Author Archives: Lee

DXCC With QSL Cards

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How to Apply for DXCC Via the NZ DXCC Card Checker – September 2012

DXCC is the most prestigious of all Amateur Radio awards. Its rules for membership are clear and when you make your application, accuracy and attention to detail is most important. The guidelines below will help you complete your application to your Card Checker easily and with a minimum of problems.

The Responsibility of the Card Checker
The Card Checker may check cards for the following awards:
All DXCC awards and endorsements including the following:

  • Mixed
  • Phone
  • CW
  • RTTY
  • Satellite
  • 80 Meters
  • 40 Meters
  • 30 Meters
  • 20 Meters
  • 17 Meters
  • 15 Meters
  • 10 Meters
  • 6 Meters
  • 2 Meters
  • 5BDXCC ( 5 Band DXCC)
  • DXCC Challenge
  • WAS (Worked All States)
  • VUCC (VHF/UHF Century Club

Granting entity credits for all DXCC applications is done only at ARRL. The Card Checker’s job is ONLY to verify that the information on the paper application is the same as what is on the card(s) submitted. The Card Checker only checks the cards and does not award credits.

The Card Checker CANNOT check the following cards:
Any 160 M contacts (I do not hold a 160M DXCC)
Ineligible or Altered Cards

NOTE: A RECENT RULE CHANGE ALLOWS ME TO CHECK “DELETED” ENTITES

The Rules
Only eligible cards can be checked by DXCC Card Checkers. An application for a new award shall contain a minimum of 100 QSL confirmations from the list and shall not contain any QSLs that are not eligible for this program. The first-ever application must contain a minimum of 100 separate DXCC entities. First- time ever applications with less than 100 cannot be processed. It is the applicant’s responsibility to get cards to and from the DXCC Card Checker.

Applicants are responsible, up front, for all costs, including postage. It is strongly recommended that you keep a copy of all registered mail or other mail receipts. The ARRL is not responsible for cards handled by DXCC card checkers and will not honour any claims. The applicant and DXCC card checker must sign the application form. The applicant shall provide sufficient postage to the card checker to cover mailing of application and paperwork to ARRL HQ and return of cards within NZ. Direct Credit bank deposit may be required for the Card Checker’s postage costs in New Zealand if you don’t supply postage paid return envelopes.

The applicant shall also provide the applicable fees. Credit card number and expiration date is acceptable for the ARRL DXCC costs).

The DXCC Card Checker will forward completed applications and appropriate fee(s) to ARRL HQ. ARRL HQ staff will receive field-checked applications, enter application data into DXCC records and issue DXCC credits and awards as appropriate.

The applicant and the DXCC Card Checker will be advised of any errors or discrepancies encountered by ARRL staff. Applicants and DXCC members may send cards to ARRL Headquarters at any time for review or recheck if the individual feels that an incorrect determination has been made. Cards not eligible for field checking must be sent to ARRL and cannot be sent along with an application checked by the checker.

The applicant can opt to send the entire submission to ARRL if they wish. Ineligible cards, if sent to ARRL, are NOT considered part of the field checked application. They are considered a separate submission and subject to higher fees. Any ineligible cards sent with an application will be returned unprocessed.

To Submit an Application To The Card Checker

  • The applicant should look through all the cards and check for the following:
  • Your Main Application sheet must be the latest issue.
  • Your callsign and the callsign of the station worked is on each card.
  • The CALLSIGN,  QSO DATE,  BAND,  MODE and ENTITY is on each card
  • That the Entity Callsign and the Entity name match on each card
  • The card has not been altered in any way.
  • That you have at least 100 cards if you are making your Initial or First application.
  • There are NO 160M cards.

The applicant should sort the cards in order – first by band, then by mode. Cards with multiple QSO’s must be together in a group of their own, at the end. Cards must NOT be sorted alphabetically. The Sort Order of the cards MUST MATCH EXACTLY the order of which the cards appear on DXCC application Form (Part 2 The listings)

Initial New DXCC Application Form Part 1

The information on Part 1 tells DXCC what you are requesting and it also tells them your current mailing address so that all returns can be sent to the proper address. There is also the applicant’s affirmation section. Check which award you are applying for eg: NEW, ENDORSEMENT, MIXED or PHONE or CW etc. Then list the Number of cards and the Number of QSOs

Complete the right hand side of the form with your name, callsign and all other details.

DXCC Fees for NZ are shown in DXCC Rules on this Website  DXCC Fees Schedule

Endorsement Applications: 

This is ONLY for building totals on Existing awards. Often people check off endorsements when they do not have an award but are only building totals for a future award. Once you have a DXCC you can build your number as you wish. There are no restrictions. When you finally reach 100 then you can check off NEW. Then, in future submissions you can endorse them. Your name and address is required as this affects where your paperwork will be sent AND where the yearbook will be sent. The yearbook is not sent to the QST address unless the DXCC address is the same as the QST address. You must sign and date it and place the month and year of your membership expiration if you are an ARRL member.

Applications have been placed on hold if the signature is missing.

Part 2: The Record Sheet:

This is the second part of the application where you list the QSO’s you intend to claim credit for with the submission. The importance of accuracy and legibility here cannot be emphasized enough. Cards may be rejected if complete information is not on the record sheet. The applicant’s callsign shown on the card must match exactly. If it is different in any way it must be rejected. (eg: ZL1ABC is not the same as ZL1BCA etc).

Sending Your Cards
Package up your cards and SIGNED Application form securely and send them to the NZ DXCC Card Checker:

Lee Jennings, ZL2AL
87 Auckland Road
Greenmeadows
NAPIER 4112

Mailing Suggestions
You may wish to use NZ Post Track and Trace services. You should purchase TWO Track n Trace envelopes from NZ Post or NZ Post Shops do a “Letter pack” for $5.50

1. Label the first envelope or Pack to me with the address above and your return address on the back.

2. Label the second envelope or pack to your home address with the address above on the back. I will return your cards in the same envelope.

3. Enclose a third business sized envelope (with a $2.40 NZ Post Stamp on it) addressed to:

DXCC Desk, ARRL HQ
225 Main Street
Newington CT 06111
USA

The third envelope will be posted by the card checker to the DXCC Desk with your application form inside.

Payment

The ARRL DXCC requires payment for all awards and endorsements. You can do that by simply filling in your Credit Card details on the right hand column of Application Form A. ARRL will then charge EXACTLY the amount required to your Credit Card in US Dollars converted to New Zealand Dollars.  DXCC Schedule of Fees

Basic Do’s and Don’ts for DXCC Applicants

Do’s
Be careful, check closely every card carefully BEFORE submission.
Make sure applications are complete and information is legible
Make sure ALL data is recorded properly
Make sure entity name and callsigns match (this is a frequent problem)
If the record sheet is not in proper order, the applicant must re-do the application in the proper format.

Don’ts
Don’t leave fields that are blank on the record sheet, all fields are required
I strongly suggest that you look at the ARRL DXCC web site
It will give you insight into what the rules are all about.

If you have any problems with your application you can call me any time

06 844 1226 or 021 050 8164

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DXCC Online

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Welcome to ARRL’s Online DXCC

Submitting Your DXCC Application Online — Step by Step

  1. Now that you have logged in, you may go to the Enter QSLs tab and begin entering information from your QSL cards. All your entries are saved and you may leave the Enter QSLs tab at any time while entering QSLs, and return to it later.
    1. You must enter all of the required data for each card. If you want to submit more than one QSO from a single card, then enter the information about those QSOs together — one right after another — on theEnter QSLs tab.
    2. If — once both the Call SignandQSO Date are entered — the DXCC entity you want to select does not appear among the choices in the pulldown list, select the Show All choice from the pulldown list to select from the complete DXCC List.
    3. You may enter your QSL cards in any order; when you submit your cards for checking, they must be placed in the same order that you entered them. During the submission process Online DXCC will produce a DXCC Record Sheet for you that shows this order.
  2. If you use a logging program, you will find it faster and more accurate to prepare an ADIF file containing the QSO information for the QSLs that you want to submit with your application rather than manually entering the information from each card. Use the Import ADIF tab to import your ADIF file.
  3. When you have finished entering data for the QSLs you want to submit, you may begin the application process by clicking on the Submit Application tab and proceed sequentially through the Application, Select QSLs,Payment, Preview Application and Preview QSL List steps.
  4. The Preview QSL List step of the Submit Application tab provides a Submit Application button. Clicking this button completes the application process and saves your application. You may leave and return to the Application History tab at any time to view and print your completed application.
  5. Verify that your QSL cards are in the same order as shown on your DXCC Record Sheet. Then:
    1. Take a printed copy of your completed DXCC Award Application and all pages of your DXCC Record Sheet along with your QSL cards to a DXCC Card Checker. You will need to provide the DXCC Card Checker with an SASE or sufficient postage to cover mailing your paperwork to ARRL HQ.
    2. If there is not a DXCC Card Checker in your area, you may send your QSL cards directly to ARRL HQ; include a copy of your DXCC Award Application.
  6. Once you have submitted an application by clicking the Submit Application button, you cannot make further changes or add QSLs to this submission. You cannot start a new application in the Online DXCC system until your pending application has been processed by ARRL HQ. You may continue to use the Enter QSLs tab to enter new QSLs and to edit or delete QSLs that are not contained in a pending submission.

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DXCC Rules

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DXCC Rules

  • DXCC Rules Download+
  • Introduction+
  • Section I. Basic Rules-

    1. The DX Century Club Award, with certificate and lapel pin is available to Amateur Radio operators throughout the world (see the DXCC Award Fee Schedule).

    ARRL membership is required for DXCC applicants in the US, its possessions, and Puerto Rico. ARRL membership is not required for foreign applicants. All DXCC awards can be endorsed with country totals (see Rule 5).

    There are 19 separate DXCC award certificates available, plus the DXCC Honor Roll:

    a) Mixed (general type): Contacts may be made using any mode since November 15, 1945.

    b) Phone: Contacts must be made using radiotelephone since November 15, 1945. Confirmations for cross-mode contacts for this award must be dated September 30, 1981, or earlier.

    c) CW: Contacts must be made using CW since January 1, 1975. Confirmations for cross-mode contacts for this award must be dated September 30, 1981, or earlier.  CW contacts dated December 31, 1974, or before, are credited as Mixed mode.

    d) Digital: Contacts can include QSOs using any/all digital modes, in any combination (except CW) since November 15, 1945.   Digital modes include RTTY, PSK-31, JT65, etc. and any modes that are only machine-readable, and any that use computer sound card technology, with the exception of digital voice, which counts for Phone.

    e) 160 Meter: Contacts must be made on 160 meters since November 15, 1945.

    f) 80 Meter: Contacts must be made on 80 meters since November 15, 1945.

    g) 40 Meter: Contacts must be made on 40 meters since November 15, 1945.

    h) 30 Meter: Contacts must be made on 30 meters since November 15, 1945.

    i) 20 Meter: Contacts must be made on 20 meters since November 15, 1945.

    j) 17 Meter: Contacts must be made on 17 meters since November 15, 1945.

    k) 15 Meter: Contacts must be made on 15 meters since November 15, 1945.

    l) 12 Meter: Contacts must be made on 12 meters since November 15, 1945.

    m) 10 Meter: Contacts must be made on 10 meters since November 15, 1945.

    n) 6 Meter: Contacts must be made on 6 meters since November 15, 1945.

    o) 2 Meter: Contacts must be made on 2 meters since November 15, 1945.

    p) 70 cm contacts must be made on 70 cm since November 15, 1945.
    q) Satellite: Contacts must be made using satellites since March 1, 1965. Confirmations must indicate satellite QSO. Satellite contacts do not count toward any awards noted in a) through p) above.

    r) Five-Band DXCC (5BDXCC): The 5BDXCC certificate is available for working and confirming 100 current DXCC entities (deleted entities don’t count for this award) on each of the following five bands: 80, 40, 20, 15 and 10 Meters. Contacts are valid from November 15, 1945.

    5bdxcccert.jpg

     

    The 5BDXCC is endorsable for these additional bands: 160, 30, 17, 12, 6 and 2 Meters. 5BDXCC qualifiers are eligible for an individually engraved plaque.

     

    5BDXCC__2_.JPG





    s) The DXCC Challenge Award is available for working and confirming at least
    Challenge__2_.JPG1,000 DXCC band-entities on any Amateur bands, 160 through 6 meters (except 60 meters). Plaques can be endorsed in increments of 500 entities for each band are totaled to give the Challenge standing. Deleted entities do not count for this award. All contacts must be made after November 15, 1945. QSOs for the 160, 80, 40, 30, 20, 17, 15, 12, 10 and 6 meter bands qualify for this award. Confirmations on bands with less than 100 entities are acceptable for credit for this award. Certificates are not available for this award.

    DeSoto_Trophy2.jpg

    t) The DeSoto Cup is presented to the DXCC Challenge leader as of the 31st of December each year. The DeSoto Cup is named for Clinton B. DeSoto, whose definitive article in October 1935 QST – How to Count Countries Worked A New DX Scoring System, shapes the DXCC award program. Only one cup will be awarded to any single individual. A medal will be presented to a repeat winner in subsequent years. Medals will also be awarded to the second and third place winners each year.

    dxcchr.jpg

    u) Honor Roll: Attaining the DXCC Honor Roll represents the pinnacle of DX achievement:

    i) Mixed: To qualify, you must have a total confirmed entity count that places you among the numerical top ten DXCC entities total on the current DXCC List (example: if there are 340 current DXCC entities, you must have at least 331 entities confirmed). Deleted entities do not count towards Honor Roll.

    ii) Phone — same as Mixed.

    iii) CW — same as Mixed.

    iv) Digital — same as Mixed.

    To establish the number of DXCC entity credits needed to qualify for the Honor Roll, the maximum possible number of current entities available for credit is published daily onthe ARRL DXCC standings web page. First-time Honor Roll members are recognized daily also on the ARRL DXCC standings web page. Complete Honor Roll standings are published annually in QST. Once recognized on this list, or in a subsequent daily update of new members, you retain your Honor Roll standing until the next standings list is published. In addition, Honor Roll members who have been listed in the previous Honor Roll Listings, or have gained Honor Roll status in a subsequent daily listing, are recognized in the DXCC Annual List. Honor Roll qualifiers receive an Honor Roll endorsement sticker for their DXCC certificate and are eligible for an Honor Roll lapel pin and an Honor Roll plaque. Contact the DXCC Desk for details or check out the Century Club Item Order Form.

    tohrpix.JPG

    v) #1 Honor Roll: To qualify for a Mixed, Phone, CW or Digital, you must have worked every entity on the current DXCC List. There are 340 current entities onThe ARRL DXCC List. Contact the DXCC Desk for details. #1 Honor Roll qualifiers receive a #1 Honor Roll endorsement sticker for their DXCC certificate and are eligible for a #1 Honor Roll plaque and a #1 Honor Roll lapel pin.

    2. Written Proof: Except in cases where the rules of Section IV apply, proof of two-way communication (contacts) must be submitted directly to ARRL HQ for all DXCC credits claimed. Photocopies and electronically transmitted confirmations (including, but not limited to fax and e-mail) are not currently acceptable for DXCC purposes. Exception: Confirmations created and delivered by ARRL’s Logbook of the World program are acceptable for DXCC credit.

    The use of a current official DXCC application form or an approved facsimile (for example, exactly reproduced by a computer program) is required. Such forms must include provision for listing call signs, dates, bands, modes and DXCC entity names. Complete application materials are available from ARRL HQ. Confirmations for a total of 100 or more different DXCC credits must be included with your first application. Cards contained in the original received envelopes or in albums will be returned at applicant’s expense without processing.

    3. The ARRL DXCC List is based on the DXCC List Criteria.

    4. Confirmation data for two-way communications must include the call signs of both stations, the entity name as shown in the DXCC List, mode, date, time and band. Except as permitted in Rule 1, cross-mode contacts are not permitted for DXCC credits. Confirmations not containing all required information may be rejected.

    5. Endorsement stickers for affixing to certificates or pins will be awarded as additional DXCC credits are granted. For the Mixed, Phone, CW, Digital, 40, 30, 20, 17, 15, 12 and 10-Meter DXCC, stickers are provided in exact multiples of 50 (i.e. 150, 200) etc. between 100 and 250 DXCC credits, in multiples of 25 between 250 and 300, and in multiples of 5 above 300 DXCC credits.

    For 160-Meter, 80-Meter, 6-Meter, 2-Meter and Satellite DXCC, the stickers are issued in exact multiples of 25 starting at 125 and in multiples of 10 above 200, and in multiples of 5 between 250 and 300. Confirmations for DXCC credit may be submitted in any increment, but stickers and listings are provided only after a new level has been attained.

    6. All contacts must be made with amateur stations working in the authorized amateur bands or with other stations licensed or authorized to work amateurs. Contacts made through “repeater” devices or any other power relay methods (other than satellites for Satellite DXCC) are not valid for DXCC credit.

    7. Any Amateur Radio operation should take place only with the complete approval and understanding of appropriate administration officials. In countries where amateurs are licensed in the normal manner, credit may be claimed only for stations using regular government-assigned call signs or portable call signs, where reciprocal agreements exist or the host government has so authorized portable operation. Without documentation supporting the operation of an amateur station, credit will not be allowed for contacts with such stations in any country that has temporarily or permanently closed down Amateur Radio operations by special government edict or policy where amateur licenses were formerly issued in the normal manner. In any case, credit will be given for contacts where adequate evidence of authorization by appropriate authorities exists, notwithstanding any such previous or subsequent edict or policy.

    8. All stations contacted must be “land stations.” Contacts with ships and boats, anchored or underway, and airborne aircraft, cannot be counted. For the purposes of this award, remote control operating points must also be land based. Exception: Permanently docked exhibition ships, such as the Queen Mary and other historic ships will be considered land based.

    9. All stations must be contacted from the same DXCC entity. The location of any station shall be defined as the location of the transmitter. For the purposes of this award, remote operating points must be located within the same DXCC entity as the transmitter and receiver.

    10. All contacts must be made using call signs issued to the same station licensee. Contacts made by an operator other than the licensee must be made from a station owned and usually operated by the licensee, and must be made in accordance with the regulations governing the license grant. Contacts may be made from other stations provided they are personally made by the licensee. The intent of this rule is to prohibit credit for contacts made for you by another operator from another location. You may combine confirmations from several call signs held for credit to one DXCC award, as long as the provisions of Rule 9 are met. Contacts made from club stations using a club call sign may not be used for credit to an individual’s DXCC.

    11. All confirmations must be submitted exactly as received by the applicant. The submission of altered, forged, or otherwise invalid confirmations for DXCC credit may result in disqualification of the applicant and forfeiture of any right to DXCC membership. Determinations by the ARRL Awards Committee concerning submissions or disqualification shall be final. The ARRL Awards Committee shall also determine the future eligibility of any DXCC applicant who has ever been barred from DXCC.

    12) DXCC Audit Process: In order to maintain continuing program integrity and for quality control purposes, DXCC routinely conducts audits of credits claimed for DXCC awards. To verify the authenticity of the QSOs claimed, audits may be conducted on claims for QSO credits for current applications, or credits already in a DXCC award account. Audits may include, but are not limited to:

    • Checking online logs (preliminary check);
    • Contacting DX stations for log extracts;
    • Contacting QSL managers for log extracts; and
    • Verifying credits submitted via Logbook of the World (LoTW)

    Audits are generally conducted on a random basis. Response to audit requests to DXCC applicants are required. Failure, or refusal, to respond to these requests may result in removal of the credits requested by DXCC and/or removal of the awards pertaining to the audit.  Events may also lead to disqualification from the DXCC program. Costs for postage, by a secure and traceable method to, and from, DXCC will be covered by the ARRL Desk. Audits that reveal discrepancies may lead to an investigation by the Awards Committee.

    13. Conduct: Exemplary conduct is expected of all amateur radio operators participating in the DXCC program. Evidence of intentionally disruptive operating practices or inappropriate ethical conduct in any aspect of DXCC participation may lead to disqualification from all participation in the program by action of the ARRL Awards Committee.

    Actions that may lead to disqualification include, but are not limited to:

    a) The submission of forged or altered confirmations.
    b) The presentation of forged or altered documents in support of an operation.
    c) Participation in activities that create an unfavorable impression of amateur radio with government authorities. Such activities include malicious attempts to cause disruption or negatively affect the accreditation of an operation.
    d) Blatant inequities in confirmation (QSL) procedures. Continued refusal to issue QSLs under certain circumstances may lead to disqualification. Complaints relating to monetary issues involved in QSLing will generally not be considered.

    14. Each DXCC applicant, by applying, or submitting documentation, stipulates to:

    a) Observing all pertinent governmental regulations for Amateur Radio in the country or countries concerned.
    b) Observing all DXCC rules.
    c) Being bound by the DXCC rules.
    d) Being bound by the decisions of the ARRL Awards Committee.

    15. All DXCC applications (for both new awards and endorsements) must include sufficient funds to cover the cost of returning all confirmations (QSL cards) via the method selected. Funds must be in US currency, check or money order payable to the ARRL, or a credit card number with a valid expiration date. Address all correspondence and inquiries relating to DXCC awards and all applications to:

    ARRL Headquarters
    DXCC Desk
    225 Main St.
    Newington, CT06111
    USA

    E-mail to [email protected]

    16. Fees: Find the most up-to-date fee schedule.

    17. The ARRL DX Advisory Committee (DXAC) requests your comments and suggestions for improving DXCC. Address correspondence to:

    ARRL HQ 
    DXAC 
    225 Main St. 
    Newington, CT06111, USA 

    The DXAC may be contacted directly by e-mail at this linkhttp://www.arrl.org/dxac. Correspondence on routine DXCC matters should be addressed to the DXCC Desk, or by e-mail to [email protected]

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Contesting Information

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What is it about contesting that challenges the amateur radio community?

Starting in a contest, sitting down in that radio chair and firing up the equipment is like starting an adventurous journey. You travel with the waves that cross the globe – along the ionospheric layers and through the aurora belts You are fighting with all kinds of natural and man made phenomena on the way. Reaching across continents and oceans with power that is comparable to an electric heater, desk lamp or even a flashlight is nothing short of magic.

DXing is like going after a trophy fish, you keep at it until you catch that elusive fish or DX country. Contesting is like a fishing tournament, you go fishing during a specified time period and try catch as many fish (or specific type of fish) during that time period or have contacts on the air instead. Ham radio contesting is a sport. Each contest has its own rules and personality. What they all have in common is a blend of strategy, skill and endurance. But what makes ham radio contesting so unique is that the “pros” play with the “contesting beginners” too. It’s the thrill; the challenge.

Contesting is no different than drag racing from one traffic light to another… except its legal and safer. Human nature is driven by competing. Not only with others but with one’s self. Ham communications is fairly docile, but in a contest, not only do you try to beat your peers, but you compete with your past scores. You alone retain the most satisfaction by beating past scores. And you get bragging rights when you gazump your peers. It’s the nourishment of the best in human nature!

The more who participate, the better the experience for everyone. It’s a great way to discover the true potential of your equipment and your own operating skills. Once the contest is under way we find out how our equipment is performing and how our skills help us battling in the landscape of the ionosphere. Our paths cross with our buddies from the contesting community from all parts of the globe, as well as newcomers and casual participants. We compete against the others and try to improve our scores from previous contests. And the bonus is that we may pick up a few new countries in the process.

Below are some excellent links to Contest Information and software, Compliments of AC6V’s fantastic website.

 Amateur Radio Contesting Resources and Information

Forthcoming contests operations are included in the tables linked-to below. For operations in contests that have already taken place (1996+), use the menu provided under “Operations for Previous Contests“. For operations in the forthcoming smaller contests for which I don’t create dedicated tables and for operations that are not contest oriented, check the Announced DX Operations (ADXO) table.

Operations in Specific Forthcoming Contests

CONTEST CALENDARS

CONTEST WEB PAGES

These are Web pages specifically designed for and dedicated to a single contest. Typically, they include more than just an announcment or rule list for a single year (which can almost always be found in the better “Contest Calendars”). These pages may contain (or provide links to) such items as Contest: History; Records; Results; County Names/Abbreviations; Logging Programs, etc. Ideally, they’re a single “point-of entry” from which one can find “everything you ever wanted to know” about a particular contest and are well maintained and up-to-date. Kudos to the pioneers who have created and are maintaining these pages! I believe the Asia-Pacific Sprint offer excellent models for contest Web pages.

CONTEST LOGGING SOFTWARE

OTHER CONTEST RESOURCES AND PAGES

73, Lee ZL2AL and the ZM4T Contest Team

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Flying

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When I was a kid I was always mad keen on anything that flew. My Dad owned a bicycle and sporting goods shop near Yorkville in Toronto and sold model aircraft kits and supplies. model aircraft were alsways under construction in my workshop room in the basement of the shop. We lived in the flat behind the shop. Free flight and control line were the two methods of controlling model aircraft at that time. Both were unsatisfactory until radio control came along in the late 1950s. The equipment was expensive, mostly home built and unreliable. By that time I was about to realize my dream of actually flying a real aircraft.

The Aeronca 7ECA Champion
I learned to fly in one of these old tail draggers. It was a great way to learn “seat of the pants” flying. There was a flying school at Markham Airport just outside of Toronto with 3 Aeronca Champs. Learning to fly was easy in 1961 as the cost was $8.00 per hour dual and $5.00 per hour solo instruction. The Chief flying instructor was a huge Polish WW11 flying ace who flew as one of the Polish squadron in England during the Battle of Britain. Janas was an intimidating man over 6 feet tall. One day I saw him walking out to take a young lady for her first flying lesson. He obviously didn’t think much of her when he said in a loud voice with a thick Polish accent “Woman are meant to stay home and have babies – not fly! She was reduced to tears and ran back to the flight office and never returned.

Jan was a highly skilled pilot and a stickler for safety and was constantly making me scan for suitable landing spots if anything went wrong. I went solo after 9 hours. There is nothing as exciting as having your instructor get out of the aircraft at the end of the runway unexpectedly and say “You go solo now. One circuit only and land” The adrenalin was flowing but what an exhilarating feeling sitting on the end of a 3000 foot runway and opening the throttle! I built up my time over the next few months until I sat my final exam and did the flight test. I was finally a pilot. You never realize how inexperienced you are with only 35 hours though!


My Piper J3 Cub CF-NGX
It wasn’t long before I had a chance to buy my own aircraft when a Piper J3 two place tandem aircraft came up for sale. A farmer at Lake Simcoe about 60 miles north of Toronto advertised one for sale for $2,400.00 on a piece of paper on the wall in the flight office. I rang him and agreed to buy it and would have someone drive me to his farm. The plan was to fly it home the following Saturday. The weather was OK when we left Toronto but by the time we got there, had a test flight and was ready to depart, the rain and a line squall with high winds was between me and the airport back at Toronto. I made the foolish decision to go hoping somehow I would fly through the rain and find Markham airfield. I took off and scared the living daylights out of myself on that flight. Visibility was poor and the southerlies were slowing my 80 knots to about 40 knots ground speed. My dead reckoning IFR (I follow railways) got me so lost that I was heading far to the east of Markham. When you are young you are bulletproof and that was the best lesson ever for the hundreds of flying hours that followed. I never wanted to go through that again!

The J3 was a joy to fly. Mine was first registered in the USA with a 65 HP engine by the US Border Patrol until it was crashed sometime in the early 1940s. It went through a number of owners and rebuilds until I bought it with a 75 HP engine installed. It would get off the ground in about 300 feet and land in not much more. One of the joys of flying a Cub is that it has no flaps whatsoever and you have to learn to “sideslip” on to the runway to bleed of speed. Left rudder combined with right ailerons and the aircraft crabs to the left on its way down with a lot of drag. Of course you straighten up the aircraft just before you stall it out onto the runway. Another joy is the side clamshell door. The top half clipped up to the wing and the bottom half folded down vertically so that the whole side was open as you flew around souther Ontario skies in the balmy summer evenings.. It really was grass roots flying at it’s best. It came with a pair of skis for operating from snow covered fields. Thet changed the whole nature of the aircraft as the skis added weight and drag. That, combined with the drag of snow resulted in take-off runs of 1000 feet to get airborne and a slow climbout. Nevertheless, flying during the winter was interesting and a lot of fun. It was also extremely cold as there was no heater!


My Piper J4
I had a great offer for the J3 about a year later and saw a Piper J4 for sale. The only difference was that it was two place side by side and I decided to buy it after a test flight. Bad decision! It had the 65HP engine and because the body was wider, had more drag. In fact it was a pig and I have regretted selling the J3 to this day. I managed to quit the J4 within a few months at the same price. At this point I discovered the Champion Citabria and aerobatics.


Flying the Citabria (Aerobatic spelled backwards)
The Citabria was whole different world of flying. I was OK with loops and ponderous rolls in the J3 Cub which was exhilarating but the Citabria was actually designed for aerobatics. It had a 150HP engine and a shorter wing span along with being able to withstand both positive and negative G-force. Consequently, you could do snap rolls which would almost take your head off as the roll rate was brilliant. Nothing like a Pitts Special but nevertheless a world away from a J3. I just loved the Citabria. Going up for an hour of throwing the aircraft around in the evening southern Ontario skies really put the day to day worries of everything in your life out of your mind. Up at 5,000 feet you really couldn’t get into trouble as letting go of the controls would let the aircraft recover on it’s own and the that’s a good thing as stalling out on the top of a loop resulting in an inverted spin is frightening the first time you do it without an instructor.


Flying the Chipmunk
The Chipmunk was designed by the Canadian de Havilland company for use as a primary trainer in both Canada and the United Kingdom. Slightly over 200 machines were produced in Canada, but over 1,000 were manufactured in Britain. A further 60 Chipmunks were produced in the late 1950s under license in Portugal. Few of these airplanes have made their way into the United States, but of those that have, most have been extensively modified for acrobatic and airshow work. Seating is tandem fashion under a sliding bubble canopy. A 145 hp Gipsy Major four-cylinder engine turns either a fixed-pitch wood propeller or a metal Fairey-Reed airscrew. The fuselage and wings are of all metal construction, but the ailerons, elevators, and rudder are fabric covered.

The Avro “Flying Saucer”

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The AVRO “Flying Saucer”

The late 1940s and 1950s were halcyon days for UFO sightings in North America. The Roswell Incident occurred in 1947, heralding the belief that we were being visited – or even stalked – by alien beings. There were 6 “reported” sightings in Ontario alone between 1951 and 1957, many of which were classified as hoaxes. In 1959 a flying saucer actually flew at Malton Airport (Toronto, Canada). It was observed by hundreds of people, photographed extensively and its flight was even captured as a quality movie. Was it a hoax? Nope.

The Malton flying saucer wasn’t from outer space. It was designed and built right there at the A.V.Roe (AVRO) aircraft company.

John FrostIn his research, AVRO’s Chief Designer, John Frost, (pictured at right) had discovered an application of something called the Coanda Effect.

Frost’s application of the Coanda Effect suggested that a powerful ground cushion could be created by a circulating fan and, in conjunction with horizontal engines, could provide the basis for a vehicle that could have both have VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) capabilities and could still operate as an aircraft. AVRO and the Canadian government provided the initial funding for Frost’s work in 1952- 1953. Frost combined his innovative design into a disc shape, a saucer shape, which had been chosen as the most efficient aerodynamic shape and to simplify structural requirements for a circular hovering platform. The flying saucer was officially designated the VZ-9AV but was generally referred to as the “AvroCar”.

By late 1953, the project was costing upwards of $400,000 to the Canadian government and, in their infinite wisdom, they pulled the plug on the project.

Frost, not wanting to give up his ideas turned to the US to fund the development. In 1955, the U.S. Air Force invested some $1.9 million to allow Frost and AVRO, which also sunk $2.5 million of their own money, to continue the work. In 1958 the first prototype was built for wind tunnel testing. In 1959 the second prototype took to the air, with AVRO pilot “Spud” Potoki at the controls, at Malton.

After several additional flights and wind tunnel tests, the U.S. Air Force decided to end its funding of the project in 1961. They stated that their decision was based on the experiences of poor lateral stability with the AvroCar. AVRO knew how to fix the problems but they were strapped for cash. The Diefenbaker Government then killed the Canadian funding on more than just the AvroCar. They had also killed the CF-105, and the AVRO ARROW, a project that resulted in massive losses of money and talent at AVRO.

AVRO scraped up enough cash to redesign the AvroCar with a pair of J-85 turbojets, a larger turborotor, for improved performance, and a wing/tailet configuration that they married to the central disc platform (see image below). These changes seemed to solve the stability problems but it was too late.

On April 30, 1962, the parent company, A. V. Roe Canada, which had been disintegrating since the cancellation of the ARROW, ceased to exist.Avrocar

The two prototype AvroCars still exist. The 1959 model is in an Army Museum in Fort Eustis, Virginia. The other belongs to the National Air and Space Museum, who have it stored in a warehouse in Maryland.
AvroCar
AvroCar Drawings

Authors note: This story tells many tales. It is a tale of stupidity on behalf of our Canadian government in the 1950s. Here was AVRO, a company on the leading edge of pure aviation research, which was developing the rudiments of VTOL. VTOL is the basis of the success of the British Harrier Jet and the new Joint Strike Fighter program in the U.S. Government has place in funding research but government is pressured to demand an immediate Return on Investment (ROI). Pure research does not offer immediate ROI. In fact, some research can fail and offer no ROI.

The Canadian government prefered to fund a new Regional Jet which was a simple line-extension for a Canadian aircraft manufacturer rather than to invest in longer term innovation. I suppose that is what governments do best when they are in power. The look at short term gain to keep the politicians in power rather than long term which offers great rewards but is costly to fund.