Radio History
ON APRIL 18, 1906, THE U.S.S. CHICAGO BEGAN SENDING AND RECEIVING
MESSAGES TO ASSIST WITH THE RECOVERY OF THE CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO,
AFTER THE DISASTROUS EARTHQUAKE. OVER 1000 MESSAGES WERE SENT DURING THAT
EFFORT.
FROM: HISTORY OF COMMUNICATIONS-ELECTRONICS IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY BY CAPTAIN L.S.
HOWETH, USN (RETIRED) WASHINGTON: 1963
COULD THIS POSSIBLY BE THE FIRST INSTANCE OF WHAT WE KNOW TODAY
AS "EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS"?
Sent in by WB5BNV. TNX
ANNUAL ARMED FORCES DAY CROSSBAND TEST SPECIAL EVENT (9 May 2026)
The Department of Defense will host this year’s Armed Forces Day (AFD) Crossband Test, scheduled for May, 9th, 2026. This annual event is open to all licensed amateur radio operators and will not impact any public or private communications. For more than 50 years, military and amateur stations have taken part in this event, which is an interoperability exercise between hobbyist and government radio stations.
The AFD Crossband Test is a unique opportunity to test two-way communications between military
communicators and radio stations in the Amateur Radio Service (ARS), as authorized in 47 CFR 97.111. These tests provide opportunities and challenges for radio operators to demonstrate individual technical skills in a tightly controlled exercise scenario that does not impact any public or private communications.
Military stations will transmit on selected military frequencies and will announce the specific ARS frequencies monitored. All times are ZULU (Z), and all frequencies are Upper Side Band (USB) unless otherwise noted. The frequencies used for the test will not impact any public or private communications and will not stray outside the confines of the exercise.
The following stations will be making two-way radiotelephone contacts with stations in the Amateur Radio Service. Frequencies to be announced soon.
AAC / BARROW ARMY RESERVE CENTER, KY
AAN / U. S. NORTHERN COMMAND, CO
AAZ / FT HUACHUCA, AZ
ADB / CAMP FOSTER, OKINAWA, JAPAN
AFM4NPD / NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY MID-SOUTH, MILLINGTON, TN
AGA0WJ/ NAS WHIDBEY ISLAND OAK HARBOR, WAY)
AGA2SY / HANCOCK FIELD, NY
AGA5SC / SCOTT AFB, IL
AGA9TR / TRAVIS AFB, CA
GRIFFIN1 / 193rd RTI ARMY NATIONAL GUARD BETHANY BEACH, DE
NAF / NEWPORT NAVAL RADIO STATION MUSEUM NEWPORT, RI
NBGC/ USS HORNET AMATEUR RADIO CLUB ABLEMEDA, CA
NEPM / USS IOWA BB 61 LOS ANGELES, CA
NIIW / USS MIDWAY CV-41 SAN DIEGO, CA
NMC1/ US COAST GUARD BASE ALAMEDA, CA
NSS / US NAVAL ACADEMY ANNAPOLIS, MD
NWKJ / USS YORKTOWN PATRIOTS POINT, SC
NWVC / LST-325 EVANSVILLE, IN
WAR / PENTAGON WASHINGTON. DC
NEMW / USS ALABAMA MOBILE AL
NITG / USS DRUM MOBILE, AL
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