Rockall expedition 2023

Thanks for the reminder, I’ve just chipped in. :slight_smile:
I was playing with FT8 on the first morning and saw the wall to wall attempts to call them. I didn’t bother to try to compete and changed to another band. :slight_smile:

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Tough pileup from N. Calif. so far. Donno if the’re still there or not.
Haven’t seen them posted today.
K6YK

Yesterday comments were posted on the cluster that they had gone QRT at about 0600 UTC. I don’t know if that’s true and if so, whether it was a temporary (technical) problem or something more serious that has caused them to abort the planned up to 50 days stay.

Has anyone seen anything from an official reliable source?

73 Ed.

Donations are via Just Giving (Rockall Expedition for Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity and ABF, The Soldiers Fund - JustGiving)

UPDATE: I just found this in the Press Pack on the official website -
We have a vessel chartered to take the team to Rockall; to remain on station in the vicinity for ~ 1 week, then to extract Nobby and Emil. They will then sail back to the mainland UK, where Nobby and Emil will return to their day to day lives, exhilarated and ready to talk about their exploits.

So it’s just Cam Cameron (not a ham) who will remain on the rock to break the record for charity - Nobby and Emil were planned to be heading home this weekend.

Nobby and Emil are nearly back home by now:

MM0UKI – Isle of Rockall, EU-189 | DX-World

I was lucky enough to work Nobby twice - once during our trip to the infamous EJ region whilst waiting on the ferry. I asked Nobby to listen for the second op Ian in our mobile but the zoo took over and he didn’t get through. The second was on their last night of operating. How different- very few calling and no split as he had just started. Ian wasn’t at home so I messaged him to get back quick. I listened a few more minutes and inevitably the zoo appeared, chaos ensued and I left the shack leaving the radio on. Ian came home like a bullet went straight to the shack and called - assuming I’d worked them on split! So mistakes can easily be made.

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Thanks the Crew with Emil for that effort. I had Rockall from years before in SSB. Have wkd it on 30 and 10m in CW with big signal on my R7. Thanks for the QSO’s. Yesterday Emil write me on WhatsApp over 7000 QSO’s in that short time. Better as other’s this year. 73 de Nick, HB9DDZ IOTA and SOTA hunter

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Unfortunate news from Rockall. The chap who remained behind trying to set a 60 day record has called for rescue.

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He’s been safely rescued. Fine on his aims to raise money for charities and good causes but I have a question. Who is paying the costs of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency incurred rescuing him? Me, the taxpayer or will it come out of the funds being raised?

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Of course, you already know the answer to that Andy! These flying boys need to get their hours in somehow and it would have been good winchman practice, I’m sure. I just hope the team go back and retreive his shelter and equipment.

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Yes, if you have a military then you need to keep them trained and having spent a fortune training the crew and buying the equipment you can use it for peace-time duties. When you consider how many unsuccessful attempts have been made on Rockall over the years, the odds of this of rescue being needed are very high. It would be nice to think they had a fund ready in reserve to at least pay for the fuel :wink:

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It’s civillian these days, but same principle applies.

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Just a minor point… it’s not military.

HM Coastguard Helicopter (and fixed wing) services are provided via a competitive tender contract, which started 10 years ago. It’s just been retendered and won for the second time by Bristow Search and Rescue who will provide a modified service based on the new contract terms.

The details of the contract are confidential. I do not (for instance) know if HMCG pay directly per rescue or if that is risk to Bristows based on average usage.

I’m going a bit further off topic in this off topic discussion… but some might find this interesting…

One good piece of news is HMCG have looked at the rescue data for the last 10 years and have been listening to the UK Land SAR community. The new contract has provision for two seasonal summer “surge” bases for helicopters in Carlisle and Fort William. The English Lake District in particular has always struggled with helicopters having to travel from Caernarfon, Prestwick or Humberside (very occasionally even further).

Bristow Search and Rescue is a division of Bristow Helicopters Ltd, which is now part of a worldwide company Bristows Group which is owned and HQed in the US.

The name of pilot and entrepreneur Alan Bristow lives on through this organisation which he founded. He led an interesting life!

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