Pirate Radio

Unlicensed radio operators using inappropriate and illegal equipment.
What is pirate radio? Pirate radio is the term used to identify unlicensed radio operators using inappropriate equipment.
I am not sure why it's called pirate radio but I know there are a lot of pirate radio operators around the world !!
Why is it illegal? People use equipment they are not licensed to use !
For example:
To use amateur radio equipment, amateur radio operators study quite hard for the theory and (currently) morse code exams that they sit to get their license.
There are several levels of license, going from quite easy to fairly hard. Currently, two of these licenses don't require morse code and the theory that comes with it is extremely easy !.
Amateur radio operators have to abide by rules and regulations that they new about and agreed to when they decided to become licensed operators, these regulations specify the frequency's that are allowed to be used and the power outputs, it also specifies that amateurs are allowed to repair or design and build their own equipment, as long as it meets the FCC standards.!
One of the most important aspects of the licensing is the knowledge of practical safety for use in radio communications.

When an unlicensed operator buys an amateur radio, they have access to frequencies, modes and power outputs that qualified operators worked hard to get a license for. Some pirates have no idea of safety aspects either, saying this, some do!
If the pirate operators who use this equipment had the required knowledge to use it then they would not be called pirates. In the process of gaining the knowledge comes experience and self-training that is quiet often used in amateur radio.
Pirate radio operators do not have to abide by any rules, regulations or guidelines, exept the one's they make themselves. Again, having said this, some operators do abide by a set of rules.

As a good example of total lack of rules and regulations, if you're bored shitless one day, I mean really bored =), have a listen around Channel 55 and most of the lower half of 28 Megs (28.000 - 28.500) and see if you can count how many Indonesian / Asian AM signals that have gotta be pushing some cruel power, that can be heard in that little bit of spectrum ! In fact, one day I was tuning 28 Megs for skip and there was an AM carrier, making a constant S5 and wiping out a DX station from Europe !
Hahahaha, that's about the only problem living in Broome, 28 Megs is usually more populated with strong AM carriers than it is with amateur operators !!

I know some CB'ers and pirate operators who know enough about the hobby and it's aspects to pass the exams required to get a license and become a licensed operator ! They choose not to.
Who are pirate radio operators?

Anyone who is not licensed to use the equipment they have in their possession and or anyone who is licensed to use the equipment, but uses it on the wrong frequencies is a pirate radio operator.
You may notice some pirates when they call CQ give their location as vaguely as possible without saying too little to make people who they may want to talk to, know where they're tranmsitting from - so if anyone is listening who they think may come looking for them, they can't accurately pinpoint them ! Sneaky but effective.
Pirate radio operators are:
CB Operators operating outside the standard 40 channel frequency allocations.
Amateur radio operators who use their equipment on frequencies that are not allocated to the amateur service.
Short Wave broadcasters who don't have a license to broadcast but do it anyway.
Fishing boats that don't have a license to use radio frequency spectrum but do it anyway, usually to communicate with their business, ship to ship, or ship to shore. Many of these boats are heard and found anywhere from Indonesia and surrounding areas to north of Japan and surrounding ares, although there are a lot of operators spread around the world.

What equipment do they use?

Most equipment used is amateur radio equipment.
Most common equipment brands are Icom, Kenwood, Alinco and Yaesu and any CB that can be properly modified.
CB operators who operate outside the standard 40 channel frequency allocations use either amateur radio equipment or modified CB's, of course, after CB's are modified buy someone with no qualifications they are no longer legal.
Usually, the smaller the radio the better, mostly rigs called mobiles are used, they're mid sized and they can be taken mobile fairly easily, although I know of some pirates who love boat anchors (otherwise known as valve radio's) as much as amateurs do ! =)
Most common models used are:
Kenwood - TS-430S, TS-440S, TS-120V/S, TS-50S and some of the really expensive radio's too, like the TS-850S or TS-950S and SD
Icom - IC-725, IC-735, IC-751 and IC-706 (MKI, MKII and MKIIG). Some expensive radio's like the IC-781 and 775DSP are also used.
Yeasu - FT-747 and 747 GX, FT-757, FT-77, FT-ONE, FT-101ZD and FT-707. The FT-1000D and FT-100 are also used.
Alinco - DX-70TH and the new base version of the DX-70TH.

Pirate Short Wave broadcasters mainly use standard broadcasting equipment, they're just not authorised to use it. Some broadcasters make their own equipment or get it off a backyard dealer, most of this equipment is not tested properly, does not meet FCC requirements for interference etc and is potentially dangerous to use (bad wiring and lack of safety curcuitry) is common in the backyard equipment, although some is of good enough quality that if it was FCC tested it would most likely be approved !.
What frequencies are used? HF CB pirates can be heard anywhere from 27.455 to 27.700 MHz USB, some also use the lower edge of 28 MHz.
The primary International CB Call channel for pirate radio on HF CB is 27.555 USB - Channel 55.
The secondary is 27.455 LSB and it's used a bit when Channel 55 is busy.
Common QSY frequencies are:
27.510, 27.520, 27.530, 27.540, 27.570, 27.580, 27.690 and 27.600 all in USB unless stated by the QSY'ing operater.
There is a spot between HF CB Channels 7 and 8, it's 27.045 USB and it's used a bit as a different QSY frequency than the usual.
Short Wave pirates can be heard all over the place !
Any HF frequency from as low as 70 kHz all the way up to around 25 MHz have been known to be used by pirates.
On most nights from around 11:00 UTC pirate short wave broadcasters can be heard in Western Australia on 3 MHz and 7 MHz in the amateur designated portion of the spectrum (that we pay for with our license fees), that really annoys me !!
What is being done about pirate operators? There are a people employed by the Australian government (probably other governments too) called Radio Inspectors or RI's. They're employed to search for, find and confiscate equipment used by pirates and fine the operators.
As far as I am aware, the maximum penalty for "operating an apparatus not in accordance with FCC regulations and licensing" (ie, a pirate operator) is a $2,000 AUD fine and 4 years jail. This may have changed.
The problem is that people have to be caught with the radio in their possession at the time, and there are so many pirates, they're so spread out, and usually located somewhere that they're antenna's can't be seen easily. This is why it costs a lot of taxpayers money to go fox-hunting, look for these people and find them with the equipment....and no results means people wanna know why the money is still being spent.
I think of it this way, if I was an average Australian tax-paying citizen who new nothing about radio, I would wanna know why thousand of my tax dollars were being spent trying to track down illegal radio operators...and seeing no result ! Fair enough too !
So, for now, pirate operators have a fairly good chance of not being caught operating their illegal equipment.

My view on pirates

I don't mind pirates, I know a lot of them and they're usually nice people. The majority of them are not doing any harm, they're just out to wait for the right skip conditions to make a QSO, get some QSL's and enjoy the lovely hobby of radio ! In this respect, they're just like a licensed amateur operator or any CBer who uses a normal 40 Channel set.
I told one operator if he was willing to learn then I'd help him study for his amateur radio license, I showed and lent him the same stuff I used to pass my exams, but he told me he was a bit old and his brain didn't wanna learn anymore...pity, it woulda been nice to make him legal and have a QSO with him on 10 metres!
The worst excuse I hear from some pirates is the old morse code excuse."Oh, I wouldn't mind becoming a ham, but I can't stand morse code", "...I can't be bothered learning morse..." or "....I don't wanna learn morse..." Why? What the hell is wrong with morse code? I learned morse code while I was still at school, so it's not that bloody hard !!
If it was really that hard to learn morse code then you think there'd be as many amateurs in the world that there are?
I've said it before, there are currently two classes of no code license available.....so what's the problem?
In any case, I'll gladly help someone gain their license, but only if they really wanna get qualified.! No good trying to help someone if they really don't care.....it's a waist of time, time that can be spent helping someone who does wanna learn !
Only problem I have with pirate operators is when they use their equipment on amateur radio frequencies.
I studied long and hard and paid for my license and an unlicensed operator using frequencies, power and modes I worked hard for really annoys me !


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