[MRCA] Navy-Marine MARS Shut Down

[w8au at sssnet.com]

At 11:07 PM 5/13/2015, Mike Morrow wrote:
>I can't say I'm surprised...it almost happened 
>in 2009.  NMC MARS was late to the MARS game 
>when it began operation in 1963, fifteen years 
>after Army and USAF MARS. IMHO, the only period 
>in which it served a real function to servicemen 
>was during the Vietnam war.  I was a very active 
>member from 1968 to 1970, but then my own time 
>in the USN cut down my participation.  I did not 
>quit until 1982, but NMC MARS clearly had lost 
>much of its reason for existence by 1975.  IMHO, of course.

Mike:  Various parts were valuable through the 
nineties.  I was in the "afloat" program serving 
deployed ships with free phone patches for 20 years.
The introduction of SAT terminals on major ships, 
then on down to the small boys tended end that 
program eventually.  The last customer
was the Coast Guard.  Ended about ten years 
ago.  The phone patch frequencies are still allocated but no traffic.

Perry   w8au  NØVNO / NNNØVNO