This is a bit rambling, I've injured my back and have been out of sorts for a few days, so forgive me. I've hesitated to call our baby ugly, but the reality is that there are a number of technologies that have been around for decades to connect EOC and FEMA operations - EOC's and FOC's. Satphones and satellite Internet has become very inexpensive and reliable. I purchased and installed both these technologies for the government in the Florida Keys when I was CIO there. I had multiple sites and multiple Hughesnet points (as well as point to point on trailers) so that I could light up segments of the Keys in the event bridges (carrying fiber) were washed out. There is a scenario, though that would make this (and the Collins stuff) not work - satellite sabotage/attack. But this would likely be a full scale war scenario. The military obviously has this case covered, somewhat. SpaceX's Starlink is about to make that possibility even more remote by providing hundreds of redundant small satellites. We MUST stop thinking that the FEMA/EOC network is ours to control. It isn't and we typically are overwhelmed with high volumes of ad hoc traffic. We are kidding ourselves thinking that radiograms have any place in a high volume catastrophe. Even HF WinLINK is challenged - it takes multiple nodes to handle traffic to get messages to relay points. (And the HAM AID kits are not complete WinLINK nodes.) Skills and drills are needed to be able to set up temporary data links (Grid, 2.4GHz+ point to point) to connect hospitals and government agencies to the outside world. Some ARES organizations (Like LA, CA, County) can do this. MOST CANNOT. Although it seems amateur EMCOM guys want to sit in an EOC or a shelter, there's a model where we are still needed - in the neighborhoods helping people, reporting damage and getting aid. This is typically a CERT function, but they're overwhelmed in an emergency. There are multiple ways to deploy amateurs in their orange vests, HTs and helmets with SR teams. Our served agencies - Red Cross, Salvation Army, love us for this type help. But that's not in the shelter with the 911 crew where the action is. EOC's rarely need more than two shifts of amateurs. There's plenty of opportunities to help, establish relationships and do good work. But almost none of these can use the traditional NTS. Teams on the ground should be trained and ready to deploy GRID coverage and connect to high speed WinLINK nodes. And, by the way, someone should be working on the next generation of WinLINK functionality. And we should bypass this entire IRR/NTS malarky by creating NTS 2.0 that does what WinLINK does but better. Search and Rescue, Hospitals, Relief Agencies will all need reliable emergency communication for years to come. We, the ARRL, have not done the work to make amateur radio visible and pertinent. One person is not going to be able to do this. The Hurricane Maria example is true and amateur radio response was lacking. The SM/SEC in NFL dropped the ball and ARES did not have the relationships that they should have had - and hopefully do today - with the Florida EM director. A number of self-deployed people arrived and conflicted with authorities. It was ugly. We need to take a close look at the field organization and manage them better. There are great sections, well managed, with hundreds of volunteers, like Georgia, but there are others where the SM does nothing and no one runs against them time after time. The way I understand ethics rules, Directors cannot be involved with this. This is where ARRL is in trouble, but there is no mechanism to identify and act on these cases where there are essentially empty chairs in the field organization. We can make ourselves pertinent. But, let there be no doubt, we need to sell it to the locals, and we've done a terrible job with this in Florida, the state with perhaps the most opportunities for EMCOM deployment. If you'd like to see a working EMCOM organization, take a look at these folks in North Carolina working with SHARES: https://vimeo.com/428372392 Work on replicating these relationships and skill! (RANT MODE OFF) Mickey Baker, N4MB Palm Beach Gardens, FL *“The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead." Robert K. Greenleaf* On Wed, Jun 17, 2020 at 9:18 PM rjairam@gmail.com <rjairam@gmail.com> wrote:
TL;DR - Emcomm as a reason to keep our spectrum was and is a dead end.
Knock, knock, is anyone listening?
Emcomm is a noble purpose, part of basis and purpose. But it can’t be the only nor main basket we put our eggs in.
And let’s face it - hams are volunteers. Aging volunteers to boot. We will never be equal to trained professionals. Served agencies will avoid hams wherever they can, because we are simply not able to deploy quickly and consistently as needed.
We need a plan, yesterday that doesn’t position us solely as the volunteer emergency communications corps. Rather, we need to look at ALL of basis and purpose, and bring that to the community.
There is definitely hunger for that sort of thing. Science and education that doesn’t have emcomm as the end goal.
Ria N2RJ
On Wed, Jun 17, 2020 at 7:24 PM John Robert Stratton <N5AUS@n5aus.com> wrote:
See KB6NU's posting on Collins' UrgentLink System
https://www.kb6nu.com/collins-driving-another-nail-into-the-amateur-radio-em... --
______________________________________
John Robert Stratton
N5AUS
Director
West Gulf Division
Office: 512-445-6262
Cell: 512-426-2028
P.O. Box 2232
Austin, Texas 78768-2232
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