[CW] Early Radio Operator Licensing

[Benny K5KV]

YES I REMEMBER IT WELL.  WE MET ON 40M CW AS YOU SAILED UP THE
MISSISSIPPI RIVER TO BATON ROUGE.   YOU WERE DOCKED AT THE EXXON
REFINERY IN BATON ROUGE.   IN THOSE PRE 9/11 DAYS I COULD GET IN THERE
BUT AFTER 9/11 FORGET THAT.   ENTRY TO ANY PETROLEUM SITE REQUIRED A
FEDERAL ID AFTER 9/11.   I KNOW BECAUSE I WORKED ON SEVERAL
ENGINEERING PROJECTS FOR THAT FACILITY BEFORE I RETIRED.

I HAD THE T2 WHEN I WAS IN YOUR RADIO ROOM ON-BOARD THAT TANKER AT
EXXON.  I GOT IT IN 1981 RENEWING IN 1986.  LIKE A FOOL I LET IT GO IN
1991.   OF COURSE I WAS OFFERED A WEEKEND JOB IN 1992 AT KLC.   I
CONTACTED THE FCC AND WAS TOLD TO TAKE A HIKE WHEN I ASKED IF I COULD
RENEW OR RETEST FOR THE T2 IN HOUSTON.  I GUESS MY CRYSTAL BALL WAS
NOT WORKING IN 1991 WHEN I LET IT GO.  THE FCC SEEMED TO WANT THE R/T
LICENSE TO GO AWAY AT THAT TIME AND I AM AMAZED YOU CAN TAKE IT NOW
WITH A VE OUTFIT.

73
BENNY K5KV

On Wed, Aug 26, 2020 at 1:52 AM D.J.J. Ring, Jr. <n1ea at arrl.net> wrote:
>
> You didn't mention if you passed, and if you did, and still had your license still when you visited me at EXXON Baton Rouge on SS COVE TRADER/KRBY, I would have let you call Slidell Radio/WNU and ask them "QRU?" on 500 kHz and signed your license. I did that for Bus, K4IX before he passed on when Bus visited me on MV CHARLOTTE LYKES/WPHZ when we were discharging containers on our return trip from Felixstowe, England, Bremerhaven, Germany and Rotterdam, Netherlands. He was delighted. He worked USCG Portsmouth, VA on 500 kHz and Tampa Radio/WPD on 8 MHz and I signed his 2nd class radiotelegraph license. He was so excited! I'm sorry I missed that opportunity.
>
> I do remember you told me how you had heard one of the train dispatchers signaling and learned Morse only to return to him to show him what you had learned to find that you had learned International (Radio) Morse and not American landline Morse.
>
> So in addition to the memory of meeting you and having coffee with chicory and fresh fried beignets from "Cafe du Monde," I would have the wonderful memory of signing your T2 license! I think I was docked at Violet, Louisiana, and I have forgotten which place we went to Cafe du Monde, it must be 35 years now.
>
> 73
>
> DR
>
> On Tue, Aug 25, 2020, 23:04 Benny K5KV <k5kvm5 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> DR
>>
>> THE SECOND TELEGRAPH.
>>
>> 73
>> BENNY K5KV
>>
>> On Tue, Aug 25, 2020 at 9:45 PM D.J.J. Ring, Jr. <n1ea at arrl.net> wrote:
>> >
>> > Benny,
>> >Radio
>> > Are you talking about the radiotelephone (P2, and P1) exam or the radiotelegraph (T2) exam?
>> >
>> >
>> > In Boston the only exams that had diagrams to draw were Amateur Extra and 2nd Telegraph.
>> >
>> > The phone licenses were all multiple choice.
>> >
>> > 73
>> >
>> > DR
>> >
>> > On Tue, Aug 25, 2020, 22:36 Benny K5KV <k5kvm5 at gmail.com> wrote:
>> >>
>> >> WHEN I TOOK THE RT EXAM IN NEW ORLEANS IN 1981 THE TEST WAS DATED BACK
>> >> IN THE 50'S.  I RECALL DRAWING A TRANSMITTER SCHEMATIC.   I STUDIED
>> >> OUT OF THE KAUFMAN BOOK LAST UPDATED IN 1957.  THAT SURE HELPED.
>> >>
>> >> 73
>> >>
>> >> BENNY K5KV
>> >>
>
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> =30=