[GreenKeys] WLO On the AIR

[NICKTUSA at aol.com]

Fellow Greenkeyers:
 
When I talked Rene into hosting an on-air version of ITTY, it was done  for 
two reasons: so we could actually use our mechanical machines as  intended 
and, secondarily, to help Rene secure a broader awareness of WLO  throughout 
the land based and maritime community.
 
It is no big secret that the growth of satcoms on ships has hurt  maritime 
shore stations like WLO.  If ships are using satcoms, they aren't  using 
HF-SSB phone patches or even HF email.  Mariners continue to do  HF radio 
checks, but as Rene often quips: "I can't cash a radio  check!"
 
Yet, HF radio is still important. In disaster situations, wired as  well as 
cellular telephony often fails; if the telephony and cable  infrastructures 
are damaged then the Internet is gone as well.  Satcoms  have relatively 
limited voice bandwidth availability and they quickly get  overwhelmed.  But, 
what about HF?? 
 
WLO was the de-facto communications support for the US Coast Guard after  
Hurricane Katrina.  All of those Coast Guard helicopters that were  seen 
picking up stranded people from rooftops in flooded South Louisiana were  being 
directed by WLO operators, using WLO facilities.  The Coast Guard's  radio 
systems were inoperable at that time, so WLO certainly filled a vital role  
and saved lives. Once the dust settled, Rene got the idea for petitioning  
the FCC to allow WLO to provide disaster communications to land based public  
safety operations (police, fire EOCs, 911 Centers etc) since by law maritime 
 stations could only communicate with ships.  Rene was granted a rule 
waiver  that now allows land-based HF radio support.
 
The best way to help Rene and WLO is to contact your local emergency  
management agencies and urge them to subscribe to his emergency HF radio  
service.  Go to the WLO website, _www.shipcom.com_ (http://www.shipcom.com)  for 
more details.  Over  the past 64 years, WLO has never been QRT...wounded, 
perhaps, but  operational.
 
The more paying clients Rene gains, the longer WLO and WLO-RTTY  will 
remain viable.   It takes money to maintain a 24/7/365  manned radio watch and to 
keep one-hundred 5KW transmitters ready to roll. So,  please pass the word 
along.  
 
There is no justifiable reason why an inexpensive HF radio  capability 
should not be installed into every emergency operations  center...just in case.
 
73  Nick  K5EF
 
 
 
 
 
 
In a message dated 8/17/2011 7:31:39 A.M. Central Daylight Time,  
kmd at xplornet.ca writes:

Group,

Can't tell you how good this news is. Finally, the  Real Mccoy!

Question, how is WLO being funded? Are they set up to take  donations? We
want to insure they stay on the air for a very very long  time.

Keith  ve3ts
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