Warm welcome to new permanent Radio Operator SV2RSG Monk Iakovos from 16`th most wanted DXCC - Mount Athos
Had pleasure to make 2-way QSO with him today on 21Mhz CW. Which is nice surprise for my 2`nd ever QSO in CW with this entity. Location is "easy" from EU so the only thing to avoid big EU pile-up is to wait for best opening from his location and this is what I did today. To be honest Greece is always strong on higher bands and to make QSO is not difficult.
On DX Cluster his call-sign can look like Greece but is Mount Athos! So keep an eye for SV2RSG.
His CW was slow at about 16 wpm but I hope Monk Iakovos will only get better. It was good to see him operating in split mode when it was necessary.
Landing permission obtained ! Papa Lima DX & Contest Group will participate in IOTA Contest 2016 from EU-103 Little Island as EJ1Y. Possible operation as EJ0PL before and after Contest.
1) Botswana on the AIR! Thanks to A25UK I have two new bands needed from this DXCC - 30 and 12
2) FT4XU - Kergulen Island CFM on LoTW - great surprise , new DXCC , looking forward for paper QSL
3) V31YN - Gerd thank you for log re-search and upload my QSO again. 12M Belize CFM at last...
4) T8XX Ulf (DL5AXX) - thank you for LoTW upload your Palau 2012 DXpedition - 30M band new slot !
5) S0S - Western Sahara arrived on LoTW as new DXCC !
QSO made on 10M SSB during CQWW SSB ....
6) Later today S01WS
Western Sahara again - main log uploaded to LoTW !!! Almost all slots worked CFM by card already now on LoTW. Did not expect this DXCC to see on LoTW. Waiting only for 30M QSO to show-up there made in 2015 .....
6) V73D - Marshall Islands received on LoTW as well. 30M new band and also 20M SSB new on phone! Many thanks.
FT4JA went QRT on Sunday 10.04. My last QSO was on 20M CW - few days ago started with 20M RTTY and finished on 20M CW ... on 20M CW operator was Pat F2DX and I`ve received EI9KC 5NN 73. Last year on 3G0ZC Juan Fernandez 2015 I was with Pat in the Team.
F2DX and F6BEE were active from Mayotte before Juan de Nova and Pat gave me new DXCC on 30M!
FT4JA by Pat F2DX CW 39 WPM
FT4JA - 15M CW
Juan de Nova 2016 was pleasure to work and I am happy to have them in the log on 8 bands and 3 emissions. Smooth operation from start to finish. Great Team and well organized! Few operators from Juan de Nova in 2014 activated FT4TA. They learnt they lesson I believe. Tromelin was hard to work. I`ve remember how it was to get into their log. Juan de Nova was much , much easier.
OQRS + donation just done. During OQRS I`ve found two QSO I did not make it 17 SSB and 17CW it must be some mistake or other station incorrectly logged.
VK0EK Team is QRT on Heard Island preparing to leave and 2 weeks journey to South Africa.
I did my OQRS yesterday plus did donation to a Team for fantastic DXCC in my log and received this morning fresh LoTW upload with all my VK0EK QSO confirmed.
It was great pleasure to hear and work and wait for hours on some
band for such a remote pleace on the Earth to be activated on HAM Radio bands.
Brief summary per band from my point of view:
160 - No luck to made 2-way QSO but . SWL two or three times. We`ve lost inverted L during winter storms and it we installed inv V on TB for SPDX Contest fixed also EU beverage which was on the same direction as VK0EK / FT4JA - 250M of coax had big loss and signals were not so strong.
20 - big question mark ? why I didn`t log Heard Island on 14Mhz. Many hours waiting , SWL about 3 or 4 openings three times in the morning via LP and once in the evening but no QSO. There was always something .... JA Wall / QSY to different bands or no QRV at our "best time" I don`t know why but it must be reasons - why VK0EK didn`t QRV at about 16-19 UTC on 14Mhz ..... For example my only QSO with Kergulen FT4XU Nicolas 4 months ago was at around 18:00 on 20M. Nicolas was using single dipole at human height , low power , etc Kergulen Island is "not too far" .... at the moment when I am writing this post FT4JA QRV on 20M (16:37 UTC) and they are real 5NN on my S-meter
FT4JA on 20M - where was Heard Island on 20M ????
This answer know only The VK0EK Team ...
17 / 15 - quiet signals but workable - only CW for sure
15 SSB - has to be done from good antenna - managed QSO from Papa Lima location on 3 ele full size 21Mhz antenna. Signal low as a whisper - SWL`ed just 2 times their phone operation.
This recording of VK0EK on SSB is very unique in EI
VK0EK by UT6UD Vaydm on SSB 21Mhz
15M SSB QSO on DXA
12 - hours of waiting for good shape signal .... one week ago when workable on 12M was NA NA only .... then next day ... missed opening - 4 EI worked them on 12 ... had to wait another few days for good chance and I`ve took it! 2 weeks waiting for QSO on 24Mhz finally in the log!
10 - no EI station logged them on this band. Full time Dxers didn`t manage it. Must say it was almost impossible. That day when I`ve worked them on 12M I`ve SWL VK0EK signal on 28034 Mhz for 30 seconds .... yes 30 seconds ....
DXA website was great tool. Probably most viewed site by DX hunters last 2 weeks. Had it on always beside my DX-Cluster :) I wish to see DXA working again in the future from some of Most Wanted DXCC. Great joy!
So well , Heard Island in my log on 6 bands and three modes. Not too bad and I am happy with that.
Thanks for good thrill and looking forward QSL card managed by top QSL Manager these days Tim M0URX!
Last night I`ve participated in SSB part of UKEI 80M sprint. This time from EI0PL Club Station as I was there to chase some DX on low bands :)
80M was noisy and recently fixed EU beverage helps a lot!
66 QSOs - 1 busted call. Best QSO with SQ9ZBC Marcin 1982 km. I did some propaganda about this sprint on polish message board and it is nice to see few SP station in this competition.
Last night contacts
I was using EI0PL call but my log for some reasons was for EI9KC and was sent with mistake.
When raw scores were published last night I had last place with 42 errors !!!
No doubt!
All QSOs were checked with EI9KC and not EI0PL ..... my fault.
Early in the morning I`ve got message from Chris GM3WOJ Contest Adjudicator what has happend
and EI0PL will be count as checklog. But looks my log was fixed and when official scores were published EI0PL acheived 1`st place in High power section!
76 QSOs / 75 WPX by EI9KC on 20M SSB low power in first time ever participation in WPX Contest .... probably I was the only EI9 prefix active in this competition so I am feeling like a rare one :) hihi and congratulations to all 76 lucky stations who have EI9KC in their logs :)
Very tricky QSO made just 3 minutes after midnight on Easter Sunday !
Great Easter bunny present :)
80M QSO - Heard Island - EI9KC
I was on their 80M QRG few hours. Signal zero or even worst. Many DQRM didn`t help at all. This weekend is CQ WPX SSB contest so traffic is smaller plus Easter Holidays traffic smaller again.
First option was how to hear them. I knew it if I can hear them I can work them.
On my 80M antenna - noise lever at S:5 to S:7 , tough ... no RX antenna , no beverages.
But I remember some trick I did recently at Papa Lima QTH where all beverages are not working at present and to hear DX on 80M I was using 30M GP vertical.
Decided try to receive VK0EK on my 30M/40M nested dipoles ... and that was it!
Signal not better but much quiet . Noise level at ZERO ... and little signal from Herad Island went trough ....CQ VK0EK VK0EK DN 1 ....
3516 - 516 is my lucky number (I had unit 516 on 11m band :)
Gave my call few times and received very very weak ... EI9KC EI9KC EI9KC
5NN
No more to say ... R5NN TU ! I think Operator on the other side was NG2H Kenneth.
LA7GIA Kenneth was active from Equatorial Guinea as 3C7A
and it was big pleasure to work him on few bands!
One Man show! Great CW pile-up operator and biggest challenge was at the beginning when
his split was wide like Navassa style ;)
I had 10M 12M and 17M confirmed already by 3C6A
This time I had hope for few new slots and :
First QSO with 3C7A logged on 15M CW - when his station wasn`t spotted on DX Cluster ... - NEW BAND! - DXCC - 306
20M CW was good fun to manage 25kHz wide split :) NEW BAND! DXCC - 310
30M CW - it was great surprise to find Kenneth calling endless CQ on quiet band that moment! - NEW BAND! DXCC - 282
15M RTTY - similar to 30M - CQ CQ 3C7A 3C7A UP - no takers. QSO managed with 100W - NEW MODE!
10M CW - had 28Mhz already confirmed but when I heard 3C7A calling CQ for 5 minutes without takers decided to give him a call ....
There is a few great DX-peditioners who can go to Most Wanted DXCC and do similar (or even better ) job than some "DX-peditions" Kenneth LA7GIA is One of Them !
Winter storms did a few damages @ EI0PL / EI1Y Conest station and antennas needs some attention. SPDX Contest is coming and also two big DX-pedition are on the way. Heard Island and Juan de Nova. It was busy day but a lot was done:
