QNews for June 16th 2024

Q-News AR News from Queensland

WAR on TOWNSVILLE: 29th. July 1942. In the early morning hours of the 29th. July 1942 a Japanese aircraft dropped eight x 250 lbs. bombs, supposedly on Townsville Q. Seven of the bombs fell in Cleveland Bay and the eighth bomb fell on Oonoomba, a suburb of Townsville. Thankfully the damage caused was a crater and the destruction of one palm tree. I, with other Members of TARC, operated two stations on ANZAC Day 2024 , Net Control by Gavin, VK4ZZ from the Green St. Headquarters. A lot of work has gone into dealings with the three levels of Government: TV and other media interviews with our Local opposition Member have all helped with securing written documentation of future support to preserve the Site in "some" form from destruction. Our transmission on the Anniversary of the Bombing, 29th. July 2024 from the Site will Start: 2.00 pm EST finish: 4.00 pm EST Freq. 7.100 LSB. Net Control VK4ZZ - Gavin TARC H'quarters. TARC Members to erect a portable station are all welcome. All welcome. I ask that we be inundated with DX stations from all over our Great Country and give us moral support. LEST WE FORGET. Kind regards, Ray & Wendy Schinkel

Hello, I’m Geoff Emery, VK4ZPP, and I’ve been thinking. round my part of the world, despite what has been forecast, we are having delightful weather with blue skies, fluffy clouds and cool mornings. Only a few weeks go, I was reporting that we were in for a drier winter and a warmer one. With most days getting into single figure temperatures as the sun comes out I really can’t say it has been warmer than average. Just like getting the sunspot figures, we will learn the truth as time goes on. I haven’t been noticing that portable activity has increased, now that the rain has eased, and I wonder if many amateurs are prepared for activities away from the shack. There seems to be a level of people following the POTA and SOTA activities but maybe my sources aren’t getting the whole picture. Here are ways of flying the flag for amateur radio when we appear in public and our equipment stands out like a super hero costume to the lay visitors. I am from the era when you caught up on the stories of fictional heroes at places like the barber shop with a better selection of recent but not new on the shelf magazines and comic. It made a trip to the barber much more entertaining than the outdated and dog eared collection in the doctors’ surgery waiting room. This brings up the idea that has been raised over the years of getting places such as these to have material such as Amateur Radio magazine added to the collection of 4X4, fishing and other coffee table material available to read. There are plenty of places that we all visit periodically and where a variety of the local population also pass through. Just think of business and health services that have waiting rooms and here is an opportunity to spark the interest of someone new. There are is the fact that we don’t currently have any body which will supervise the donation of material. This is something that surely can be rectified. Similarly, we don’t have promotional material which could be distributed and placed for free in these venues. I am sure that in my region which is popular with tourists, that camping areas with areas such as laundries would appreciate some nice material for their clients to browse. What I am suggesting is that there are many opportunities to spread the word and even demonstrate our passion to the passing people who come for other reasons. The mechanic’s waiting room benefits from the caravaning and camping magazines, along with the fishing and boating material. The hairdresser doesn’t only have fashion on display and what you find at a dentist and doctor’s surgery can be an odd mishmash of reading material which is no doubt dictated by what is unsold at the newsagencies. So who can think of a good way of putting something like this into action? I’m Geoff Emery VK4ZPP and that’s what I think….how about you?