EXACTLY!!! Furthermore it adversely affects operators inside the UK who want to work stations outside the UK, as I outlined above.
Whether you call it a “calling channel” or a “centre”, sitting right on the channel/centre is antisocial behaviour. Your attempts to rationalise it do not disguise that fact. As for conflicts between the band plans of different countries, it would be interesting to know how many countries in Region 1 define 144.300 as the SSB calling channel, any offers?
Look, Andy, I have been in this game for a long, long time. I’ve seen band plans come and go. I started with the “Geographical” band plan, having to search for (and sometimes grind down) crystals that put me in the Midlands segment of 70cms. I know from long experience that a perennial preoccupation of the RSGB is tinkering with the band plans, and sometimes they make mistakes. This, I think, is right up there as a major blooper that they should be embarrassed about, for reasons that I have already set out. I suspect that “this too shall pass” but those in authority can be pretty stubborn so I’m not holding my breath!
Brian, I’m not attempting to rationalise it - I merely state it as a fact. When you speak of “idiotic band planners” I assume you must include that lot at the IARU too w.r.t. to the IARU Region 1 VHF band plan.
We’re lucky enough in the UK to have a bandplan that is (mostly) just a suggestion, a guideline to be followed, not a rule to be obeyed, but other countries don’t have it so easy, and at the end of the day it’s about communicating and co-operating. If the RSGB’s bandplan is screwing with that then it’s time to use the latitude we have to find a balance that makes communication with those we want to talk to easier without screwing things for folk who want to talk to someone else. Given SOTA has a spotting system, using the COA to establish a first contact, then moving to a clear frequency (that can then be spotted) would seem to tick the right boxes.
Of course I do. Probably some of the same people. The point is that I have given good reasons why the concept of a calling frequency should be retained, retained in practice if not in the plan, and I note that rather than argue with those reasons you prefer to defer to authority.
Call it CoA or CF, Andy. Maybe you want to go out and activate a summit with a good VHF take-off to experience the no-fun situation that the only frequency good for a CQ is blocked by a chat net. On the continent, sometimes it’s even more than one net chatting on 144.300. It gets even worse when the rag-chewers are in the direction you wanted to call.
Whether it’s the COA or the CF is irrelevant. The fact is that it is antisocial and unpopular to run on that QRG. For instance, in the 2m UK activity contests on Tuesday nights, QSOs that occur between 144.295 and 144.305 are penalised.
“Main calling frequencies/centres of activity (50.110 MHz, 50.150, 70.200 MHz, 144.300 MHz, 432.200 MHz) +/- 5 kHz, must not be used to call CQ for contest QSOs.”
If Brian and others have valid reasons why the current UK bandplan should be changed then they should put their cogent arguments to the RSGB for those changes to be made but not tell other radio amateurs that they are in the wrong.
Maybe the others could just “think”. However I must admit, in the 21st century it is probably not that popular anymore to think how your actions affect other people around you.
Never the less, I maintain that operating on the COA/CC is antisocial, even within the current form of the bandplan. It may be permissible in terms of your licence conditions, but it disables a valuable resource.
You keep personalizing this discussion. I’m speaking in general, on behalf of UK amateurs in general not for myself.
Personally I operate 95% portable (SOTA & WOTA) and rarely on 2m SSB and then on a spotted frequency. At home with my poor VHF take-off and non-directional antenna I use 2m SSB for local QSOs and we locals have our own stammtisch frequency. But if I answered a CQ on 144.300 SSB I would QSY only if the other party suggested it.
Tom, all contests and special events whether on HF or VHF/UHF always restrict their frequency range to try to avoid COAs and CFs. The distinction between COAs and CF’s is not “irrelevant” but the heart of this heated discussion. My point all along here is that you (and others) shouldn’t be blaming RAs for following their national band plans and treating COAs as such.
It’s well known that when bandplans are voluntary then people only follow the bandplan if they agree with it.
This change probably made sense to people who don’t operate extensively on the band. It strikes me as a retrograde step to change the designation from calling frequency to centre of activity for the reasons given.
Contesting, we (GM3HAM) steer well clear of 144.300 to leave it available to anyone wanting to use 2m and not take part in the contest. I would suggest that 2m SSB users should continue to call on .300 and then QSY at least 10 if not 15kHz away.
Right now my 2m SSB activity is limited by the rotator being jammed pointing SW, but my location is moderately good and in flat conditions I can work into Southern Scotland, Ireland and the near continent (F, ON, PA) and have worked seventeen countries outside Britain. As you may gather, my working is DX and SOTA orientated, and this may explain my attitude to the COA/CC. Even if you call it a COA rather than a CC, that spot frequency should not be routinely operated on. It isn’t just another channel to be operated on, it is a resource that should remain free for all to benefit from. By all means call it a COA, but treat it as you would the CC. Under that ragchew or activation on the COA may be really interesting stuff that other people are being prevented from accessing.
My preferred working frequency has always been 144.333MHz and I put that on the alert. I only use 144.300MHz if activity is low and I have not made many contacts on 144.333MHz. Once I receive a call on 144.300MHz, I usually suggest a move to 144.333MHz as late comers might be looking for me there. No-one has ever asked why I have suggested the QSY.
144.300MHz may be the COA, but the fact remains it is still considered to be the calling frequency… from Cornwall to Shetland at least.
Narrow-band modes with a maximum bandwidth of 2.7 kHz are always found at the low frequency end of any VHF or UHF allocation. This is where you will find Morse (CW), telephony (SSB) and machine generated mode (MGM) activity such as JT65 and FSK441.
This is the main area where all the DXers (and casual) operators make long-distance contacts. Stations using SSB call CQ on or around 144.300MHz a key ‘Centre of Activity’. Meteorscatter (MS) modes such as FSK441 around 144.370 is another example of DX activity that can be found in this segment.
This is the critical bit:
“Stations using SSB call CQ on or around 144.300MHz a key ‘Centre of Activity’.”
What does “on or around” mean? There is a page to contact the VHF Manager on the website and I think I might pen something tomorrow and ask for clarification over what is meant.
That will be interesting please post the response here!
Though TBH it doesn’t matter what the RSGB thinks we do or should do, huge swathes of amateurs both in the UK and abroad have used and continue to use 144.300 as a calling channel with the expectation that you will QSY once contact is established. The lower the band occupancy, the more sense it makes to concentrate initial calling on one frequency.
The main section of the RSGB website from which you quote is headed ‘Band Plans and information’ and in my opinion you quote from the [VHF / 144MHz Band: 144.0 – 146.0MHz] explanatory information which accompanies the actual band plan which is contained in the on-line or downloadable tables. Some might argue that the tables plus the explanatory notes comprise the band plan.
In any case, to address your question, What does “on or around” mean? Let’s take a non-controversial [I hope] example, the 80m CW QRP Centre of Activity (COA) at 3.560 MHz.
It means QRP operators should have their QRP QSOs on 3.560 or frequencies a bit above or below. There is no fixed lower or higher boundary to the QRP frequency range. It’s that part of the band where QRP ops should go to find other QRP ops. By implication, other ops should avoid operating high power on or close to that frequency.
You can see other examples of COAs for slow Morse (3.555 MHz) and digital voice (3.630 MHz) in the extract from the 80m table too.
