[Boatanchors] Help With Determining My "Section" Number

Sun Jun 28 23:06:03 EDT 2009

I am a bit confused by the 1, D, MI and the 1,D, Michigan if using commercial power.    

How does whether or not I am using commercial power affect my geographical section?    

In years past when I worked Field Day from home with a generator for power, I was told bo use 1,A Nothing was said about any other identifier. I guess the person telling me assumed I was bright enough to say that I was in Michigan!    

It never even occurred to me this year when I decided to participate in Field Day Saturday afternoon - just because that I needed to change my designation from the "A" (apparently wrong from the get go for a station operating with emergency generator power!), to "D" for commercial power! So I happily worked hundreds of stations as Michigan "1,A" ...        

Then Sunday morning, at least UTC wise anyhow, 0318 UTC, a station in CA seemed puzzled and asked if I was participating in Field Day "officially". I told him that if that meant had I signed up, filled out forms or submitted cash, negative. I was just operating to keep my skills in proper form in the event of a national disaster, declaration of war or whatever else we might be needed for.         

He started to read something, half to himself and haf to the rest of us listening. "You are only operating one transmitter, right?" Yes. "Are you running power, like an amplifier?" Yes. 450 watts PEP. "You are in Michigan, right?" Yes. The southeastern part of the state. The County is Genesee and the city is Flint.    

He said that I was a 1,A and asked me for my section number. I had then, nor do I have yet, any idea what my section number is! I have zones for the ARRL, zones for ITU, FCC codes - passwords - registration numbers, certifications for this and that etc. But nothing I have tells me my section number!    

Now I find out that this Hispanic Ham in CA was himself using the wrong whatever it is called! He was not 1,A,P but 1,A,PAC! So Hams in CA tell me.     

One thing is for sure! If we Hams are obligated to help, or required by our FCC license to render assistance, then somebody somewhere better get this identifier thing figured out like ASAP in case the unthinkable happens and we are needed! The last thing we need is Hams arguing with other as to who is qualified to be the NCS, who has their section number right and so forth. I have this vision of Smokey The Bear with his back turned to the fire fighters, police, EMS crews etc., with one paw over his snout and mouth and just laughing his ass off! Smokey? You might consider eating a few hundred kilos less of those candies the children give you when you visit their schools to talk to them about "Only they can prevent forest fires! As Mother Nature is hard of hearing, won't admit to it and refuses to buy batteries for the hearing aids that Father Time and other childhood immortals chipped in to get her!" Do this before those ASPCA people track you down, shott you with a tranquilizer dart or three, drag you into a metal cage and haul you off to an overweight animal food withdrawal centers! I can promise you Smokey, that you are not going to like those vetinary medicine dropouts using motivational therapy, (AKA electric cattle prod in your rump to crawl faster on their dreadmill!     

Remember what happened to your father who used to hang out with BooBoo The Bear and his associate Yogi "it ain't Berra!" Bear and that park ranger with quite a few spots gone missing on his deck of Bicycle playing cards! Good old Yogi and his park raids on the tourists 'pic-a-nic baskets' (as "only" Yogi could say it!). Then grandpa Smokey blurted out those unfortunate historic words on live TV "Remember children! Forest fires help to prevent Bears and only you can ignite them by being careless with live coals and matches!" Which is why the population of Yosemity Park went up by one and the new national fire symbol is that goofy cannine with Bucky Beaver teeth and a fire fighter hat that makes his ears parallel with the ground, like little bi-plane wings! So slim down, get a new catchy motto and we will send that third cousin to those dogs that bark "Jingle Bells" each Christmas off to some petting zoo on the moon's new human lunar habitat!     
So back to the original question. Why do I use 1,d, Michigan with commercial power instead of 1,D, MI with ... What? Everything else but commercial power? But what do "Michigan" and/or "MI" have to do with my source of power. Isn't that third item the geographical section?    

---- Original Message ----- 
  From: D C *Mac* Macdonald 
  To: dfischer at usol.com ; boatanchors at mailman.qth.net 
  Sent: Sunday, June 28, 2009 10:05 AM
  Subject: RE: [Boatanchors] Help With Determining My "Section" Number

  Hi, Duane and all.

  The report that YOU would give would be ONE DELTA MICHIGAN,
  or ONE DELTA MIKE INDIA assuming you are running a fixed home
  station on  commerical power.

  The first digit indicates the number of transmitters in use.

  The second digit represents the class of your operation.

  ALPHA is a group portable station ofa club or more than
  two operators

  BRAVO is a one or two-person operation.

  CHARLIE represents a mobile station.

  DELTA represents a fixed station on commercial power.

  ECHO is used for fixed stations using emergency power.

  FOXTROT indicates a station at some type of emergency
  operations center.

  The final 2 or 3 characters indicate the A R R L section.

  Some A R R L divisions have states that are divided into
  several sections, which requires three characters.

  The section abbreviations are found in Q S T magazine
  on the A R R L section manager page.

  Good luck and have fun!

  73 - Mac K2GKK
  Oklahoma City

  > From: dfischer at usol.com
  > To: boatanchors at mailman.qth.net
  > Date: Sun, 28 Jun 2009 03:40:40 -0400
  > Subject: [Boatanchors] Help With Determining My "Section" Number
  > 
  > 
  > 
  > Hi All,
  > 
  > I am being asked this Field Day Weekend for my "Section Number". Apparently 
  > I missed something in years gone by doing the calculations. The number I end 
  > up with is not right in any case. Please help me calculate it right. Thank 
  > you.
  > 
  > I was talking with a station in Hawaii and he was 1AP. Now that is one 
  > transmitter, an amplifier and I assume his state, although Hawaii. was "P" 
  > for the Pacific. Am i correct?
  > 
  > I have one transmitter in use, so that is my "1". I am using a small 450 
  > watt PEP amplifier so there is my amplifier for the "A". I live in 
  > southeastern Michigan. Since I give my city and state out of habit it is 
  > always said. But what do I do for the state or whatever that third 
  > designator is?
  > 
  > Thank you 'very' much gentlemen.
  > 
  > Duane, W8DBF
  > 
  > Duane Fischer, W8DBF - WPE8CXO
  > E-Mail: dfischer at usol.com
  > Hallicrafters web site: www.w9wze.net
  > HHRP web site: hhrp.w9wze.net
  > 
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