4-emcomms WE WRAP-UP SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP NEWS WITH COL VK3GTV & SOFTWARE FOR HAMS Ham-Rx -- Free Bluetooth Programming Software for the Baofeng MINI-5: Ham-Rx allows users to read, edit, organize, and write radio programming directly over Bluetooth using Chrome or Edge. Written by K4RJM, no programming cable or software installation is required. Ham-Rx is completely FREE, with no subscriptions, advertising, or paid features and the source code is publicly available. HAM-RX k4rjm.github.io/baofeng-mini5-bt-cps-unofficial/ SOURCE CODE. github.com/K4RJM/baofeng-mini5-bt-cps-unofficial (eHam) FREEDV FreeDV is a suite of digital voice modes for HF radio. The flagship mode is the RADE (Radio Autoencoder). You can run RADE using a free GUI application for Windows, Linux and macOS that allows any SSB radio to be used for high quality digital voice. Amateur Radio is transitioning from analogue to digital, much as it transitioned from AM to SSB in the 1950s and 1960s. You are in control of this technology! FreeDV uses 100-percent Open Source Software, including the speech codec. No secrets, nothing proprietary! FreeDV represents a path for 21st-century Amateur Radio where Hams are free to experiment and innovate rather than a future locked into a single manufacturer's closed technology. (sourced to eHam) ------------------------------------------------------------* 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 ------------------ In VK7 - Tassie Ham-E-Con Radio Conference Nov 7 and 8 UTAS Sandy Bay reast.asn.au/news-events/tassie-ham-radio-conference/ VK4 -Gold Coast HamFest - Sunday Nov 8, Country Paradise Parklands 231 Beaudesert-Nerang Rd. Nerang from 9am. (gchamfest) VK3 - Southern Peninsula Amateur Radio Club Giant Car Boot Sale November 15 Dromana 3 Drive-In Theatre Nepean Hwy 10am (wiacal) VK5 - Adelaide Amateur Radio & Electronics Car Boot Sale Dogs SA Showground, Cromwell Road, Kilburn 10.00am. November 21. (wiacal) VK - WIA Affiliated Clubs Presidents' Webinar 6 December (vk7tw) VK - LOWER TOWERS FOR SANTAS ARRIVAL EVENING OF DECEMBER 24 (npoleradio) Now till next we meet, thanks to all of todays contributors, and thanks especially for keeping all your input to 90 seconds or less, I'm Graham vk4bb walk softly. ------------------------------------------------------------*