The 2012 Plan includes a 75^th anniversary Diamond DXCC Challenge http://www.arrl.org/diamond-dxcc that’s intended to be an enjoyable and challenging history lesson. Dave Patton has done a lot of research to put together a DXCC list that’s as close as possible to the one adopted in 1937 and used by DXers in the years just before World War II. Working and confirming 100 of these entities was much more challenging than today’s DXCC hunt. Not only were there far fewer than there are today, the DXer of that day had far fewer bands to choose from and only two modes: CW and AM. Add in that transmitters were either unstable or crystal controlled, receivers were unstable and lacked both selectivity and accurate frequency readout, antenna systems were much less sophisticated than we have today, there were far fewer hams on the air outside the US, and there were no spotting networks like DX Cluster – not to mention CW Skimmer and LOTW – and it’s easy to see that the first amateurs to earn DXCC were true masters of our craft.

Another bit of DXCC news will be announced next week: a new fee structure that should help us avoid the end-of-year backlogs that have developed in the past and to provide better member service throughout the year. The announcement and fee chart are attached.

Best wishes to all for an enjoyable remainder of the holiday season.

73,

Dave Sumner, K1ZZ

<<2012 DXCC Fee Chart.pdf>> <<2012 DXCC Fee Structure Announcement.pdf>>