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USA exams system endorsed by ACMA

Discussion in 'Amateur Radio News' started by G4TUT/SK2022, Sep 27, 2019.

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  1. SM0AOM

    SM0AOM Ham Member QRZ Page

    I have reason to believe that the ACMA is as tired of radio amateurs as other regulators
    world-wide are.

    But those stated above are the very reasons why licensing should not be outsourced.
    Both the ARRL and RSGB do only run the exams, but the actual issuing of licences and callsigns still stays with the FCC and OFCOM.

    When the whole licensing process becomes off-loaded or outsourced to non-transparent bodies, be prepared for unpleasant experiences...

    73/
    Karl-Arne
    SM0AOM
     
    Last edited: Sep 30, 2019
  2. KK6VQK

    KK6VQK Ham Member QRZ Page

    Hi!

    So a question!

    I'm a VK6 expat living in the US now. I have my US licence. I asked for a VK reciprocal licence so I can operate when I return home without having to apply for temporary licences. From how I read this I'll have to pass an Australian licence test which I'd love to, but how do I sit them here in California?

    Thanks!


    -adrian
     
  3. VK3VM

    VK3VM XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    Adrian,

    Contact Sheree via details listed at http://www.amc.edu.au/industry/amateur-radio and she will be only too willing to advise with 100% accuracy. Sheree is fantastic and will bend over over backwards to facilitate genuine inquiry :)

    But as I say to everyone have no expectations based on the previous system (as some entrenched cannot comprehend) as process has changed ... This is a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SYSTEM that will have maturity issues - and these maturity issues are caused by SIGNIFICANT regulatory decisions that only occurred last week !

    I have only become involved in these social media posts as "spin" and "False News" (and I hate using Trump-isms) has been disseminated; I have been extremely active in seeking the regulatory changes that has just occurred for many years and a previous post will explain why.

    [ Even before your post I was in the process of seeking a call with the team there to discuss just this very matter (as it has come up in discussion) and a few other matters to ensure that I as well am offering the best advice ! ]

    If there is any way that I can assist I am more than willing to help and even facilitate communication further (direct contacts for me are available on the AMC website). I may not do a lot of assessments BUT I assist assist actively with communicating and facilitating the best, fairest and most spatially-effective outcomes for All Amateurs - as is a role that all Assessors under any nation's system should provide.

    73

    Steve I
    VK3VM / VK3SIR - AR Assessor and subscriber to HAM - Help All Mankind.
     
  4. VK3VM

    VK3VM XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    Karl-Arne,

    I personally agree 1000% - and that is the way that it should be. Here in Australia all management processes have been outsourced and this is primarily because the regulator does not have the skills and capacity any more to provide these services themselves (even in the event of systematic failure). Its allegedly "Thatcher-ite economic rationalism" gone far far far to the extreme !

    As for management even of assessment process, even under the previous Australian AR provider's administration I was asked what did I think about this assessor etc. and it related to someone up-high having a personal issue with an assessor etc. I have a lot of private communication with active RSGB, ARRL and NZ assessors as well ... and their observations on "politics" are not unique to mine either.

    Politics - the science of the interaction of people and groups of people. To overcome politics there needs to be very special people involved in processes - people that are apolitical. But that is incredibly difficult to achieve and even more difficult to convey across in political environments.

    73, and very insightful observations served for us all Karl-Arne.

    Steve I
     
  5. KK6VQK

    KK6VQK Ham Member QRZ Page

    Thanks!

    I already applied for a licence / callsign through the US/AU equivalency thing whilst this stuff was on hold. So hopefully I can get my licence/callsign and the 12 month period. And yes, this was all done through the AMC at UTAS.

    I'll go poke them about it all today. I'd love to get this figured out soon so I know what to study for and how to take the exams out here.

    I appreciate your time and response!

    -adrian
    (kk6vqk)
     
  6. N6TDG

    N6TDG XML Subscriber QRZ Page


    It is supposed to be a hobby, isn't it? I don't understand how some people want to make it their vocation. You say you like brewing things up....make and allstar node and talk to some of us Yanks over here on the Winsystem. We always like a good talk. Folks over here fall over themselves to talk to guys from Australia and England. We don't care about foundation, standard and the such...The way many of us look at it, the ticket is a ticket to learn. Are there grouchy old farts on the dial here in the US? Ha! More than one can shake a stick at...

    There is an expression here in the States: Haters gotta Hate.... SOunds like you like working QRP and are quite good at it...maybe you can share your tips with some of us over here that like to do that sort of thing.

    I haven't been on HF yet...despite being a General...I have a rig to bring back to life, an Icom 751 that is being gifted to me. But when I started this hobby I had no idea what I was going to do. I was over 60 and overweight so figured it was time to become a ham, (instead of looking like one.) My latest project is building an allstar node using a Pi4 and hooking it up to an Alinco 235 (220Mhz) so that area amatuers can enjoy whereever the node is pointed, say the Alaskan Morning Net, then Winsystem, then maybe the Manchester Hub, or maybe somewhere over in Australia. 220Mhz isn't used much around here so I won't be clogging up the dial like on 2m (We are secondary users on 440 in our neck of the woods due to Military restrictions, so 2M is chock full)...

    After I get that all going then I want to play around with packet radio and understand how all that works. I will get to HF in due time. Its a hobby. If you like going to a mountain top and using five watts to talk to Spain...than that is a beautiful thing. Folks tend to forget its a hobby. If you want to bounce signals off the moon...you can. If you want to talk to buddies around the corner all day, you can...tain't nobody's business but your own.

    As for me, when I do get that 751 back on the air, I am looking for conversation with people, not contacts. If I end up talking to someone in wherever land, I want to talk...not just log a contact and move on. That is why, for me, FT8 seems so impersonal. Computers talking to computers over the aether. Bah...but then again, that is me. If someone else gets enjoyment out of that, and many do...good for them. I don't have to do it.

    So why didn't the hater that couldn't reach Spain on 400 watts ask you about your antenna? Maybe it was a different day and propagation. Maybe you hit the right spot where the waves just floated into Iberia. Instead of claiming that you somehow "cheated," asking how you did it on 12 watts would be the normal question from a normal person.

    Stay in the game, if only to piss off the haters.

    73
    N6TDG
     
  7. VK4HAT

    VK4HAT Ham Member QRZ Page

    Sadly for some, ham radio is more an identity than a hobby. Those who have caused me the most grief typically have not much good happening in their lives and ham radio is the one thing that makes them special. So, people like myself who can pose reasonable arguments about the things we think we could do better become the enemy, because my viewpoint goes against their narrative that they are special and unique.
     
  8. N6TDG

    N6TDG XML Subscriber QRZ Page


    Well, like I said...you should stick around, just to piss the haters off... If you have a better way to build an antenna, lets say...then just build the thing and talk to the folks on Jupiter and let the haters who say it can't be done choke on it...
     
    VK4HAT likes this.
  9. WD8ED

    WD8ED Ham Member QRZ Page

    I find much of that disturbing. So sorry to hear.

    Ed
     
  10. VK3DQ

    VK3DQ XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    Hi Folks

    Under the WIA system my group offered courses and exams on a regular basis

    Courses lasted 5 weeks (with candidates attending on 5 Sundays and doing home study for the rest of the time

    Exams were conducted on the 5 Sunday

    The courses were free of charge and open to all comers .. and were not associated with any club so there was no pressure to join any club

    We however did inform our candidates about clubs in their locality

    we ran courses approximately four time a year


    So it was not "Impossible" to get some help we never turned anyone away !

    Kind Regards
    John Fisher VK3DQ
     
  11. VK4HAT

    VK4HAT Ham Member QRZ Page

    Disturbing is one way to look at it. LOL
     
  12. VK5KKS

    VK5KKS Ham Member QRZ Page

    I've held a ham radio licence and a pilot licence since 1983. Back then it was simple, study, sit the exam(s) get the licence. Couldn't give a toss who handled the paperwork, it just happened. Now days with all the computer power and internet resources it seems to be very complex and confusing. I think it's all about the dollars. It's no wonder old farts like me long for the good old days.
    Kevin, VK5KKS
     
  13. K4BH

    K4BH Ham Member QRZ Page

    In the US you only need a valid mailing address at which the FCC can contact you if need be. It does not need to be your place of residence. Many people use a PO Box. The caveat is that if the FCC sends you communications to that address and it is returned for whatever reason, your station license will be cancelled and your operator license suspended.
     
  14. VK4TI

    VK4TI Guest

    "VK3VM, post: 5210268, member: 379220"]Just to clarify my position with The VE Licensing issue and obtaining a VE Licence - I am EXCEPTIONALLY KEEN to undertake assessment in the US system if not become a VE Examiner myself... Yet to do so it would mean that I would have to list a "false" address (i.e. a place where I do not live/operate from or re-mail my licence from) on documentation to obtain the licence.

    When I can list my home address on the licence I will gladly and with expedience take assessment for a US licence and will apply for a Vanity Call as many Australians have done."

    There is nothing wrong with the supply of US postal address to rx mail which is letter of the rules , residency is NOT required so please don't twist things .
     

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