[SFDXA] ZS8 Marion Is Amateur Radio History

[Bill]

/Wonderful Article on ZS8 Marion Is. From Steve NN4Z: - Bill W2CQ
/https://zs6ez.org.za/zs8.htm


  Marion Island ZS8

Last updated 2014-04-03

The Prince Edward islands are South African territory, but are 
considered a separate DXCC entity because of their distance from the 
mainland. The group consists of two islands, Prince Edward and Marion. 
As Prince Edward is uninhabited, Marion is the DXer's only hope of a 
contact with this country.

Marion is home to a weather and research station. It is manned 
year-round, with crews staying for a year. The annual supply ship comes 
around April and stays for a few weeks to take care of resupply and base 
refurbishment. The trusty supply ship, SAS Agulhas, was retired in 2012, 
and replaced by the more modern and larger SAS Agulhas II. The new ship 
is a custom-built antarctic research platform, while the older ship was 
a generic light ice-breaker modified for antarctic research work and 
training.

The island is administered by the Department of Environmental Affairs 
and Tourism, the agency responsible for weather services in South Africa.


    Amateur Radio on the Islands


      The ZS2MI Era

During the Sixties, the club station *ZS2MI* on the island could be 
operated by anyone. The station was on the air daily, as there was 
little other entertainment available. The station used the huge Rhombic 
antennas, and was easily workable around the world. At least one 
personal callsign was used (ZS6ZU/2), so I assume there may have been 
others.

I'm told that the Seventies brought a restriction to only licenced 
amateurs, and the station suddenly became very rare. Only if a licenced 
operator happened to be on the crew would there be any activity. All the 
operators during this period continued to use the club callsign ZS2MI. 
It was clearly important to retain a single callsign, as all other ZS2 
callsigns were on the South African mainland.


      The ZS8MI Era

1989 brought another dispensation, when the ZS8 call area was allocated 
to the Prince Edward Islands. The block was no longer being used for 
Bechuanaland, as this entity had become a separate country as Botswana 
and had been given the A2 callsign series. The way was now open for 
individual callsigns, but for some strange reason, the first three 
operators of this era continued to use the club callsign *ZS8MI*.

*Petr Sykora ZS6PT* used ZS8MI from 1989 to 1990. He used Dave Burstein 
ZS5E as a QSL manager. He was very active, and made around 17 000 
contacts. He operated CW, SSB and RTTY. He also had considerable success 
with 50 MHz, working almost 500 Japanese stations on this band. After 
Petr's return, he handled his own QSL cards via his home callsign. He 
now lives in New Zealand with the callsign ZL1CX.

*Gerard Everett ZS5AEN* was next, taking over from Petr for 1990 to 
1991. He continued Petr's success on 50 MHz. His activity was mainly 
confined to SSB, but he did make some contacts on RTTY and CW. His 
mother handled his QSL chores, via his home callsign. Gerard no longer 
appears to be active, but he holds the callsign ZS1GTE.

There was a short *pirate operation* by Jannie Groenewald ZR6AOJ. He was 
actually on the island, but did not obtain permission and would in any 
case not have been authorised to use HF with his restricted VHF-only 
licence. He is said to have made a few hundred contacts during a 
changeover. I believe this changeover to have taken place in April 1992.

*Christie de Kock ZS1CDK* came next, on the 1993 to 1994 crew. He made 
9000 QSOs, with around 800 on CW. His parents handled his QSLing chores 
via his home address. He is now ZS6CDK in Pretoria.


      The Post-ZS8MI Era

The first ZS8 operation was a low-key affair by *David Hartzenberg 
ZR1BCE*. David had a VHF-only licence, and could therefore not activate 
ZS8MI on HF. However, he did have a VHF radio and made three 50 MHz 
contacts with stations in South Africa, apparently via Sporadic E, using 
ZR1BCE/ZS8. David would return later to do things on a grander scale.

When *Chris de Beer ZS5IR* asked me to be his QSL manager for his 
1996-1997 stint, I agreed on one condition: That he get his own 
callsign. I had been QSL manager for many other stations, and was 
getting a steady trickle of requests for ZS8MI QSL cards. The reason 
appeared to be that there was considerable confusion. The practice of 
periodically re-using a callsign with different QSL managers is not 
common, and few knew exactly where to send a request. It also appeared 
that some of the QSL managers had lost interest in answering QSL 
requests. I was not prepared to become entangled in this mire of 
never-ending work, and Chris obtained his own callsign: *ZS8IR*.

ZS8IR was the first personal callsign to be issued for use from Marion 
Island. Chris was hampered by poor high-band conditions, at the bottom 
of the sunspot cycle, but managed over 18 000 QSOs. Around 6000 of these 
were on CW, with over 600 on RTTY. He also made a significant effort on 
1,8 MHz, with over 350 QSOs in the log. Chris is now ZS6RI, and has 
operated from ZD9IR, 5H4IR, 5H9IR, 9G5CB, EL2RI and 9J2RI in the 
intervening years. He has also lived in Saudi Arabia and Cameroon 
without being licenced. He was a member of the 1997 DXpedition of the 
Year, ZK1XXP from the North Cook Islands. Most recently, he commutes 
between his home in Centurion, where he is active as ZS6RI, and 
temporary assigments all over Africa.

Chris's departure saw the end of an era. The HF backup link had been 
replaced by satellite, and the huge *Rhombics were torn down*. The 
island sports a unique variety of bird life, and the Rhombics had been 
killing birds throughout their existence. With satellite facilities, the 
Department decided to scale down the HF facilities to a single dipole.

During the period after Chris's operation, I continued to receive 
hundreds of requests for help with ZS8MI cards. I eventually obtained 
the logs from the three QSL managers, and obtained assistance from the 
Northern California DX Foundation (NCDXF) <http://www.ncdxf.org> to have 
cards printed. I have subsequently handled several hundred requests for 
ZS8MI cards, both directly and through the bureau.

*Deryck Yelverton ZS6DIY* was next, on the 1999-2000 crew. He made 
around 2000 contacts as *ZS8D*, with less than 50 on CW. I was the QSL 
manager. Deryck has subsequently returned to the island for another 
year, but elected to play with pirate CB rather than with amateur radio.

Deryck's stay marked the first attempt to get permission to erect a 
personal amateur radio antenna on the island. Considerable research led 
to a proposal <https://zs6ez.org.za/download/zs8-ant.pdf> that was 
presented to the Environmental Management Committee. The avian 
specialists from the Fitzpatrick Institute at the University of Cape 
Town, who maintain a full-time researcher on the island, agreed that the 
trial was well-conceived and supported it, but the Department 
unilaterally turned it down. Unfortunately, other factors made it 
difficult to pursue the issue further with the Minister at the time, and 
I decided to leave the effort for when the next operation happens.

During 2004, I was phoned by *Ludwig Combrinck ZS6WLC*. He had proposed 
some space geodesy experiments to be based on Marion Island, and would 
be going down for the changeover. He had taken the callsign ZS8MI into 
the custody of his department at the Hartbeesthoek Radio Astronomy 
Observatory <http://www.hartrao.ac.za>, and was going to operate the 
radio during his off times. He declined my offer of equipment, and 
instead took antique radios with no split-frequency capability, and wire 
antennas. He was unaware of the problems with bird life. I explained the 
confusion around ZS8MI, and strongly recommended that they select a new 
callsign. I even made arrangements with the regulating authority ICASA 
so that the callsign could be changed within a day. However, Ludwig 
insisted that they would retain the old callsign. Indeed, he started a 
propaganda war against me by stating on his Web site that I had 
masqueraded as the QSL manager for ZS8MI and that I was not the official 
QSL manager for ZS8MI. They also indicated that they would demand $ 5 
for direct QSLs from ZS8MI to "cover postage", and $ 2 for ZS6WLC/MM 
QSOs. Presumably the postage would somehow be less for the /MM cards. At 
least this demand subsequently became more uniform, with $ 2 being 
demanded for all QSLs.

I find this behaviour strange, as I had proposed that we cooperate to 
ensure that there would be a minimum of confusion. Ludwig had had little 
exposure to DXing, and clearly underestimated the confusion that would 
result.

To put matters into perspective, I need only refer the reader to my 
QSLing policy <https://zs6ez.org.za/qsl-pol.htm>, where I explain the 
situation exactly and certainly do not pretend to be the manager.

Ludwig made only 2034 QSOs, with only 190 on CW. The confusion around 
QSLing was even worse than I'd predicted, due to a confluence of events. 
The QSL route was ZS6M. The callsign had only belonged to the manager 
for a few months, so all Callbooks in circulation showed an incorrect 
address. To make matters worse, the manager died less than a year after 
the operation. Ludwig has asked for QSLs to be redirected to him, but 
very few replies have been forthcoming. I'm afraid we're back to the 
confusion of the 1990s, and I'm getting numerous requests for help with 
cards for Ludwig's operation.

All misdirected QSLs for the 2004 operation were returned to their 
origins with an explanatory note.

Fortunately, during 2014 Ludwig provided me with an electronic copy of 
the logs. I can now again provide QSL cards for all ZS8MI contacts.

*Petrus Kritzinger ZS6GCM* was there in 2008/2009, and was licenced as 
*ZS8T*. The DX world had high hopes, given Petrus's brief showing some 
months before from Bouvet Island as 3Y0E. However, Petrus made virtually 
no contacts, as his duties involved very little time in the base. His 
QSL manager was LZ3HI.

*ZS8M* was active during 2010/2011, by *Pierre Tromp ZS1HF*. Pierre 
requested QSL cards via his home call, with the paperwork being handled 
by his friend ZS1X. Pierre made 8623 QSOs, with just over 200 on digital 
modes and 21 on low-altitude satellites. He made no CW QSOs. This 
operation was characterised by a blacklist onto which all perceived 
offenders were placed, accompanied by long lectures about pileup 
behaviour. I hope someone listened.

On the 2013/2014 crew, there were supposed to be four licenced radio 
amateurs. Three made it onto the air. Few could ever have envisaged 
having several ZS8 stations active simultaneously!

*David Hartzenberg ZS1BCE*, the first ZS8-era operator who had 
subsequently upgraded to ZS, was licenced as *ZS8Z*, and was modestly 
active, mostly on SSB. David requested QSLs via ZS1HF. Half-way through 
his operation, ZS1HF was sent to Gough Island as ZD9M, leaving David 
responsible for his own cards. He intends to deal with the paperwork 
after his return in mid-2014.

*Carson McAfee ZR6CWI* was licenced as *ZS8C*, and became active a few 
months after David. He had his own antenna, and concentrated on skeds 
for SSB contacts. He requested QSLs to be sent directly to his home 
callsign, and started posting logs on LotW while the operation was still 
in progress.

Two other members of the crew were supposed to be licenced while on the 
island. Carson's girlfriend Nadia Hansa and Marius, the diesel mechanic, 
were supposed to take their licence exams while on the island. Neither 
appeared on the air during 2013. However, hope lived eternal.

During early 2014, *Nadia Hansa ZS8A* appeared on the bands, apparently 
only on SSB. She requested QSLs via ZR6CWI, and was attempting to 
register for LotW. Not much time remained before the arrival of the 
supply ship in April.


    Summary of Known Operations

I know about the following operations from Marion Island. The list is 
based on personal notes accumulated over the years.

To my knowledge, all the operations up to 2009 took place around the 
base on Transvaal Cove. The original base was replaced in 2010 after a 
five-year construction project, but the locations are close together. 
The Maidenhead locator for both bases is KE83WC and the IOTA number is 
AF-021.

The early operations shown below are based on very limited information, 
sometimes only on a single QSL card that I have seen. In the 1980s and 
later, when I personally became involved in the island, the changeover 
normally took place in April, so most recent operations have either been 
a short operation in April/May or a 13-month operation from one April to 
the following May. I don't know whether this pattern also existed in the 
Seventies and before.

Any further details would be greatly appreciated. I'd love to make this 
table as complete as possible.

*Callsign Period Operator QSL manager QSOs LotW *
ZS2MI       1948-07              Harry Hawkins
ZS6ZU/2     1953-01              Paul P. du Plessis          ZS6ZU
ZS2MI       1952-03 to 1953-02   Barrie Brokensha ZS6AJY
ZS2MI       1954 to 1955         Danny Oldewage
ZS2MI       1955-10              ZS6PN (perhaps ZS6FN?)      Home call
ZS2MI       1957-04              Ken R. Edmunds
ZS2MI       1958-05              James
ZS2MI       1962-02              Toby
ZS2MI       1963-12              Ray                         ZS1OU
ZS2MI       1964-04 to 1964-12   Wynand                      ZS1CZ
ZS2MI       1969-11 to 1970-02   Des                         ZS6LW
ZS2MI       1970-12              Fanie                       ZS6LW
ZS2MI       1972-09              Les/Leo?                    ZS6LW
ZS2MI       1973-09              Jan                         ZS6LW
ZS2MI       1975-05 to 1976-05   Pieter Swemmer
ZS2MI       1978-03              Gordon I. Procter ZS6AGV    WA4SSU
ZS1TD/ZS2MI 1978-08              David Thornton              ZS1TD
ZS2MI       1979-07 to 1979-11   Johan Jordaan (ZS1SZ?)      WA2IZN
ZS8MI       1989-04 to 1990-05   Petr Sykora ZS6PT           ZS5E>>ZS6PT      17 072       Yes
ZS8MI       1990-05 to 1991-05   Gerard Everett ZS5AEN       Home call                     Yes (mostly)
ZS8MI       1992-04              Jannie Groenewald ZR6AOJ    Pirate operation--no QSL
ZS8MI       1993-04 to 1994-05   Christie de Kock ZS1CDK     Home call         9 077       Yes
ZR1BCE/ZS8  1995-04 to 1996-04   David Hartzenberg ZR1BCE    Home call             3       No
ZS8IR       1996-04 to 1997-05   Chris de Beer ZS5IR/ZS6RI   ZS6EZ            18 155       Yes
ZS8D        1999-04 to 2000-05   Deryck Yelverton ZS6DIY     ZS6EZ             2 086
ZS8MI       2004-04 to 2004-05   Ludwig Combrinck ZS6WLC     ZS6M>>ZS6WLC      2 034       Yes (some)
ZS8T        2008-04 to 2009-04   Petrus Kritzinger ZS6GCM    LZ3HI               Few
ZS8M        2010-04 to 2011-05   Pierre Tromp ZS1HF          Home call         8 623       Yes
ZS8Z        2013-05 to 2014-05   David Hartzenberg ZS1BCE    ZS1HF           In progress
ZS8C        2013-05 to 2014-05   Carson McAfee ZR6CWI        Home call       In progress   Yes
ZS8A        2014-02 to 2014-05   Nadia Hansa                 ZR6CWI          In progress

/Some of this information is based on QSL cards shown on the Web site of 
Les Nouvelles DX <http://lesnouvellesdx.fr>. Both their collection and 
this list grow gradually as we interact. Merci, Monsieurs!/

/*Important note:* Don't try to use these QSL routes for old QSOs. Most 
of them no longer exist!/


    Electronic QSLing

/*Bottom line:* All ZS8MI logs, except for about 3000 QSOs, and all 
ZS8IR and ZS8D logs are on LotW, to the tune of about 55 000 QSOs./

During 1995, I placed the ZS8IR logs on LotW with the help of Wayne 
Mills N7NG, who was with ARRL at the time. During 2011, as part of a 
larger effort to get all my old logs onto LotW, I managed to post the 
ZS8MI logs for the ZS6PT and ZS1CDK operations too.

The ZS8MI logs from the ZS5AEN operation were on paper. I have manually 
entered these logs into a computer. Unfortunately, not all QSOs had time 
stamps. Where possible, times have been obtained from incoming QSL 
cards, allowing most of the QSOs to be time-stamped. Nevertheless, many 
QSOs still lack time stamps and have therefore not been placed on LotW.

I repeatedly asked ZS6WLC for his logs. During 2013, he finally 
responded. The logs are somewhat fragmentary, with most times being 
incorrect by a number of hours. The log has a very high error rate, with 
many callsigns being visibly broken. If you have not obtained an LotW 
match, please provide me with the correct QSO information. I may be able 
to use the information to correct problems with other QSOs too.

The ZS8D logs are in electronic form, but suffer from a high error rate. 
If you are not seeing an expected match, please send me QSO details so 
that I can research it.

During 2013, other Marion Island logs, owned by other QSL managers, have 
started showing up on LotW. The ZS8M logs have been posted, and ZS8C has 
started posting QSOs on an ongoing basis during his operation. ZS8A has 
indicated that she intends to use LotW too. ZS8Z is registered on LotW, 
and intends to upload his logs on his return.


    The Future

With over 90% of all ZS8 QSOs ever made now on LotW, hopefully the QSL 
problems for recent operations are reasonably under control.

With no substantial operation since 1997, Marion has crept up the Wanted 
Lists. It hovers inside the Top 10 on most lists, and at Number 2 on 
ClubLog <http://clublog.com>'s CW Wanted list at least for 2012, 2013 
and 2014. Only North Korea P5 has made less of a showing on CW than 
Marion has.

The spate of activity during 2013 and 2014 has helped to drive ZS8 down 
the Wanted Lists. The Clublog list shows it at number 25 as of early 
2014. It is likely that it will rebound into the Top 10 later in 2014.

The demand is unlikely to ever be satisfied by resident operators. Apart 
from it being relatively unlikely that a hard-core DXer will end up down 
there for a year, the disappearance of the rhombics will mean that the 
operation will have to rely on limited antennas, dictated by the 
constraints of concerns around the impact on bird life.

During 1999, I made a concerted effort to address the situation. Deryck 
Yelverton ZS8D was on the island, and I attempted to get permission for 
him to erect the antennas which we had procured with the help of the 
NCDXF. The petition <https://zs6ez.org.za/download/zs8-ant.pdf> shows 
clearly that the concerns are misplaced, and that the bird strike risk 
can be managed. After meetings with the Department, I was informed that 
no permission would be granted. No reasons were forthcoming.

Attempts to organise autonomous expeditions to the island have also been 
thwarted by politics within the Department.

The situation may change within a few years when a specific individual 
retires. Until then, don't hold your breath.

A new base was commissioned during the 2010/2011 team's stay. Perhaps 
the old base can be used by a future autonomous operation. Only time 
will tell.

Return to ZS6EZ's Radio Page <http://zs6ez.org.za>

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