HF Digital Messaging - Emergency / Disaster Relief - Interoperative Communications - Ham Radio
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10 Years of HFLINK and Organized ALE on the International HF Ham Radio Bands |
| HFLINK celebrates its 10th anniversary in December 2011. The HFLINK forum has become a gathering point for amateur radio operators and professionals in HF. The organization was founded by Bonnie Crystal KQ6XA, as a High Frequency international resource for ALE and Selective Calling. The
first large scale organized Ham Radio ALE nets began in late 2001,
during the recovery from the 9-11 disasters. Since then, HFLINK has
grown to over 4000 members. Through teamwork, frequency coordination,
technical standards, and protocol optimization, ALE has become a widely
accepted ham-friendly, interference-free system worldwide. |
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FCC Changes 5MHz Ham Radio Rules, Adds Data Comms 16 November 2011, FCC adopts new rules for the 60 meter band. How do these changes affect USA hams? |
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the new rules, Ham Radio operators in USA are allowed to use Data modes
on 5 channels in the 5MHz band, with some restrictions. The maximum
power level is 100 Watts PEP with reference to a dipole. One of the
channels that previously was prone to constant interference has been
replaced with a clearer frequency. For a more detailed information
about the changes, please see HFLINK 5MHz News. |
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Global ALE High Frequency Network Celebrates 4 Years of Continuous 24/7/365 All Band HF Digital Service in 2011 |
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Global ALE High Frequency Network (HFN) sets a new up-time record by
operating 100% continuously on all international amateur radio
shortwave bands simultaneously 24/7/365 for 4 years. Relying on HF (High Frequency) ionospheric communications, all radio stations in this worldwide system scan the ham bands every 10 seconds, rapidly maintaining contact through short digital bursts of signals using a system known as ALE (Automatic Link Establishment). With about 2000 registered operators, the HFN covers a vast area of the planet. All ham operators are welcome and invited to participate in the net on the air at any hour of the day or night, for normal QSOs and messages, soundings, or priority Emcomm use. |
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ALE On The Air Week
AOTAW 5 to 15 August 2011 |
| ALE On The Air Week (AOTAW) is an international amateur radio event sponsored by HFLINK. Hams participated in
10 days of HF Automatic Link Establishment activity on the air. The
purpose of the event is to encourage ALE communication techniques among
amateur radio operators worldwide. Operator
experience in this
readiness exercise is useful for HF Emergency / Disaster Relief
communications. AOTAW
is an open informal operating event for hams to check out their ALE
communications equipment, get real-world experience initiating and
responding to ALE calls, link up with fellow ALE operators for for text
or voice QSOs on HF, and share helpful information about setting up ALE
stations. Thousands of amateur radio operators worldwide have ALE-capable stations, and many were active in the AOTAW events. Visit the ALE High Frequency Network's ALE COMM CENTRE web site for up-to-the-minute activity loggings of all the ALE signals as they are received at the various stations around the world during the event. |
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IARU
GlobalSET EmComm Radio Events ALE operators participate in Global Simulated Emergency Test communications exercises sponsored by International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) |
| GlobalSET is the on-the-air international emcomm
radio event sponsored by IARU.
The objective is to promote readiness for
international emergency disaster relief communications. Operators
participate in the Global Simulated Emergency Test by sending text
messages
to the central IARU GlobalSET headquarters, relayed via amateur radio stations. Hams may
activate their ALE stations, start scanning and sounding before the event, and send messages during the day of the event. For more information, please read the details on the HFlink forum. GlobalSET Objectives: 1. Increase the common interest in emergency communications. 2. Test how usable the IARU Emergency Center of Activity frequencies are across ITU regions. 3. Create practices for international emergency communication. 4. Practice the relaying of messages using all modes. |
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 ALE for Emergency / Disaster Relief Communications Presentation at the IARU Global Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Conference |
| The International Amateur Radio Union's Global Amateur
Radio Emergency Communications Conference GAREC-2007 was held in
Huntsville AL, USA, with international delegates from IARU Region 1 and
Region 2 attending. The focus of the GAREC conference was: How
the amateur radio service can apply advanced technologies to emergency
communications in the service of early warning, emergency response and
disaster relief. The ALE presentation at the conference included information about how ALE can provide an
interoperative method for all emergency and disaster relief
communicators to communicate with each other. more... A conference report for HFLINK members is available on the HFLINK forum. |
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 | HFLINK Comments to ARRL on New Data Communication Protocols |
| HFLINK responded to ARRL's announcement seeking comments from amateurs concerning development of an
open-source, non-proprietary, data communications protocol suitable for
use by radio amateurs over HF fading paths. The topic was discussed at length in the HFLINK Forum. more... |
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BACKGROUND
ALE was originally an expensive system for government services, but recent innovations in digital technology have brought the cost way down. The first organized amateur radio ALE nets began in 2001, corresponding with the release of the free PC-ALE software controller for ham radios. Several years of development by the 4000+ member HFLINK organization adapted ALE to be a ham-friendly, interference-free system. In 2007, the internet- connected HFN network went into full scale 24-hour service. HFN rapidly expanded to cover large areas of the earth, and it has become the prime framework for ham radio operations using the global standard ALE system. In keeping with its roots, ham radio ALE still maintains compatibility and interoperability with goverment ALE radios, many of which are also available now on the surplus market and being used by hams. Nearly every major HF SSB radio manufacturer in the world is now marketing an ALE radio.
 HFLINK MEMBER SUPPLIES
Visit the HFLINK online supply depot for ALE T-shirts, Hats, insignia, and more |
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High Frequency Network
The services currently provided by Global ALE HFN stations using Automatic
Link Establishment, include: HF SMS Phone Texting, Text HF Email messaging,
real-time-activity tracking,
HF-to-HF Relay, Net Call ups, Net
announcements, and individual station direct HF calling. Real-time
reporting of who is on the air and able to communicate with each other,
is tracked by the global network of stations through ALE COMM CENTRE on the web.
 A team of radio operators is on the air, in the global constellation of
ALE HF stations, the new ham radio ALE Global HF Network (HFN). The new HFN Pilot
Stations are equipped with scanning ALE transceivers, multiband antenna
systems, and special software control systems for internet connectivity. Ham radio ALE users in
the field on HF connect with the HFN Pilot Stations to exchange digital
ALE-SMS text messaging to and from internet devices such as cell mobile
phones, black berry type devices, PDAs, PCs and laptops. ALE users also
relay ALE messages to other ALE HF users via the same system. more...
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