Today on a DX Net, the net control station in Australia came up to ask if the frequency was in use prior to commencing the net. His query was immediately responded to by an overseas station, which replied “the frequency is all yours……”. The particular VK in question and the DX station were about 2,700 kms apart. That is a big distance. At that distance, the DX station would potentially be hearing less or more on the frequency than the VK.
I have heard this practice regularly on this particular net, and also during recent park activations. I believe it is not a good practice to adopt.
Firstly…….listen, listen, listen. Before transmitting, listen on the frequency and above and below the frequency you intend to transmit on.
If you hear a station/s on the frequency, move either up or down the band and repeat the process…..listen, listen, listen. If you hear a station/s on a nearby frequency, move frequency and listen again. If you don’t hear anybody on the frequency, ask if the frequency is in use. If you get no response, ask again.
Even if you do not hear anything on the frequency, you should be asking if the frequency is in use. What you are hearing may be very different to amateurs in other parts of Australia or the world. There are occasions when you will hear all participants of a QSO on a frequency, and there are other times you will not. You may hear just one station. You might not even hear any of the stations using that particular frequency. It all depends on propagation and noise floors.
What is next after your query if the frequency is in use? If someone comes back and advises that the frequency is in use, then say thank you and find another frequency. But what might happen is that those in QSO on the frequency might not hear you, and you commence calling CQ. Then a third-party station listening in on the frequency tells you the frequency is in use. Sometimes this may be a friendly comment, other times not. Again, say thank you, and move on.
And while on the subject of nets. Nobody ‘owns’ a frequency. Comments such as ‘we have been on this frequency for 20 years’ and ‘they should know about our net’ are not relevant. I have heard such comments being made by net controllers or net participants to those who have dared to be on a frequency prior to a net starting up.
I am a Net Controller on the Australia New Zealand Africa (ANZA) DX Net, and if I hear a station on the nominated frequency of the net, I will ALWAYS move the net away from that frequency. I might try contacting the station and politely asking them if they would be prepared to move. It all depends on how busy the station is, how strong they are, etc. Sadly, the same cannot be said for some other net controllers of various nets, particularly down on the 80m band. Even if they hear a station on the net frequency or close by, they start the net up anyway.
On one particular evening, when on the 80m band, whilst activating a park, I was asked to move a total of 3 times. The first request to move was a very polite one as their net was about to commence. As a result of the very polite request, I moved up the band. On the second frequency, I was asked again to vacate the frequency as a net was about to commence. This request was less cordial, but not wanting a conflict, I moved frequency. I commenced calling CQ on the third frequency, and I was asked if I could move as their net was about to start. When asked when the net commenced, I was told ‘in about 35 minutes’.
Amateurs are not expected to know the time and frequency of the hundreds of nets that are on the amateur radio bands.
In summary, listening and asking if the frequency is in use is a courteous practice to adopt. I am amazed at how many amateurs do not do this, and just come up on a frequency and start causing QRM. And a reminder that when I last checked, Australian nets do not lease particular frequencies from the ACMA. If you are a net controller, be prepared to either use diplomacy or move the net.
VK5PAS 