 Get
set for AJ2007 - The 21st Australian Scout Jamboree
The 21st Australian Scout Jamboree (AJ2007)
will be held at the Elmore Field Day site on
2-13 January 2007.
The Scout Radio and Electronics Service Unit (Scouts Australia, Victorian
Branch) is coordinating the establishment of an Amateur Radio Station
with the special event callsign VI3JAM, marking
the first on-air Australian celebration of the centenary of Scouting.
Work has progressed over the last 14 months to ensure a state of the
art shack is provided, together with information and encouragement for
some 13,000 attending Scouts to enjoy and to further an interest in our
hobby.
The Scout Radio and Electronics Service Unit (SRESU) have secured a
sponsorship agreement with Icom Australia to provide all amateur transceiver
equipment for the shack.
This agreement sees Icom
loaning nearly $30,000 of equipment to the Scouts of Australia for use
at the Jamboree. The state of the art Icom transceivers, receivers and
amplifiers will definitely add an attractive and "high-tech"
element to the station which will appeal to the scouts attending, and
should guarantee some great contacts on the Amateur Bands.
The SRESU have designed, engineered and built an antenna farm that will
see VI3JAM active on nearly all bands, as well as EchoLink, IRLP and SSTV.
This has also been achieved through the generous support and sponsorship
of Strictly Ham Pty. Ltd. as well as donations from various members of
the Scout Radio and Electronics Service Unit. Several working-bee's have
been conducted in order to implement the required antennae for the station.
QSL Cards have also been designed and produced with thanks to Minuteman
Press in Box Hill South, and BKB Internet has come on board with free
web hosting of vi3jam.com
and loan of computer and networking hardware. Marketing of the event has
been aided greatly by the Wireless Institute of Australia and Amateur
Radio Victoria with donations of promotional material on amateur radio.
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The International
Space Station |
The SRESU is now in its final stages of erecting antennae, finishing
the aesthetic components of the shack, and finalising the ARISS QSO with
the International Space Station which is the major highlight of this project
for the Scouts at AJ2007.
All aspects of this project to get the shack on-air are now in-hand and
under the direct control of the Scout Radio and Electronics Service Unit,
who look forward to many QSO's over the Jamboree period from the Icom
Amateur Radio Station at the 21st Australian Jamboree - VI3JAM.
Hayden McManus VK3FRST
VI3JAM Station Coordinator
Scout Radio & Electronics Service Unit
Related Links:
Wireless
Institute of Australia
Icom
Australia
Amateur
Radio Victoria
VI3JAM
website
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