2015 highlights, 2016 goals

DXCC confirmed eQSL/QSL/LotW (red is worked)

This year is almost over. Time to review 2015 radiowise. It was a historical interesting year as we are finally allowed on the 60m band since 2 December 2015. The first 12 DXCC are already confirmed by QSL and eQSL. To start at January, I did meet my goal to build the 30m WSPR AXE transmitter from W5OLF. I did work some more JT65 and JT9 this year and actually without much problems I had in the previous years. Unfortenately I was not able to participate fulltime in the February PACC contest and therefore chosen the QRP section in which I obtained 10th place. I had a lot of fun participating as PE45FREE special event station in May, I would do it again if asked. I won the first Dutch Kingdom Contest in the single operator low power all band section, not bad for a first time. There were not much radio activities in summer except for some 6m activity, I really had to make time for that and hoped for another transatalantic contact but it didn't happen this year. From September we were waiting for the 60m band to get on. And then finally at 2 December we were allowed to get on 60m. I had my most memorable contact this year on the new 60m band with a Aeronautical Mobile. A QSO with Jeroen PH9HB/AM flying in a Boeing 737 at 13km height above France.

VERON honor roll, climbed 1 place

The goals for 2016. Most important and if time & money allows me I have to install the versatower. I decided on which place in the garden it will be standing. But I have to do some digging and gardenwork first before I can actually begin to think about installing the mast. These things require a very good planning as you cannot afford mistakes. Then my endless search for new WSPR DXCC. I really have to increase WSPR activity, I've seen so many DXCC in the activity list I still don't have in my log and I only obtained 2 new ones in 2015! Actually I am busy to rebuild my old ACER laptop to make it were it was intend for at the first place.....radiohobby. I hope to install the new WSJT-X 1.6 on it and do some WSPR. The laptop is not even using half the current the desktop takes. Of course I still hope for some ATNO DXCC but with the decreasing propagation I don't think I will reach another 11 in 2016, time will learn about that. Finally we, as family, have been saving for a trip to.....that's a secret. But I will take the radio with me and it will be a vacation in foreign country.

I've been thinking about that challenge of working 100 DXCC QRP in 100 days or less. A nice certificate will be send to you. It would be a nice goal for the first 100 days. But QRP is taking a lot of time and 100 DXCC is a lot! I might give it a try just to see how far I get...

Like always the year is ending. We already are at the last sentence of 2015. Wishing all my blog readers a prosperous, healthy, happy new year and lots of DX in 2016.

2015 statistics

Traditionally I show you the radio activity statistics. Not to show off but for archive purposes. This does not include my SES PE45FREE activation in which I made 1440 QSOs in May. As expected I made less new ATNO DXCCs. Not only propagation is decreasing but I had less time overall to be on the radio. In total 11 ATNOs were worked this year. Although there are a lot of interesting DXpeditions announced in 2016 I expect the number of ATNOs will be even less as this year. This year I did well on 6m with 80 QSOs. And not to forget our new 60m band which we can now use finally.

Only 2 QSOs more as last year. If you ad the 1440 QSO from PE45FREE I definitely made more QSOs.

Surprisingly most of the QSOs are made on 40m. A band I wasn't that successful at from my previous QTH. Both my vertical and horizontal loop are doing fine on 40.

My first time ever DOMINO QSO was made this year. Wish to do more digital mode experiments next year so I expect to have a longer list next year.

Most QSO were made in March instead of the usual peak at February. That's due to my QRP effort in the PACC and lack of time for this yearly contest.

Airplane on 60m!

I almost cannot believe it happened. And how unique this contact was. Really, there are not many commercial planes that still have a HF set on board but luckely PH9HB flies on a Boeing 737NG that still has one. I heard Jeroen several times on 20m and 17m before last 2 years but a QSO did never happen. I even have programmed a alarm in the HRD logbook DXcluster and follow Jeroen's twitter account. This evening PH9HB/AM showed up in red on the DXcluster spotted on....5 MHz. Actually I was listening on 5 MHz trying to compare the vertical with the horizontal loop. The vertical won this evening, I made a difficult contact with Portugal first and left it on the vertical to receive. Propagation was very low. But still I just heard PH9HB/AM calling from the airplane located north of Bordeaux France. Wow! I finally made a QSO with Jeroen and on this new band. I think this was the first time a Airplane Mobile station appeared on the 60m band. This is one of these unique QSOs that will be in my mind for years.

Read about Jeroen (Jerry in English) on this link

If you ever read this Jeroen. Thanks for this unique QSO. This is what amateurradio is about!

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Update 24-12-2015 a christmas present!