Greetings fellow ARRL Members,
We are in the final days of preparing for the largest Amateur Radio
Event of the Year... FIELD DAY. 2020 will be one of the most interesting
and challenging years for Field Day events. The ARRL rules committee has modified the rules for this year only to encourage all of us to
participate.
I received this great summary of the rule and modifications for class
"D" for 2020 from the Bella Vista Radio Club in their monthly news
letter about Field Day, and wanted to pass it on as an encouragement if
you were on the fence about participating. Don't overlook the modification
for Club Log Submissions this year either. Just get off the fence and participate for the full event or only an hour, it's great fun.
Of course, most FD operations are portable stations. If you wish to
operate your own private portable station, or with a smaller group to
maintain acceptable social distancing, be sure and follow all CDC,
federal, state, and local laws, ordinances and guidelines. For your
reference, here is a link to the CDC Covid-19 guidelines:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
The classes for the Field Day contest are as follows (this is a
summary - see the complete FD rules on the ARRL website):
Class A - A club or non-club portable station operating completely
independent of commercial power mains. The power source for the
station(s) would be a generator, solar, etc.
Class A / Battery - All contacts must be made using an output power of
5 Watts or less and the power source must be something other than
commercial power mains or motor-driven generator (e.g.: batteries, solar
cells, water-driven generator).
Class B - A Field Day station set up and operated by no more than two
persons.
Class B / Battery - A Field Day station set up and operated by no more
than two persons. All contacts must be made using an output power of 5
Watts or less and the power source must be something other than
commercial mains or motor-driven generator. Other provisions are the
same for Class A except it is not eligible for a GOTA or free VHF
station. One and two person Class B - Battery entries will be listed separately.
Class C - Mobile station. Stations in vehicles capable of operating
while in motion and normally operated in this manner. This includes
maritime and aeronautical mobile. If the Class C station is being
powered from a car battery or alternator, it qualifies for emergency
power but does not qualify for the multiplier of 5, as the
alternator/battery system constitutes a motor-driven generating system.
Class D - Home station. Stations operating from permanent or licensed
station locations using commercial power. (Suspended for 2020, See
Temporary rule waver)
Class D stations may only count contacts made with Class A, B, C, E
and F Field Day stations.
Temporary rule waiver: For Field Day 2020 only, Class D stations
may work all other Field Day stations, including other Class D stations,
for points. Field Day rule 4.6 defines Class D stations as "Home
stations" - including stations operating from permanent or licensed
station locations using commercial power. Class D stations ordinarily
may only count contacts made with Class A, B, C, E, and F Field Day
stations, but the temporary rule waiver for 2020 allows Class D stations
to count contacts with other Class D stations for QSO credit.
Class E - Home station/emergency power. Same as Class D, but using
emergency power for transmitters and receivers. Class E may work all
Field Day stations.
Class F - Emergency Operations Centers. An amateur radio station at
an established EOC activated by a club or non-club group. Class F
operation must take place at an established EOC site. Stations may
utilize equipment and antennas temporarily or permanently installed at
the EOC for the event. Entries will be reported according to number of transmitters in simultaneous operation. Class F stations are eligible
for a free VHF station. At Class 2F they are also eligible for a GOTA
station.
So, from the above classes descriptions, you DO have some options for
operating Field Day this year.
Perhaps you might want to stay completely safe and operate from your
home QTH (Class D).
Or, if you're operating from home and have a generator that you
haven't used in a while, now's a good time to fire it up for an
operation check, and let it do a little work for you (Class E).
Or, you may want to have a friend over and setup a portable station in
your back yard (Class B).
Or, you may want to host a small group in the back yard with a portable
station - adhering to CDC guidelines ΓÇô and run the station off
commercial power, so as not to annoy the neighbors with a generator
running (Class A, Commercial).
There are numerous options you can implement, if you so choose.
For additional information on Field Day Rules, 2020 Temporary Rule
Waver, or FAQ'a please use the following links:
Full Rules:
http://www.arrl.org/field-day-rules
Specific Rule Modifications for 2020 ONLY:
http://www.arrl.org/news/temporary-rule-waivers-announced-for-2020-arrl- field-day
(above URL all on one line)
Field Day FAQ's:
http://www.arrl.org/news/view/arrl-contest-program-issues-field-day-2020-faq
Please remember to provide your log for the ARRL to process as this is a
vital record for us to document and exhibit that Amateur Radio is
ALIVE, WELL, and an ASSET to organizations like local Emergency Managers,
and state organizations like the Arkansas Department of Emergency
Management (ADEM).
Whatever your Field Day 2020 operation plan is, the cardinal rule for at
least this year is stay safe and stay healthy.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
ARRL Arkansas Section
Section Manager: James D Ferguson Jr, N5LKE
n5lke@arrl.org --------------------------------------------------------------------
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