[ADXA] because it's almost Veteran's Day...

[Dennis Schaefer]

I've had an "interesting" couple of months and I'll elaborate on that
later.  Also, I was very sorry to miss the ADXA bash, because it sounds
like a great meeting and you are my lifelong friends.  Since it is almost
veteran's day, though, I was thinking about my time in the service.  A few
interesting things happened along the way, one of which involved ham
radio.

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DX'ing with a MRC-108


In 1971, I was in the U.S. Air Force.  I was stationed at Bergstrom AFB
near Austin, TX.  Our unit was a tactical communications outfit and we were
on mobility status for immediate deployment anywhere in the world.  I think
I had shots for every disease known to man.



Our exercises were way out in the country, and this led to an interesting
experience.  We set up our TRC-97A troposcatter microwave rig in a cow
pasture 30 miles from the base, in a place that required going through
several locked farm gates to get to.  A lieutenant in a jeep arrived at our
site and asked for me.  He had heard that I was an all-around smart fellow
and also a ham radio operator.  Well, at least the part about me being a
ham radio operator was true!



One of the men at a site nearby started having chest pains and thought he
was having a heart attack.  Even though we had millions worth of comm gear,
no one at the base was monitoring any frequency we could transmit on and no
other military units could be reached.  Because of the distance and the
number of locked gates, the commander felt that driving him out was not the
best option.  He wanted the rescue helicopter at the base put on standby.   We
had a few Forward Air Controllers with us and they operated VHF/HF radios
from jeeps.  The HF equipment covered all HF frequencies, so I tuned around
75 meters, and found a strong signal from North Carolina.  I got him to
call the base and relay our needs, and then he stood by for any futher
requests.



Fortunately, the airman’s condition improved before the helicopter was
dispatched on the hazardous night mission.  If he had gone critical, ham
radio could have potentially saved his life.  Our squadron commander was
amazed at how this worked and sent the ham a nice letter of commendation.



73,

Dennis, W5RZ

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I know others in the group have had more harrowing experiences, and have
heard those "shots fired in anger".   Saying "thank you for your service"
always sounds a little trite,  I usually say something like "thanks for
going there so I didn't have to".
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