ZL9HR – Campbell Is. Dxpedition 2012

IZ8BGY

Tuesday, 21 August 2012

Thanks for your interest in the upcoming ZL9HR DX-pedition to Campbell Island.

At this writing we are on schedule and the project planning is well underway. The team is busily working on all aspects of the DX-pedition. As you may know, we have the landing permit in-hand and also the radio license / call sign.

Some examples of what’s happening behind the curtain at the moment include:

– Station location (as defined by the permit)
– Antenna placement planning (as defined by the permit)
– Discussions on propagation behavior and how we will adjust for conditions
– Operator mode preference
– Equipment testing and preparation for sea shipment
– Contract finalization with the boat that will take us to Campbell Island
– Generator testing (state-of-the-art Yamaha machines) and their preparation for shipment
– Petrol estimates (for generators), procurement, and planning for sea transit
– Preparation and submission of the required DX Team Safety and Communications plans to the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DoC)
– Coordination of team arrival in NZ, hotels and local transportation to and from boat at Bluff, NZ
– A DoC requirement for landing on Campbell Island is each team member must have emergency medical evacuation insurance (purchased by the individual team members)
– Up-front payments and deposits
– Scheduled the quarantine inspection (All of our gear must be unpacked (then repacked) for inspection before departing NZ)
– We’re beginning to receive donations from the major DX Foundations, DX Clubs and individuals from around the world.

With the individual operators funding the up-front cost of the DX-pedition and their personal travel / living and while in NZ we will continue to seek assistance from the global DX-community.

We appreciate the interest and support from the global amateur community and especially from the:

Northern California DX Foundation;
The American Radio Relay League’s Colvin Award Committee;
The German DX Foundation, and
The Lone Star (Texas) DX Association
Each who have made significant contributions, and the other clubs and individuals who provided financial support.

Our major corporate sponsor, to date, is Spiderbeam.

Of course, the overall sponsor of this DX-pedition is the Hellenic Amateur Radio Association of Australia who is providing nearly all of the equipment that will be used on Campbell Island.

We’d be remiss if we didn’t recognize the New Zealand Department of Conservation for their support of this DX-pedition. The DoC is permitting us to use several of the existing buildings which will provide shelter from the weather which we expect to be cool, windy and wet.

Our QSL policy, as described on the QSL Page, should satisfy the DX community:

On-line uploads via satellite phone to ClubLog
LoTW upload shortly after the DX-pedition
LoTW confirmations at no charge for all contacts, no restrictions
OQRS will be available at a reasonable donation to cover mailing expenses
Direct QSLs with envelope $2USD, (1 IRC + 1 USD) or 1 Euro for all destinations
Buro cards to EB7DX at no charge

QSLing doesn’t get any better than this!

Our goal is to give out as many All Time New Ones as humanly possible and to fill as many band slots as we can.

Thanks again for your interest and support. We’ll update you again next month.

73,

ZL9HR team