Scouts get Amateur Radio experience

Recently, the St Vincent and The Grenadines Amateur Radio Club (SVGARC) partnered with the local Scout movement as they celebrated 100 years of Scouting and the 53rd Annual Jamboree on the Air (JOTA).{{more}}

On October 16 and 17, Geoffrey Hadaway J88NFU and Kumar Persaud J88CF provided an opportunity for local Scouts from three scout troops to get on the air and get a taste of the fun and magic of amateur radio.

JOTA is an international scouting event organized by the World Scouting Bureau. JOTA officially started at 12 midnight local time Friday night/Saturday morning and went until midnight Sunday local time. The Scouts camped at their headquarters at Arnos Vale from the Friday evening until Sunday evening, and the official Scouting frequencies were the centre of operations.

Twelve Scouts from as far north as Sandy Bay along with Scouts from Kingstown, Leeward and Mesopotamia all camped so as to encounter the experience, which included a theory session on Radio Etiquette and Rules, the Phonetic Alphabet, Carrier waves and Frequencies, along with Antennas. The Scouts then built an Antenna from electrical wire. Only one operating position was established. However, each scout took a turn and 26 contacts were established with scouts talking to other Scouts, Cubs, Girl Guides, Brownies and their leaders in Barbados and Trinidad. They also had the experience of listening to the Caribbean Emergency and Weather Net which is conducted twice daily along with Dxing to Germany. They also participated in the SVGARC’s Hairoun 40 meter Net.

For most of the Scouts, this was their first time to ever hear, much more transmit over an Amateur Radio station.