July, 2006

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New DXCC awards fee schedule becomes effective July 1
The ARRL DXCC Desk has announced DXCC program fees will rise slightly when a new awards fee schedule goes into effect July 1. The fee for a basic DXCC application (including certificate and pin for initial applications only, 120 QSO maximum) and for first endorsement applications within a year will increase to $12 for ARRL members and to $22 for foreign nonmembers. Second and subsequent endorsements (120 QSO maximum) within a year will be $22 for ARRL members and $32 for foreign nonmembers. The $10 fee for a basic DXCC application (120-credit maximum) was established in 1990, and the current overall fee schedule has been in effect since 1998. "It costs us to provide this service," explains ARRL Membership Services Manager Wayne Mills, N7NG. "We don't make any money from DXCC." The cost of other DXCC-related items such as plaques and pins also will go up July 1. Mills advised that DXCC fees will increase further in the years ahead--possibly at two-year intervals--at least to catch up with the Consumer Prince Index, which has risen 49% since 1990. He estimates the the active population of DXCC members at between 15,000 and 18,000.

New IRC Available July 1
The Universal Postal Union (UPU) has announced that a new International Reply Coupon (IRC) design has been selected. Radio amateurs often enclose IRCs when QSLing DX stations directly to cover the cost of return postage. The new design, known as "Beijing Model No. 2," was submitted by Volodymyr Taran, a graphic artist from Ukraine. Chosen by a jury of 40 UPU member countries, the coupon design was inspired by Michelangelo's painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel -- two fingers about to touch framed in a postage stamp, representing the notions of communication and exchange. The new IRC is expected to be available as of July 1, and will be valid until December 31, 2009. The current IRC is valid through December 31, 2006.

Vermont Governor Signs Amateur Radio Antenna Bill
Vermont Gov Jim Douglas has signed Amateur Radio antenna legislation that puts the language of the limited federal preemption known as PRB-1 into the Green Mountain State's statutes. Vermont is the 23rd state to adopt an Amateur Radio antenna law.

Two Radio Amateurs Die During Mobile Hidden Transmitter Hunt
Two ARRL members from California are dead after the vehicle in which they were riding during a mobile hidden transmitter hunt went over a cliff in rugged terrain near Lake Isabella in Kern County. They were identified as Michael G. Obermeier, K6SNE, of Anaheim, and David A. Gordon-Ross, of Yucaipa. Obermeier, an ARRL Official Observer in Orange County, was 46. Gordon-Ross was 35. "Mike and Dave were some of the best T-hunters in the biz," said Scott Press, N6SAP, calling both "true assets to this hobby." In his role as an OO, Obermeier reportedly had participated in the infamous Jack Gerritsen radio jamming case in the Los Angeles area. According to media accounts, a Kern County Sheriff's Department search-and-rescue team located the victims early Monday, May 29. Obermeier was driving the 1991 4-wheel-drive Jeep Cherokee that apparently went out of control on Cook Peak Road while the pair was proceeding to the next hidden transmitter site. After caroming off a rock wall, the vehicle crossed the road and plunged down a 900-foot cliff. They were reported missing after failing to check in with T-hunt organizers. Greg Pitta, KF6DBJ, reports Obermeier and Gordon-Ross were on a half-day multiple-transmitter T-hunt on Saturday, May 27. "Both K6SNE and N6IDF were expert transmitter hunters, each with hundreds of hunts completed, ranking with top scores in most," he said. ARRL Amateur Radio Direction Finding (ARDF) Coordinator Joe Moell, K0OV, knew both men. He notes that Obermeier had suffered a sports-related spinal cord injury that left him a paraplegic. "He did all the adaptive work on his vehicles, of which he had quite a few that he used over time for RDF," Moell said.

July, 2006

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