While activating GW/NW-070 today 14/11/07, I was called by an ON station who I’m fairly certain is not licensed for 5Mhz. It wasn’t until I arrived back home that I realised this dreadful mistake, which happened while I was operating in a wind chill factor of approx -4c, all the same I should have spotted it. Will ALL stations please make sure in future that you are operating on a band for which you are licensed, because such actions can put my NOV or even worse, the UK 5Mhz experiment at risk.
Been there, done that Mike. I worked a 2E1 licensee earlier in the year without realising what I’d done until after the contact. The QSO was witnessed by a regular chaser as well. These things happen.
In reply to GW0DSP:
Same here, Mike, I once made the decision to call two 2Es that were on the wrong sideband to tell them that they were operating illegally. To their credit they QRTd immediately but of course they shouldn’t have been their in the first place. I reasoned that a brief illegal transmission from me would stop an illegal operation that otherwise might have gone on indefinately.
Which is a shame Peter. I’ve still not had a QSO with you and I’m sure 40m would work, we just need to get a sked sorted.
Mike, it’s happened to me. I worked a 2E1 last February and with various licence changes happening at that time I simply assumed IL’s now had access. I asked the station several times if he had a NoV and suspected something was amiss as the QSO proceeded. I wasn’t best pleased to have been had. I think I wrote about it on here at the time like you have. I’ve never heard that station on 5MHz since.
With OFCOM’s new relaxed views on licencing, I’m happy that as long as legitimate users of the band are seen to be policing it as well as they can that there wont be dire consequences should these occasional contacts happen. Of course ignorance is no excuse for breaking the rules, but threads like this get everyone alert and so are useful.
Hi Peter, It was you who made me realise what had happened. At the time I was very cold and working more or less robotically, NW-070 towers above the Irish Sea, so gets the strong cold winds straight off the sea. That’s no excuse, I should have realised straight away. It wasn’t until I was almost home that it hit me. Peter always gives us 5Mhz reports through the spots because 5Mhz is not available in ON.
Unfortunately there’s nothing I can do about it now, the QSO was completed, but I thought I best mention it on here, to possibly try and avoid it happening again, to me or anyone else.
It is indeed why I give SWL reports on 60M; As there’s no traffic from Europe on this band as far as I know, you might be interested to know how you sound over here.
And believe me if the report is 23 I will give 23 and not 58 just to please someone.
That’s when I realised my mistake Peter, you and your reports sprang to mind. Oddly enough, if it had been you who had called me I would have probably realised straight away, hi, but of course it wasn’t you.
Your reports on the spots are highly valued by all in the UK Peter so please keep them coming.