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THE DECEPTION ISLAND - LU1ZC
PROLOGUE
The Argentine Group of CW started a deal with the Antarctic
National Direction and Argentine Navy (DNA), because we
had the purpose of celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the
Deception Island Navy Detachment, we found the comprehension
of an old Antarctic and the founder of San Martin Base.
Mr. Luis FONTANA and the General Secretary of the DNA, he
put us through with Captain Juan C. IANUZZO of the Argentine
Navy (ARA), they are in charge of the Detachment and the
Navy Radioamateurs Service. This was why we could arrange
an activity program with the participation of two Radio-operators
from the GACW in the Antarctic campaign belongs to the Antarctic
Summer 1997/1998 with the transport and the logistic help
from the Institutions mentioned above and we were again
searching for two radioamateurs in a position to abandon
their families and jobs for a period not less than 90 days.
As in before opportunities an important number of GACW members
were interested in doing such adventure, but everybody have
difficulties in leave their own private lives so they can
develop their passion for the radio. In this way, we need
cooperation from another institutions like the Air Force
(FAA) and the Argentine Federal Police (PFA), they gave
the necessary authorization in order to let Hector OMBRONI,
LU6UO who is technical responsible of the Air Station in
the General Pico town in the province of La Pampa and to
let Ernesto DURANTE, LU4AXV who is working in the police
telecommunication police network as a radio operator. The
Group Coordinators are proud to have inside two radioamateurs
like Hector and Ernesto, because they are excellent in professional
knowledge and in human quality as well, becoming real representatives
of the true spirit of the radio, this spirit that we have
got from our former people and it encourages the GACW to
build the Mr. Samuel MORSE Legions.
Alberto U. SILVA, LU1DZ
THE ARRANGEMENT
In the same way we did before in our trip to South Orkney
Islands, LU6Z, we had to arrange properly to start a periplus
of this kind to the Antarctic Territories. Beside the point
that we had to prepare everything connected with our radio
work, we had to adapt our private lives to face an absence
at least of three month long. Therefore we were under a
complete medical test in The Air Space Health National Institute
according with the requirement of the DNA in order to get
its embark authorization. The whole equipment of radio,
rotators, directional aerials, wires, parts and accessories
were packed in practical wood boxes with hemp rope handles,
for this propose they are prepared by the DNA in the Polar
Storehouse in the Buenos Aires City Port. Later alternatives
makes our baggage departure by ship and we were carried
by an Hercules C130 Airplane to the Rio Gallegos Town, province
of Santa Cruz, were we travel by another Hercules to the
Vicecomodoro MARAMBIO Air Base (Seymour Island) in the Antarctic.
The same day in the evening we were aboard the Almirante
IRIZAR icebreaker, a beautiful and modern Antarctic ship
with several technical improvements and this ship was useful
as an hospital Ship during the Falkland Islands War due
to its facilities of medical attention and surgeon room
equipped with a floating operating table. In this manner
we put apart the virtual commodities of the airplanes and
making stop scales in the ROOS Island, the Esperanza Base,
the Jubany Base (LU3ZI), and the Livingson Island, we arrive
to the destiny on Tuesday 16th totally safe.
ONCE IN THE ISLAND
The island is ring shaped with an in put which let arrive
at a false interior lake where, from the sailboat times,
converts the island in a perfect covered place from the
Antarctic climate with its strong wind, for the Spanish
hunting seal ships with its bases in Buenos Aires and for
others from another countries who used to depredate the
values fauna of that region. We arrive at 12:30 hours, in
December 16th, and we were doing the task of disembark during
8 hours, working side to side with the professional personnel
of the detachment, fighting against a hard climate, carrying
the gasoline tanks, the food, and the whole necessary equipment
and our esteemed baggage designated to the radio. After
the 17:00 hours, we could pay our attention to the work
with our esteemed cargo, ...� the radio equipment!, so high
were our enthusiasm so we right there started to mount the
Walmar aerial 3340 of 3 elements for 20, 15 and 10 meters
and one element for 40 meters and the open feed line for
multiband Hertz aerial.
THE DX OPERATION
Our first QSO was made on the 18th at 21:38 UTC with OH3TY
on the 40 metros band using for this the Hertz aerial. The
first days of operation we had to do wearing the Antarctic
outside equipment of clothes, due to the house we used to
install the station was the old base inaugurated in 1948,
without heating devices till now and the temperature never
was over zero degrees Celsius. As days go by we mended a
door, a window, fill the holes and installed the necessary
heating system in order to turn our staying an operating
more comfortable. Taking into account that year by year
there is a great radio activities from the Shetland Islands,
the pile up of 40 and 20 meters one after another day by
day till the 01:00 LUT, surprised us very pleasantly because
we were waiting an operation more quiet. Since then it became
a never ending job without rest, due to the weather let
us, we change for new aerials or modified and mended the
first ones. It was very grateful for us to make the first
QSO in the 6 m. band with PY5CC, there weren't a lot communicated
in this band, but it was an interesting experience for us.
Regretfully for the 6 m. lovers, we had a trouble in the
receiver and we couldn't repair it so in this place we lost
our hope of more activities. When we had two completed stations
in order to operated simultaneously, on the January 10th
we had good weather to intent the installation of the Walmar
aerial of two elements for 40 m. Facing with a boom of 7
metros long and elements of 13.1 metros, and with a net
weight of 21.5 Kg, it wasn't so easy to do in this latitudes
with more than 200 km wind speed and with a tower of 25
metros high. Once in its position this directional we were
in condition to work also in SSB with Europe and North America,
due to we only speak a little foreign language (we are operators
of a CW Group) we had to use the comprehension and not less
jokes from several correspondents, they suggested that we
had to go to study English at School. Reviewing the book
it put out that 15, 20, 30 and 40 m. were the most used
bands, in the meanwhile 12 and 10 m. stayed closed or with
erratic conditions. Very rare resulted the behavior of 17
m. due to sensible conditions in 15 m. it were locked in
silence for us. Each morning at 08:00 LUT we were pleasantly
surprised with the presence of the JAs with a regularity
that made us suppose that they were waiting for us and so
we were more preoccupied in order to not let them down.
The 80 and 160 m bands resulted of great activities and
we spend a lot of hours there calling without answer in
this way we preferred to use more appropriate bands for
the DXs. Although the GACW coordinators insisted on we work
more frequently in SSB, we didn't find very important traffic,
no even when the conditions of propagation were good enough.
THE AERIALS AND THE EQUIPMENT
Every aerial we installed worked very good with the exception
of the Delta of 12 m. it was over by the performance of
the Hertz. The two 25 metros towers, each one was rally
helpful and on them we worked enough in order to arm and
started functioning the following aerials: Walmar Directional
of 3 elements for 20, 15, 10 m. and one element for 40 m.
Multiband Hertz of 40 m. long feed by an open line. Idependent
Delta Aerials for 30 m and 12 m. Ringo Range Dipole for
VHF.
During the operation we had two difficult moment with the
aerials, the first due to the action of a hard tempest,
it make several damages on them and the second derived from
the action of a greasy material denominated "piroclasto"
from the Vulcan effluviums, it usually put our aerials in
short circuit. We also made a Delta one, for the base communications
with the continent in 14 Mhz with excellent results. The
equipment used were as follow: Transceiver of HF Icom IC
737A - Yaesu FT101D - Icom IC 726. Transceiver of VHF Icom
IC 260A - Icom IC 3220H - Yaesu FT11R. Linear Amplifier
Ameriton 4 x 811 - Home Made 2 x 813. Radio pharo for 10
m.
THE PHANTOMS, THE REMEMBERING AND
THE GEOGRAPHY.
The hard work mixed with the operation, didn't let me make
to arrange a correct facts chronology, as well as it happened
in the South Orkney Islands Operation, LU6Z, with the difference
here we had less night operating hours and in this course
our freetime for the pastime and for the registrations was
more less. It was during the campaign of the 1964 when all
my dreams came true in relation with the Antarctic activities,
participating during 12 months of the Deception Navy Detachment
life. This is why when I arrive at the house where I had
been living for a year, resulted full of strange sensations.
When I was circulating, diary at 05:00 LUT , for the long
corridor which joined the rooms, It seems as if my old companion
were saluting me each one form their rooms and I also can
look myself working with my personal utensils in my room.
You are thinking I am a bit nut, but the sensations and
the feelings are so strong that I can't help it and I shudder
from nostalgic when I get in this old house during the nights
plenty of black silence. Looking into the empty radio station
room, where the forecast transmissions to the sailor were
made, and now it serve us like a place to operate the LU1ZC,
there are a mixture of 500 kHz calls., the advertisement
to navigators in 4 and 8 Mhz., with the fury of our pile
up in the high bands a great feel of satisfaction and happiness
takes my spirit. I'm part of this reality, from a mysterious
island, with a long tradition of shipwrecks, suffering and
discord, cold water covered by the Vulcan vapor, slow clouds
and fogs, with the remembering of the urgency when the English
and Chilean installations had to be abandoned and they were
destroyed by Vulcan eruptions. Deception is a volcanic island
of about 100 square Km, it project partially from the sea,
with an interior bay which can keep a complete fleet, it
belongs to the South Shetland Islands and it is inside of
the Antarctic Sector, where the Argentina ask for its sovereignty
and now it is given signs of a new volcanic activity. It
was permanent occupied by the Argentina from 1947, this
detachment was founded in 1948 and abandoned in 1967 due
to the volcanic eruption. A Chilean and a British bases
were destroyed due to the same phenomena and now a covered
Spanish place, called Gabriel de Castilla, was built closed
to the Argentine Base, in order to make study about volcanic
and seismic activities together. The last eruption was registered
in 1992 this why the base is used only in the Antarctic
summer. The hills, weakened by the wind, of not more than
500 m. high, the glaciers covered partially by some kind
of volcanic powder, the narrow and long beach, the penguins
and the place where wolves abound, the fumaroles and thermal
waters, constitutes a big attraction for some tourist ship
which used to visit so beautiful place.
THE RETURN
There is a few days left to be coming back home, and there
is anxiety due two contradictories feelings, because we
are missing our families and the other we really want to
stay here and enjoy the magnificence of the Antarctic. Facing
the doubts concerning to the exact date of our return, due
to the icebreaker was delayed in the searching of three
companions missing when they were sailing in a gum boat
near to the South Orkney Islands, we let operative only
the FT101ZD and modified a Delta to make it work in the
20 m. band and spend the whole time to arrange our equips,
accessories and baggage. We came here to complete a mission,
and I think we did satisfactorily with more than 37,800
QSOs, but we received in paid a present of are being in
this places, a privilege we have got and what moved our
spirit and warm our heart. On the 25th we were to celebrate
the departure in the Spanish installations, 35 Antarctic
men were pleasant by a big lunch which made forgotten to
the lord of the manner about the famous covers. On the March
7th we closed the windows and we retire the aerials and
the rest of the equipment, during this Ernesto was doing
domestic tasks and I carry some notes in my personal diary
and I walk along the old house saying good by to the ghosts
of my old friends. We just were waiting for the ship. On
the 11th at 11:00 hour of a morning with adverse climate
and some snow, we leave the island to the Ushuaia, there
was waiting for us Jorge, LU7XP with a bungalow to stay
till we were ready for the second step by air to Buenos
Aires. The happiness of travel by the Irizar disappear quickly
when we started a Drake Corridor Cross Dance. In the middle
of a dense flog we were closing to the Cape Horn. On the
13th at 03:00 hour we arrive to the channels or Tierra del
Fuego, leaving the Picton Island and passing in front of
the Moat from where Mart�n, LU4XS was anticipating us the
regional weather. Afternoon we could see the Ushuaia Bay
with the most Austral city all over the world, our adventure
was ending, all around us were civilization.
THE GRATEFULNESS.
To the Tenant Oscar WOLF Navy Detachment Chief an to the
staff of the Navy ant to he DNA scientists, due to their
co-operation and for sharing all the efforts and gaiety
during our staying. To our wives and families , they stand
in silence our long absence because we are a bit mad and
we like a lot the radio. To my companion Ernesto "Ernie",
LU4AXV, he has excellent comradeship in all aspects. To
the GACW coordinators for their help, support and confidence.
To the Dr. Luis FONTANA and to the staff of the DNA, they
possible our voyage. To a friend of mine FASSANO who prepare
the pharo radio memory. To all the GACW friends, they were
with us in silence, looking for our operation and taking
in charge our necessities and to the whole community of
DX they let us feel important and due to it we justify the
effort made. To all of them thank you very much and see
you next tine.
Hector M. OMBRONI, LU6U0
GACW
Box 9
1875 - Wilde
Buenos Aires
ARGENTINA Web site in : http://gacw.no-ip.org/
Support web site in : http ://www.qsl.net/lu5gpl/news.htm
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