Communications Is Often One of the Most Overlookeditems in Planning for an Emergency Event.In

Ham Radio

Communications is often one of the most overlookeditems in planning for an emergency event.In a crisis, the ability to coordinate withothers, contact emergency personnel orfind out what is going on around you isuseful. Being able to determine a best locationto move toward is very valuable. For a

non-EMP/GMD event, many forms of communicationmay still work or recover quickly.In an EMP or GMD event, it is very possiblethat most communications will be down.This could mean no cellphones, no telephonelandlines and no internet. Satellitephones will also likely be inoperative as EMPcan take out the satellites they use. So howwill you communicate with team members,family members and emergency personnelor see what is going on in the next town orstate?

During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, whennormal cellphones were not operative,people realized they could text on a differentcarrier band and still communicate.Ham radios were in high use. So, what to

expect? Calling home may not be an option,since landlines will likely be out andneither will CB radios due to their shortrange; usually less than 10 miles.

Likewise,two-way radios may not provide muchsince most are dependent on a digital networkor operate on limited power. Even ifyou have planned well ahead of time, fewtypes of communications are likely to work.You need to have a plan worked out aheadof time with teammates or family members

about where to meet after a disaster. Thatway, you will not need to communicate withanyone; you will have already decided on acourse of action.CB radios may still work, but they typicallyhave short ranges and offer no security.The transmission range of a CB varies greatlywith the type of antenna, atmosphere, channel,number of other transmissions takingplace, terrain and solar activity. Most mobile-to-mobile transmissions will be betweenyour location and up to 10 miles out. Someperiods may allow “skip” or “DX” to occur resultingin transmission over 100 miles and upto 1,000 miles or more. Power is restricted to4-watts on AM and 12-watts on SSB withoutan external amplifier (linear amplifier.)

Moving up, we arrive at amateur or “ham”radios. Ham radios have been used duringdisasters such as hurricanes, major stormsand earthquakes for decades. Again, will yourradio work and if your radio works, whowill you be able to talk to? There are threearticles I recommend that detail how ham radios

have been used:

Amateur Radio Plays ImportantRole in Boston Bombing1, Ham RadioOperators to the Rescue After Katrina2, HamRadio Organization Aids Carrollton in SevereWeather situations3.

WHAT TYPE OF RADIO?

Although the FCC requires a license to operatea ham radio, it is extremelyunlikely that anyone from the

FCC will be looking for peoplewithout licenses in an EMP orGMD event. In a non-EMP/GMDevent, the FCC may be lookingfor illegal transmissions, buteither way it is recommendedthat you obtain a license. In theprocess, you will learn theoryas well as how to operate a radio, commonlanguage used in ham radio, call protocol,antenna design and the capabilities of yourradio.The lowest level ham radio is a handheldUHF/VHF radio or 2 Meter (2M)/70 Centimeter(70CM). The 2M frequency runs from

144.000 MHz to 148.000 MHz. The 70CMband runs from 420.00 to 450.00 MHz. Theseusually operate at 5 watts, a low power levelthat usually will not give you much morerange than the CB, FRS or GMRS radios.However, if you have a better antenna or gothrough a repeater (which may or may notbe up after an EMP/GMD event), you may getbetter range. Keep in mind, you can only talkto someone who has a radio using the sameradio bands and these radios are powered bybatteries.Next up is a mobile or base station 2Mradio. Usually 2M is more common for everydayuse than 70CM. These radios can beobtained in power levels up to 75 watts. It isalso possible to buy amplifiers that boost thispower considerably. Range on these radioswith a good antenna can be up to 45 milesin simplex mode (point to point) withoutgoing through a repeater (a device that receivesyour signal and puts it out again, often

at a higher power level in order to extendyour range.) These radios are powered by apower supply that provides 13.8 volts. Thepower supplies are usually plugged into awall outlet, so now there is another potentialproblem—no power.

If your car is functioning,it is possible to run these radios off a carbattery, but eventually, that will run out.Next, we arrive at the High Frequency orHF radio. These radios operate on completelydifferent frequencies in specified bands offrequencies. They range in power from 5-20watts (called a QRP radio) to 100 watts. Beyondthe standard 100 watts, you can get amplifiersto increase the power to as much as2,500 watts. QRP radios and 100-watt radioscan both communicate thousands of milesaway under the right atmospheric conditionswith a good antenna. To communicate in arange of less than 400 miles, it may be necessaryto use an NVIS (near vertical incidencesky wave) antenna. If you go the ham radioroute, it would be essential to have at leastone such antenna available. This is a specializedantenna frequently used by the militaryand ham operators doing emergency work(more information is available when studyingfor a ham license.) Many antennas willwork well, but due to design, may not receivesignals for distances shorter than 400miles. Ham radios may be operated by CW. An economical handheldlike this Baofeng BF-F8HPruns on batteries and haslimited capabilities

Yaesu FT-2900R. Range forthese types of models tend to be around45 miles.

High Frequency Icom-IC-718.With the right setup, you cancommunicate thousands of miles.

THERE ARE MANY OPTIONS AVAILABLE FOR HAM RADIOS, RANGING FROM ECONOMIC BUT LIMITED,TO HIGHER END MODELS YOU CAN COMMUNICATE ON OVER THOUSANDS OF MILES.

have been used: Amateur Radio Plays ImportantRole in Boston Bombing1, Ham RadioOperators to the Rescue After Katrina2, HamRadio Organization Aids Carrollton in SevereWeather situations3.

WHAT TYPE OF RADIO?

Although the FCC requires a license to operatea ham radio, it is extremelyunlikely that anyone from the

battery, but eventually, that will run out.Next, we arrive at the High Frequency orHF radio. These radios operate on completelydifferent frequencies in specified bands offrequencies. They range in power from 5-20watts (called a QRP radio) to 100 watts. Beyondthe standard 100 watts, you can get amplifiers

to increase the power to as much as2,500 watts. QRP radios and 100-watt radioscan both communicate thousands of milesaway under the right atmospheric conditionswith a good antenna.

To communicate in arange of less than 400 miles, it may be necessaryto use an NVIS (near vertical incidenceskywave) antenna. If you go the ham radioroute, it would be essential to have at least

one such antenna available. This is a specializedantenna frequently used by the militaryand ham operators doing emergency work(more information is available when studyingfor a ham license.) Many antennas willwork well, but due to design, may not receivesignals for distances shorter than 400miles. Ham radios may be operated by CW(or Morse code) or by voice. CW has an advantagefor emergency use, but fewer peoplelearn Morse code anymore.QRP radios may be found dedicated to oneor two bands, e.g., 20M and 40M or may befull band radios, 6-160 MHz. They typicallyrange in power from 5 watts to 20 watts. Thelow power will restrict their range comparedto a 100-watt radio. A QRP radio should notbe a first choice if you are just getting intoham radio as they can be challenging and

frustrating for a new operator. However, dueto their low power consumption and portability,they may be a good choice for someonein a survival situation or if the grid is out.Cost can range from $100 to $2,000.A 100-watt ham radio is the norm in theindustry for HF radios. They typically comewith a number of features to improve receptionand transmission. They are available inmobile or base station configuration. A mobileradio, as the name suggests, is designedfor a vehicle, while a base station is designedfor a fixed location. Cost can range from$575 to as much as $10,000 for specializedDX (long distance competition oriented radios)radios. However, excellent radios canbe had for $575- $1500. To this you will needto add a power supply, coax cable and anantenna. Many HF radios in this price range

have antenna tuner options available.

AN ANTENNA IS THE HEARTOF A HAM RADIO.

You should consider having several antennasfor a home station and possibly one ortwo portable antennas. Some radios havebuilt-in antenna tuners, for others, it is necessaryto use an external tuner. The antennatuner does not really “tune” the radio. Whatit does is to assist in matching the impedance

of the radio to the antenna in orderto achieve the best Standing Wave Ratio(SWR) between the tuner and the radio.Think of it as an adjustable impedance transformerbetween the radio and the antenna.

For QRP radios, a good external tuner willallow the use of a random length of wire.An external tuner may be built-in on someQRP radios, but for most, it is a small external,battery powered unit with an antennaline in from the antenna and a line out tothe radio. An antenna may be as simple asa random length of wire, but it may or may

MAKE SURE YOUR HAM RADIO IS NOT CONNECTED TO THE

GRID, I.E., PLUGGED INTO A POWER SUPPLY OR CONNECTED

TO AN ANTENNA. PLUGGED IN MAKES THEM MORE VULNERABLE

TO AN E1 OR E3 PULSE GENERATED BY EMP.

THERE ARE MANY OPTIONS

AVAILABLE TO TEACH YOU HOW TO

OPERATE YOUR HAM RADIO SYSTEM,

AND HOW TO BECOME LICENSED.

WIKIPEDIA - EMIL NEUERER

JUNE 2016 TACTICS & PREPAREDNESS

not work well without an antenna tuner.In general, most emergency communicationsare conducted on 2M, 40M (7000-7300 kHz) and 80M (3.5 to 4.0 MHz) Mostham operators know this, so there will be

ham operators listening in on these bands.Keep in mind that there is no security onham radio bands. The FCC forbids encryption.However, someone would have to beright on your exact frequency to hear you,but this is easier than you may think. A frequencyspectrum or panadapter scopeshows real time band activity on the variousham bands. They are used to find where theactivity is and eliminate manual scanning frequencieson the various bands.QRP radios can easily be operated by batterypower or small solar panels. An HF radioconsumes more power and will not operatefor as long on battery power, but it can bedone with larger solar panels and larger batteriesusing a battery booster. Solar panels

may be your only source of power in a disaster,so you will need to recharge the batteries

from a solar panel.

By using ham radios, you may be able tocommunicate with whatever emergency departmentsare operating, team members orfriends across town or people farther away.There are several ways to improve the survivabilityof your radio. Make sure it is notconnected to the grid, i.e., plugged into a

power supply or connected to an antenna.If so, it makes them vulnerable to an E1 orE3 pulse generated by EMP. You should considerdisconnecting your radio from a homepower supply and antenna when not in use.Many ham operators choose to have abackup radio stored in an improvised Faradaycage. These are simple to construct out of ametal trashcan with a lid that can be secured.

The inside should be lined with cardboard, aswell as the bottom, so that no part of the radiotouches metal when it is placed inside.Obtaining a ham radio license is simple.There are three levels of licenses: Technician,General and Extra. Each one is more involvedin theory and each one grants more operatorprivileges. The Technician license allows useof the 2M and 70CM bands. Technicians also

may operate on the 80, 40 and 15-meter HFbands using Morse code, and on the 10-meterband using Morse code, voice, and digitalmodes. The test consists of 35 questionsand is given on a regular schedule. Cost is$15. No Morse code is required; (this was aprevious requirement that frightened away

many prospective applicants.) A GeneralClass license is a step up in operating privileges.The high-power HF privileges grantedto General licensees allow for talking acrossthe country and worldwide communication.Operators holding a General license may operateon bands from 6M-160M, but not on

the complete spectrum within those bands.The test consists of 35 questions and is givenon a regular schedule. Cost is $15. No Morsecode is required.An Extra class license is the highest levelavailable. The test for Extra consists of 50questions. Cost is $15. Again, no Morse codeis required. Extra class licensees have fullprivileges across all bands.There are no age requirements, in fact,there are licensees as young as 12 years ofage who have passed the General class licenseexam. Each successive level of hamlicense involves more theory, but there arenumerous websites that offer practice examsto help study efforts.