OPDX 616 June 30, 2003

The Ohio/Penn Dx PacketCluster
DX Bulletin No. 616
BID: $OPDX.616
June 30, 2003
Editor Tedd Mirgliotta, KB8NW
Provided by BARF-80 BBS Cleveland, Ohio
Online at 440-237-8208 28.8k-1200 Baud 8/N/1

Thanks to the Northern Ohio Amateur Radio Society, Northern Ohio DX Association, Ohio/Penn PacketCluster Network, AB5K & the AR TelNet Clusters Network, K1XN & GoList, K2PF, NG3K, W3UR & The Daily DX, N4AA & QRZ DX, WA4PGM, WA5PAE, K8BL, K8YSE, KC8FS, W8UVZ, K0HB, 9A6AA, DL/VE3ZIK & Contesting.info, DL1ASA, DL1EK/DL7VOA & DX Newsletter, EA5YN, F5NLY, F5NQL & UFT, FJ5DX & La Gazette du DX, G3SWH, HK6DOS, HL1VAU, I1JQJ & IK1ADH - 425 DX News, IK8VRH, JI3DST, JI6KVR & JA-IOTA Islands News, JJ1BDX/3, OE1ZKC, SP5UAF, VA3RJ & ICPO, VK8NSB and Radio Club Venezolano for the following DX information.

EDITOR'S NOTE: WOW!!!
It was a real challenge putting this one together. I started Saturday about 5:00 PM and wrote this between operating Field Day (also fighting off spiders and bugs), and driving back and forth from the Field Day site (Headed home about 3:15 AM. Not much sleep... Must have been the bugs!). I woke up real early Sunday morning. Finished writing around 11:15 AM so the official proof-reader (my wife) can look at it while I head back out to Field Day. I came home around 3:30 PM, and corrected and added more to the bulletin... I do not recommend this to anyone....
Hope you had fun at Field Day!!! 73 de Tedd KB8NW

DXCC COUNTRY/ENTITY REPORT
According to the AR-Cluster Network for the week of Sunday, 22nd/June, through Sunday, 29th/June there were 208 countries active. Countries available: 3A, 3B8, 3B9, 3V, 3W, 3X, 4J, 4L, 4S, 4U1I, 4U1U, 4W, 4X, 5A, 5B, 5H, 5R, 5T, 5U, 5V, 5W, 5X, 5Z, 6W, 6Y, 7Q, 7X, 8P, 8R, 9A, 9H, 9J, 9K, 9L, 9M2, 9M6, 9N, 9V, A2, A4, A6, A7, AP, BV, BY, C3, C6, CE, CE9, CM, CN, CP, CT, CT3, CU, CX, D2, D4, DL, DU, EA, EA6, EA8, EA9, EI, EK, EL, EP, ER, ES, ET, EU, EX, EY, EZ, F, FG, FK, FM, FO, FR, FY, G, GD, GI, GM, GU, GW, H4, HA, HB, HB0, HC, HH, HI, HK, HK0/a, HL, HM, HP, HR, HS, HV, I, IS, J6, J8, JA, JD/m, JD/o, JT, JW, JY, K, KH0, KH2, KH6, KH8, KH9, KL, KP2, KP4, LA, LU, LX, LY, LZ, OA, OD, OE, OH, OH0, OK, OM, ON, OX, OY, OZ, P2, P4, PA, PJ2, PJ7, PY, PZ, S2, S5, S9, SM, SP, SU, SV, SV5, SV9, T2, T5, T7, T9, TA, TF, TG, TI, TK, TL, TR, TY, UA, UA2, UA9, UK, UN, UR, V2, V3, V4, V5, V7, VE, VK, VK9N, VP2V, VP5, VP8, VQ9, VR, VU, XE, XW, YA, YB, YI, YK, YL, YO, YS, YU, YV, Z2, Z3, ZA, ZB, ZC4, ZD9, ZF, ZK1/s, ZL, ZP, ZS

* PLEASE NOTE: The report "could" contain "Pirate/SLIM" operations. As always, you never know - "Work First Worry Later" (WFWL).

3C0, ANNOBON ISLAND
Operators Franz/DJ9ZB, Elmo/EA5BYP, Victor/EA5FO and Vicente/EA5YN, will be active from Annobon Island in October. The station callsign is absolutely as sured, and it will be announced before the operation starts with other complete details (bands, modes, dates, etc). QSL via DJ9ZB.

4W, TIMOR LESTE
Well known DXer Kan Mizoguchi, JA1BK, sent out a press release (via WA2MOE) explaining why "East Timor" should be removed from the ARRL DXCC List and "Timor Leste" should be added as a new DXCC entity. Kan explains:

"Explanation of our petition to remove the former 4W and to add Timor Leste: The Eastern part of the island Timor was originally a Portuguese colony but was invaded by Indonesia in 1975.

Following the resignation of the Indonesian dictator General Suharto, Portugal and Indonesia entered into a treaty allowing an independence referendum to be held among the area's residents, and the United Nations began a short period of temporary administration and peacekeeping.

That area was called "East Timor", and the UN agency charged with assisting the people to independence was called UNTAET, standing for United Nations Transitional Administration of East Timor. It should be remembered that UNTAET was not a country but was a UN agency only.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) allocated to UNTAET a bloc of call prefixes 4WA-4WZ , and under the provisions of DXCC2000 rules, ARRL made "East Timor" a DXCC entity.

There is a problem with this. At the time the entity was established there was no state or country, just a land area which shortly would have a referendum for independence according to the treaty. DXCC2000 states that if '...provisional assignments not be ratified later by the full ITU, the Entity will be removed from the DXCC List '.

The referendum was held on May 20, 2002. Independence won, and the provisional allocation of 4WA-4WZ was returned to ITU by UNTAET. The allocation was never ratified. According to DXCC2000, UNTAET should have been removed immediately from the entities list. It was not.

The new political state is known as the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste and has been admitted to the United Nations. The ITU has now reallocated the same bloc of prefixes to Timor Leste and the government of that country has established a procedure whereby amateur radio licenses can be and are issued.

The conclusion is obvious: Since the ARRL added UNTAET/4W to the DXCC list it had to be removed when the provisional call bloc was cancelled effective May 20, 2002 because UNTAET disappeared and the United Nations returned this provisional allocation to ITU. The allocation to UNTAET was never ratified so removal from the DXCC list should have been automatic according to the rules of DXCC2000.

On the other hand, the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste became a United Nations member state on September 27, 2002 and is now eligible to be a new entity according to DXCC2000 criteria a).

ITU has reallocated 4WA-4WZ to the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste and actual amateur radio activities started after this reallocation."

9A, CROATIA
OPDX has been informed that Braco, OE1EMS/T94JJ, is active at the moment from Krk Island (EU-136), and he is using the callsign 9A/OE1EMS. He will activate some other Croatian Islands and will use the callsign 9A/OE1EMS/p. With this callsign you can expect activity only on 20 meters and maybe 40 meters. Please note he will be active in the IOTA contest from Krk Island. QSL via DJ2MX.

9H, MALTA
Thomas, DL1ASA, will be on holiday on Gozo Island (EU-023) from August 1-15th. His callsign will be 9H3TM. His activity will be on all HF bands on CW, SSB, RTTY and will participate in the WAE-CW Contest on the weekend of August 9-10th. He will enter the contest as a Single-OP in Low-Power. QSL is "OK" via the DARC Bureau. For more details, see his Web site at:

http://www.dl1asa.de.vu
B4, CHINA
Michael, BD5RV, reports that the People's Republic of China Headquarters Station BY1PK (operated by the JiangSu DX Club) will be active in the IARU HF World Championship. They will use the callsign B4HQ. QSL via BA4RD: Ken Wang, P.O.BOX 538, Nanjing 210005, P.R. CHINA.

C6, BAHAMAS
Look for Jimmy, W6JKV, to be active as C6/W6JKV between now and July 7th. His activity over the past week has been on 6 meters at various times between 1000-1800z (usually looking for Europe). Watch around/between 50110-50125 kHz.

CONVENTION
Hans, K0HB, states, "Keep your calendars clear for October 18th! The Twin City DX Association of Minnesota is proud to present the W0DXCC 2003 Conference at the Holiday Inn, Route 35W in Bloomington, Minnesota! Top DX speakers, the W0 Buro, ARRL DX Advisory Committee, DXCC card checking, retailers and demos of the top radios plus lots more for a an exciting day of DX fun. It's near Mall of America for the family, and don't miss the Vikings play the Denver Broncos on October 19th!" Visit the following Web page for more details at:

http://www.TCDXA.org

DX INFO ON THE WEB
Dejan Menges, T94DJ, reports he is a Contest/DX Editor for the ARABiH. Please visit the ARABiH official Web page at:

http://www.arabih.org

FO, FRENCH POLYNESIA (Also, a ZL IOTA and Austral Islands [FO/A])
Look for operators Barry/ZS1FJ/G4MFW/ZL1MFW, Phil/G3SWH and Deon/ZS1ZL, to activate the following islands during a DXpedition to French Polynesia in July:

  • * Tubuai Island (OC-152) in the Austral Islands, July 11-14th ADDED NOTE: A short operation may also take place on Rurutu Island OC-050 in the Austral Islands.
  • * Mangareva Island (OC-063) in the Gambier Islands, July 15-22nd
  • * Tahiti Island (OC-046) in the Society Islands, July 23-24th
  • * Great Barrier Island (OC-201) in the New Zealand Island Group around July 25-26th
    The callsigns to be used are: FO/G4MFW on SSB and RTTY and FO/G3SWH on CW. QSL routes: FO/G4MFW via ZS1FJ and FO/G3SWH via G3SWH. Activity will be on all bands, including the WARC bands (even during the IARU Contest weekend while on Tubuai Island). The low bands 160, 80 and 40 meters will also be on the air. Modes are SSB, CW and RTTY. The preliminary frequencies are:
    SSB - 28495, 24945, 21295, 18145, 14195, 7095 and 3795 kHz
    CW - 28025, 24895, 21025, 18075, 14025, 10105, 7005, 3505 and 1830 kHz
    RTTY - 28075, 24922, 21085, 18102 and 14075 kHz
    Please note that small deviations might be needed, e.g. if the announced frequency is busy, not busy enough or filled with QRM. They will always work split, listening up 5 on SSB and up 1-2 on CW and RTTY. Strategically located pilot stations have been appointed to assist the expedition members in the efficient flow of traffic and information.
    
         European Pilot: Don, G3XTT        Pacific Pilot: Harry, KH6FKG
               US Pilot: Don, W0DM         African Pilot: ZS1AU

    Expedition costs in the Pacific Region are extremely high and any donations from DX associations and individuals will be gratefully accepted and may be sent to G3SWH. Please do not send checks in any currency other than sterling or cash in currencies other than Euros and U.S. dollars. The expedition website will publish daily news, frequencies, operating conditions, pilot station activity, equipment status, E-mail addresses and QSL information. Web site is at:
    http://www.qsl.net/g4mfw

    I5, ITALY (Castles and IOTA)
    Joel, F2YT, will be touring the Italian Province of Grossetto (I5) from August 8-31st. He will be using the callsign I/F2YT. Paul-Joel will be activating a lot of Italian castles which count for the Italian Castles Award. Ottavio, IK1PML, the well known QSL cards printer, will also go with him, at times. A short trip to Elba Island (IOTA EU-028, IIA LI-001) is also scheduled between August 15-31st, where Paul will sign IA5/F2YT. Watch the clusters for spots. Activity is planned on 7052 and 14252 kHz SSB, but by request, Paul can make a CW QSO on the same frequency. QSL via F2YT, either direct or via the bureau.

    IOTA NEWS
    AS-036. Operators Takeshi/JA3GJE and Hajime/JP3TKP will be active as homecall/6 from Iki Island (Iki-jima Gounuura-cho Iki-gun Nagasaki-ken) from 0700z, July 3rd to 0000z, July 7th. Their activity will be on 40/17/12/10 meters SSB. QSL via the Bureau to their home callsigns.

    AS-080. Club members of Pyong-taek DX Club (Operators DS2GOO, 6K2CLF, 6K2CEO and 6K2CEW) will be active from Anmyon Island (KDN F26) between July 4-6th as D90HE/3 or with their private Homecall/3. QSL via Han, DS2GOO (P.O.Box 39, Pyongtaek, Kyonggi-do, 450-600, South Korea). Log search and pictures will be available at:

    http://myhome.naver.com/~dxer2han/2003/

    AS-147. Takeshi/JI3DST will be active as JI3DST/8 from Okushiri Island (Okushiri-cho Okushiri-gun Hokkaidou) from 0700z, July 25th to 0000z, August 3rd. Activity will be on 40/17/15/12/10/6 meters SSB. QSL via the BUREAU (BURO is best). Also, look for Takeshi to be active in the IOTA contest.

    EU-001. Jun, OE1ZKC, will be on the air from Kos Island, Dodecakese Island, as SV5/OE1ZKC from July 16-23rd. QSL via home call.

    EU-031
    EU-144. Operators Ciro/I8ACB, Luigi/IK8OZZ, Antonio/IK8VRH, Maurizio/ IK8YTA, Gianni/IZ8CGS and Giuseppe/IZ8EBI will be active with the callsign IR8DX and IR8DX/P from Campania Region Group (EU-031) and Calabria/Basilicata Region Group (EU-144) between July 1st and October 30th. QSL via IK8VRH or the ARI Bureau.

    EU-050. Operators IZ8CGS, IK7YTT, IZ8CCW, IZ6FIR, IW8ROS and IK0ESW will be active as IL7M from the Island of San Domino during the IOTA Contest. QSL via IZ8CGS. For more details, visit the Web page at:

    http://www.mdxc.org/il7m

    EU-136. Bill, ON5JE, is expected to be active now through July 17th as 9A/ON5JE from Rab Island (IOCA CI-096). QSL via his home callsign, direct or by the bureau.

    SA-040. FALSE INFORMATION RECEIVED. OPDX received some false information last week (for OPDX. 615). Operators Pablo/HK8RQS, Victor/HK8JEH and Albaro/HK8HIX are NOT going to Morro Island, October 11-14th. Also, Morro Island is actually SA-081, not SA-040.

    LIGHTHOUSE ACTIVITY
    Francis/F6HKS and Jean Claude/F6HDH will be operating from the Contis Lighthouse, (FRA088, PB 060) for the International Lighthouse/Lightship Weekend, August 16-17th. They will be operating on CW and SSB from 40-10 meters, except the WARC bands. The other reference indicators are: French Departments Loire Atlantique, 44 and Province Brittany. QSL via their home callsign, include a SAE + sufficient postage or via the French REF bureau.

    P4, ARUBA
    John, KK9A, will be active as P40A during the CQ World Wide DX SSB Contest (October 25-26th) as a Single-Op/Single Band (20m) entry. QSL via WD9DZV.

    QSL INFO AND NEWS
    Members of the Pina Colada Contest Club (KP2AA) and Federacion de Radioaficionados de Cuba did a first-ever joint Cuban-U.S. Field Day operation over the past weekend as CO0US. A special commemorative QSL recognizing their common interest in emergency communications preparedness, and international goodwill through Amateur Radio will be available for SASE or SAE and other return postage. QSL via K7JA. Operators were: CO2OJ, CO2II, CM2OY, CO2KL, plus CO2KK, CO2JA and others; W1HIJ, K6PEQ, KF6SGV, N6PEQ, K7JA, and KL7MF.

    OPDX has been informed that Hiroo, JA2EZD (aka XW2A, XY2A and XY2M), has set up (changed) his postal box because of thieves. He even went as far as to set a trap to see if his mail was being stolen (He put six air mail letters in the box on a Friday and on Monday they were gone!). He will use the new P.O. Box for receiving QSL cards (it is a Mail Service Office). The new POB is: P.O.BOX 10.003 Vientiane, Laos.

    Joe, JJ1BDX/3 informs OPDX that QSL cards for Manabu, UK/JI2MED, should preferably be sent to his home callsign JI2MED via JARL bureau only. Manabu also accepts direct QSLs to the following address, only for those who promptly need his card: Manabu SHIMOYASHIRO, 107-B, Amir Temur str., Tashkent 70084, Uzbekistan. DO NOT SEND DIRECT QSLs to his home address in Japan.

    QSL ROUTE CHANGE. Yoshiro, N1VF/KH2, who plans to be on from Guam Islands (OC-026), November 21-24th, seems to have changed his QSL route. QSL via Yoshiro Nishimura M.D., 2-6 Takemidai 4-Chome, Suita City, OSAKA 565-0863 JAPAN.

    T31MY QSL STATUS. George, OM2SA, reports that the next 700 QSLs for T31MY are answered and should be mailed out this week. ADDED NOTE (Thanks to Pick, WA5PAE): As you know, Mike/T21MY and Jan/T2YL went QRT and will be heading to Fiji to visit with Paul, 3D2AJ, and his wife Va'inga. Mike said that he had no plans to do any more radio operations until they stop at Vanuatu (YJ) later this year on their way back to Austrailia to be "land lubbers" during the typhoon season.

    Ralph, K2PF, informs OPDX that he is now handling QSL cards for Dejo, T94DJ.

    XQ6ET QSL STATUS. George, W8UVZ, reports: "I finished processing all current requests yesterday (June 25th) and the final batch is going in the mail today. And I have mailed, and Bob has RX 150 blank QSLs, to respond to about 100 QSL requests that he was holding. A couple of reminders for those still needing XQ6ET confirms:
    One call per envelope please
    Old style IRCs still won't flow easily thru our USPS.
    Send all QSL requests to W8UVZ with SASE or SAE and funds for postage. But note that I do not have logs to check E-mail 'in log' requests. All QSLs are still verified over the air. There has been a good outpouring of donations to help fund the amp that was sent to Bob last month. Bob has the MLA 2500 on the air and his top band signals are much improved, in spite of some still poor low band condx. We expect many more QSL requests for low band QSOs since Bob is again quite active in his winter season. And Bob has designs on improving his modest antenna setups soon. Thanks to the needy for being patient with this change in QSL route."

    SILENT KEY
    It was announced last week that well known DXer "Al" Albert H. Hix, W8AH, became a Silent Key (SK) on June 25th. Almost every DXer who attended the Dayton Hamvention and DX Dinner Banquet knew or knew of Al. With DXCC totals of 388 it was hard not to notice him. He will surely be missed. OPDX and its readers would like to send out our deepest sympathy to his family and friends. ADDED NOTE: WV ARRL Section Manager, Hal, KC8FS, has provided OPDX InterNet Subscribers (as an additional bulletin) with a writeup from the Charleston Gazette on Al, W8AH.

    SN0, POLAND
    A Polish team for the IARU HF World Championship (July 12-13th) will be again active using the callsign of SN0HQ. QSOs will be confirmed via the bureau. QSL Manager is SP2PI. More details about SN0HQ (list of operators, station locations, SN0HQ award etc.) can be found at:

    http://www.sp5zcc.waw.pl/iaru/info.html

    SOMETHING FREE!
    Emir, 9A6AA, member of the Croatian Amateur Radio Association and IOCA Manager, reports that the new IOCA directory (booklet) is finished. You can change (free of charge) your old IOCA booklet for a new one, during the "Hamradio" in Friedrichshafen.

    SPECIAL EVENT
    Territory Day is July 1st and marks the celebrating of the 25th year of Self-Government in the Northern Territory (NT). Early on July 1st, the most senior elected member of the Northern Territory government, the Honourable Chief Minister Clare Martin will be the first person to transmit on-air using a special amateur radio callsign, VI8NT, to celebrate the anniversary of self-government in the Northern Territory.

    TK, CORSICA
    Fred, F5OZK, will be active as TK/F5OZK between July 5-25th. Activity will be on 40-10 meters, including the WARC bands. QSL via his home callsign, direct or by the bureau.

    TM0, FRANCE
    Look for TM0HQ to be active from the Official French Headquarter during the next IARU HF Contest, July 13-14th. QSL via the French REF Bureau.

    MESSAGE FROM JUN, VK4SJ (aka - ZK1AYL)
    Jun, VK4SJ, sent OPDX the following message:
    "I wish to SINCERELY THANK 'ALL' who sent E-Mails, Cards and Messages of Sympathy after the tragic accident on Rarotonga, Cook Islands on the 23rd of May that took the life of my husband Doug VK4BP - ZK1SIM. These tributes and cards were of a great comfort to our 2 Son's and myself and helped to ease the pain of our loss. The QSL cards for our DXpedition on Aitutaki OC-083 and Rarotonga OC-013 have been processed and will be posted by this coming weekend (June 28-29th). All cards without return postage will be returned via the Bureau. ......... June VK4SJ - ZK1AYL". Her address is: June Sim, VK4SJ, P.O. Box 406, Caloundra, Queensland, AUSTRALIA 4551.

    VP5, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS (Operators Needed!)
    Operators KY1V/David, WA4PGM/Kyle, plus three other ops are headed to VP5 for the 2003 CQWW CW Contest. Kyle/WA4PGM announced this past week that they are looking for one teenage operator that will get an all expense paid trip! (WOW!!!!) Plus two others ops to complete the team. La Villa Rose has been secured as the contest station; for more information go to:

    http://www.qth.com/vp5/ham-radio.html
    Please contact them ASAP to insure your spot. Their E-mail addresses are: KY1V - dave@ky1v.com WA4PGM - vp5@wa4pgm.us

    VP8, SOUTH SHETLAND (Update to OPDX.615)
    Dany, LZ2UU, informs OPDX more details of his stay at the Bulgarian Antarctic Base "St. Kliment Ohridski", situated on South Shetlands (Livingston Island). He will basically be their radio operator. Dany wil be there from the middle of November until the end of February 2004. He will use the callsign LZ0A on all amateur radio bands, CW, SSB and RTTY mode. However, in the CQWW DX-CW Contest, he will use the VP8/LZ2UU callsign (Also, maybe in any other contests too). There is no E-mail and Internet available there.

    YV, VENEZUELA (Contest Activity)
    The Radio Club Venezolano Contest Committee would like to invite everyone to take part (and celebrate) in Radio Club Venezolano 70th anniversary during the Venezuela Independence Contest on July 5- 6th. Activity will be on CW/SSB and the new rules for the contest can be downloaded at:

    http://www.radioclub.venezolano.org (look for concursos)
    A special anniversary QSL will be available with QSOs with YV5AJ, the HQ station.

    SPECIAL NOTE BY EDITOR: If you are having a problem receiving bounced mail by sending mail to me via " kb8nw@barf80.nshore.org ", please send mail to me via " kb8nw@arrl.net "...... TNX de Tedd KB8NW

    OPDX INTERNET HELP/SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE REQUEST:

    Help: opdx-request@nshore.org Subject:help
    Subscribe: opdx-request@nshore.org Subject:subscribe
    Unsubscribe: opdx-request@nshore.org Subject:unsubscribe

    OPDX WORLD-WIDE WEB HOME (provided by John, K8YSE (k8yse@papays.com):
    http://www.papays.com/opdx.html

    ALSO VISIT THE NORTERN OHIO DX ASSOCIATION'S WEB HOME PAGE:
    http://www.papays.com/nodxa.html

    Excerpts and distribution of The OPDX Bulletin are granted as long as KB8NW/OPDX/BARF80 receive credit. To contribute DX info, call BARF-80 BBS online at 440-237-8208 28.8k/14400/9600/2400/1200 and leave a message with the Sysop or send via InterNet Mail to:

    kb8nw@barf80.nshore.org
    - OR -
    Use the VOICE or FAX answering machine at 440-237-8208
    which shares the same phone line as BARF-80 BBS using a data/fax/phone switch. To access: 1) Dial Number. 2) Wait for first ring (the second ring should be a false ring from the fax/data switch box) and then dial four quick ones ("1111"). (NOTE: Some FAX machines that send single "BEEPS" every second will not have to do this step.) 3) The phone will pick up and after the "BEEP" leave your voice message or FAX.

    Additional Bulletins for OPDX InterNet Subscribers

    From the "Charleston Gazette"

    Albert H. Hix

    Albert H. Hix, 85, died June 25, 2003, at home after a short illness.

    He was retired from Union Carbide Technical Center in 1985.

    Al Hix, W8AH, was known around the world by thousands of amateur radio operators and his pursuits in the DX or Distance aspect of the ham radio hobby are unsurpassed. Al's amateur radio station, operating from the hills of Charleston, made contact with 390 countries around the world placing him at the top of the American Radio Relay League's Honor Roll for such amateur radio pursuits. Al was the number one operator in the entire world for making contact with the most countries on the 40-meter band, where he had confirmed contacts with 362 countries. Al was first licensed in high school, graduating from Charleston High school mid-year in 1936. He was a 1942 graduate of West Virginia University with an Electrical Engineering degree. While at WVU he was also in ROTC military officer's training program and upon graduation, he joined the military, commissioned as second lieutenant in the US Army's Signal Corps and served in World War II in the European Theatre in England, Belgium and France.

    After the war, Al returned to Charleston and was hired by Union Carbide in 1947 and worked in their control and communication department for 28 years. During his career, he provided his expertise in electrical engineering and control systems to Union Carbide facilities around the world. Al got his Extra Class license in 1960 as W8BT (Correction per W8UI, his callsign was W8PQQ) and in 1977, took the W8AH call which belonged to a friend of his who had become a Silent Key. He was voted West Virginia Outstanding Amateur Radio Operator of the Year in 1986, served as president of the West Virginia State Radio Council for two years, and is past president of the West Virginia Quarter Century Wireless Association. Al was vice-president of the Instrument Society of America (ISA) and received the prestigious ISA Fellow Award.

    Surviving are his wife, Constance G. Hix of Charleston; brother, James Hix of Parkersburg.

    Service will be 11 a.m. Monday, June 30, at Wilson Funeral Home, Charleston, with Chaplain (Col.) Randall A. Kochersperger officiating. Entombment will be in Cunningham Memorial Park, St. Albans with military graveside rites.

    A gathering will be Sunday, June 29, at the funeral home from 5 to 7 p.m.

    In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to American Radio Relay League, Albert H. Hix Memorial Scholarship Fund, 225 Main St., Mewington, CT 06111-1494.

    Wilson Funeral Home, Charleston is in charge of arrangements.

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