KF5FGF - On The Air

CQ, CQ...

I'm John Langham, KF5FGF, and I've been a licensed amateur radio operator since 2010. My interest in radio goes back to my teenage years when I was a Civil Air Patrol (C.A.P.) cadet in Rogers, Arkansas. I quickly became involved with their search and rescue communications, event communications, and the Arkansas Wing (state) HF Net. In 1999 I became the first cadet to ever serve as an HF net controller. That said, I knew little to nothing about the technical side of radios. I followed some very specific instructions to building and erect an inverted V antenna and then placed the provided pre-programmed HF radio on the specified channel. Now, as for working the radio, I learned quickly and had little problems keeping up. I served as a net control for about a year before leaving CAP for the workforce.

In 2001 I began work as a 9-1-1 Police, Fire and EMS dispatcher. I found my time in CAP useful in my new job as I already had experience on the air. The experience was, of course, a drop in the pond of the world I had entered. I spent three years in the dispatch center before moving on to other divisions and eventually to a new agency as a patrol officer.

During my time as a dispatcher I also pursued my dream of flying. I achieved my commercial pilot ticket in 2005, flew a few months after, then ran out of funds and haven't flown since - something I regret every day. While flying, however, I was exposed to even more radio types, styles, and enthusiasts. I found that many of the older pilots were also HAMS and I enjoyed talking about it with them. I was actually going to get my HAM license back then, but one of those old pilots told me to wait because the requirements and tests were all going to change. I waited... and never got back to it.

In 2010, working as a police officer, long separated from my world of aviation and SAR communication, my best friend and partner calls me one day. "You know how I've been talking about getting my HAM license?" he says to me. "Yeah, why?" I replied. "Well, there's a class this weekend. You want to go?" he said. I was freshly separated from my wife of the time and really had nothing else going on - for the first time since I was 19 years old. I went with my best friend and we both got our licenses on the same day. KF5FGH and KF5FGF were born. I throw his callsign in there just because he got me into this moneypit, so he gets to claim it whether he wants to or not!

In 2012 I jumped deeper into the hobby. I acquired my first mobile 2m rig and also achieved my General license, allowing me to get on the HF bands. My very first DX contact, however, was with Australia on the tech portion of the 10m band. Something I could have done years ago. Oh well. That first day on HF, using a borrowed rig and a homebrew dipole, I made contact with California, New Zealand, and Australia. California was my first HF contact, by the way. For some reason they come in loud and clear here in Arkansas over all the others in the lower 48.

Many things have changed about my vision for the hobby. While I started out as a simple storm spotter, caring little for the HF world and enjoying the 2m/70cm bands very much, the achievement of my General ticket, and the greater understanding of the hobby that came with all the studying, has pushed me in many different directions. There are SO many things I want to do now! The biggest thing I've learned is that you must pick and choose the projects you want to take on in HAM radio or you'll quickly find yourself overwhelmed. I'm taking it one project at a time and I'll eventually be able to do everything... after all, I have a lifetime!

I hope you enjoy my website and learning a little about me. This website was created and is being maintained in the interest of the Amateur Radio community - to share, to learn, to meet new people around the globe. From my basement I hail and will meet the world.

Until next time, see you on the air. 73's!