North Bryan County Forest Fire

There are more forest fires in North Bryan County this afternoon. Local Fire departments, Georgia Forestry, and aircraft from Chatham County are working to suppress and contain the fire. Communications are on VHF Conventional, VHF Airband, and the Chatham-Effingham County TRS.


Bryan County Fire
156.120 - North Bryan County Fire Repeater


Georgia Forestry
159.390 - Georgia Foresty Mobile-to-Mobile
AIRCRAFT 0Z, BRYAN 1, BRYAN ##, 010, 013, CHOPPER 7

122.925 - Georgia Forestry Air-to-Air
AIRCRAFT 0Z, CHOPPER 7, EAGLE 1, CHATHAM 1


Chatham Effingham TRS
TG 6224 - CEMA 1
EAGLE 1 (Hughes 369E), CHATHAM 1 (Air Tractor), CEMA 4

TG 7888 - Pooler FD Fireground 2
16##, ENGINE 6#

TG 25200 - Effingham Fire/Rescue Admin 1
66##, various apparatus responding to and staging for fire


Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Georgia Pacific TRS, Effingham County

During the week, I stumbled across the Georgia Pacific 800 mHz TRS while doing an 800 search in Effingham County. It is located at the Georgia Pacific Plant off of Fort Howard Road in Effingham County. The BC396 showed a Sys ID of 3934h on control chanenel 856.7875.

An FCC license search shows it as part of WPBN679. The frequencies licensed are:

854.7875
854.8875
855.7875
856.7875

The only talkgroup I heard active was TG 17680 (analog), but it was very late in the evening.


Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

New Charleston, SC Area Radio Blog

Mark Cleary in Charleston, SC has started a monitoring blog for the Charleston, SC area. He covers a multitude of radio and news topics related to VHF, UHF, and HF military, public safety, and utility communications. Mark's Blog should be of particular interest to those interested in Navy and HF network monitoring.

http://lowcountry-listening-post.blogspot.com/

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Military Monitoring Recap; 14 May - 27 May

I am catching up the Military Communications recaps with this two week version. I won't be around the radio much this weekend because of the races at Monaco, Indy, and Charlotte but if I catch anything interesting, I'll post an addendum.

FREQUENCIES

Hunter AAF
133.550 - Tower
279.575 - Tower
126.200 - Base Ops
309.000 - PMSV (Weather)
51.050 - Helicopter Common
32.350 - 3-3 AVN Ops
38.150 - B-169 AVN Ops
82.100 - 224 MI Bn Ops
345.000 - USCG Air Station Savannah
406.1625 - Tower/Base Ops
406.7625 - POL
415.1625 - Trans Alert

Savannah IAP/CRTC
119.100 - Tower
257.800 - Tower
120.400 - Approach/Departure
380.025 - Approach/Departure
125.300 - Approach/Departure
387.100 - Approach/Departure
118.400 - Approach/Departure
307.225 - Approach/Departure
225.750 - 165th AW CP
237.000 - CRTC Ops
149.1625 - CRTC (FM)

Fort Stewart/Wright AAF
127.350 - Marne Radio
279.625 - Marne Radio
126.250 - Wright AAF Tower
269.275 - Wright AAF Tower

MCAS Beaufort
118.450 - Approach/Departure
301.200 - Approach/Departure
119.050 - Tower
340.200 - Tower
361.800 - VMFA-115 Base
339.500 - VMFA-115 Tac 1
320.200 - VMFA-115 Tac 2
253.100 - VMFA-122 Base
283.400 - VMFA-122 Tac 1
354.325 - VMFA-122 Tac 2
313.800 - VMFA-251 Base
290.000 - VMFA-251 Tac 1
327.475 - VMFA-251 Tac 2
228.200 - VMFA-312 Base
301.950 - VMFA-312 Tac 1
320.300 - VMFA-312 Tac 2
310.200 - VMFA(AW)-533 Base
289.275 - VMFA(AW)-533 Tac 1
299.300 - VMFA(AW)-533 Tac 2
308.925 - VFA-86 Tac 1
363.825 - VFA-86 Tac 2
349.225 - Old VMFA-332 Tac, used for Aerial Refueling

Shaw AFB
381.350 - Shaw AFB Command Post
138.950 - Shaw AFB SOF
252.100 - Shaw AFB SOF
311.200 - 55th FS Ops
139.750 - 55th FS V10
273.700 - 77th FS Ops
143.800 - 77th FS V8
141.750 - 77th FS V9
140.375 - 77th FS V10
141.675 - 77th FS V11
139.925 - 77th FS V12
320.525 - 79th FS Ops
138.150 - 79th FS V8
141.600 - 79th FS V9
141.775 - 79th FS V10
142.125 - 79th FS V11
139.975 - 79th FS V12
138.200 - 79th FS air-to-air

McEntire ANGB
298.300 - 169th FW Ops
125.125 - 169 FW V1
140.125 - 169 FW V17
141.925 - 169 FW V18
141.825 - 169 FW V19
138.025 - 169 FW air-to-air

Ranges/MOAs
228.400 - Townsend Range Control
252.900 - Townsend Range Control
343.750 - Bulldog MOA
269.000 - Gamecock MOA
264.700 - Poinsett Range Control
354.300 - BEEFEATER ECM Range

SEALORD
120.950 - North Primary
284.500 - North Primary
267.500 - North Primary
349.800 - W-157 Discrete
376.900 - W-157 Discrete
385.300 - W-157 Discrete
350.675 - North TACTS Range

DOUBLESHOT
127.725 - Primary
279.725 - Primary
258.400 - Discrete
381.350 - Discrete

Miscellaneous
134.100 - Charleston AFB CP "PALMETTO OPS"
349.400 - Charleston AFB CP "PALMETTO OPS"
344.600 - Charleston AFB PMSV (Weather)
372.200 - Charleston AFB Dispatch
285.000 - USN Tactical Support Center Jacksonville
348.900 - AR-600
371.350 - CPRW-11 Base (P-3, Jacksonville)
225.725 - JSTARS Discrete
355.250 - JSTARS Discrete
381.000 - JSTARS Discrete
388.225 - JSTARS Discrete
228.900 - NORAD/AWACS Discrete
254.475 - AWACS Discrete
320.600 - AWACS Discrete

Air Traffic Control
269.550 - Jax Center Columbia Low
277.400 - Jax Center Brunswick Low
281.550 - Jax Center unknown
282.200 - Jax Center Jekyll Low
282.300 - Jax Center Alma High
285.650 - Jax Center Statesboro High
290.400 - Jax Center Waycross Low
319.200 - Jax Center Aiken High
322.500 - Jax Center Savannah Low
363.200 - Jax Center Allendale Low
379.100 - Jax Center Charleston Low
323.000 - Atlanta Center Macon


CALLSIGNS

Hunter AAF
ARMY 65017 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 65024 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 95134 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 05184 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 15249 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 15269 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 15276 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 15277 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 15283 (AH-64D, 3-3 AVN)
ARMY 26366 (MH-60L, 3-160 SOAR)
ARMY 26416 (MH-60L, 3-160 SOAR)
ARMY 26417 (MH-60L, 3-160 SOAR)
ARMY 03747 (MH-47G, 3-160 SOAR)
ARMY 03752 (MH-47G, 3-160 SOAR)
SUNNY (RC-12N, 224 MI Bn)
COAST GUARD 6533 (HH-65C, Savannah)
COAST GUARD 6542 (HH-65C, Savannah)
COAST GUARD 6575 (HH-65C, Savannah)
GUARD 26599 (UH-60L, 1-171 AVN)
GUARD 26600 (UH-60L, 1-171 AVN)
GUARD 26605 (UH-60L, 1-171 AVN)
EVAC 61438
LOBO 01 (C-9)
PAT 1323
BERRY 540

Savannah IAP/CRTC
DAWG (C-130H, 165 AW)
GULF TEST (Gulfstream Test Flight)
PEACH 05 (E-8C, 116th ACW)
PEACH 33 (E-8C, 330th CTS)
PEACH 35 (E-8C, 330th CTS)
REACH 384
CHATHAM 1 (369E?, Chatham County)
EAGLE 2 (396E, Chatham County)

MCAS Beaufort
BLADE 2# (F/A-18A+, VMFA-115)
NIKEL 3# (F/A-18C, VMFA-122)
TBOLT 5# (F/A-18C, VMFA-251)
CHECK 6# (F/A-18A+, VMFA-312)
HAWK 8# (F/A-18D, VMFA-533)
WINDER ## (F/A-18C, VFA-86)
FOX 757 (C-12)
SUNNY 306 (C-12)

Shaw AFB
FLEX (F-16CJ, 55th FS)
RAZOR (F-16CJ, 55th FS)
DIAMOND (F-16CJ, 77th FS)
GREASY (F-16CJ, 77th FS)
LOAD (F-16CJ, 77th FS)
PEAK (F-16CJ, 77th FS)
RUDE (F-16CJ, 77th FS)
DEADLY (F-16CJ, 79th FS)
HELLCAT (F-16CJ, 79th FS)
JAGGER (F-16CJ, 79th FS)
MADCAT (F-16CJ, 79th FS)
SCAR (F-16CJ, 79th FS)
SPITFIRE (F-16CJ, 79th FS)
TOPCAT (F-16CJ, 79th FS)

McEntire ANGB
DEMON (F-16CJ, 169th FW)
MACE (F-16CJ, 169th FW)
VIPER (F-16CJ, 169th FW)

Miscellaneous
COAST GUARD 1078 (MH-68, HITRON)
DARK 33 (B-1B, 28th BS)
DARKSTAR (E-3, 965th ACCS)
GATOR 31 (F/A-18A, VMFA-142)
GOLIATH (E-3, 960th ACCS)
LIFTER (C-17, Charleston)
NAVY LF 16B (P-3C, VP-16)
NAVY LF 71C (P-3C, VP-16)
NAVY LN 451 (P-3C, VP-45)
RED TALON 71B (P-3C, VP-16)
RED TALON 71C (P-3C, VP-16)
RHET (KC-135, 19th ARG)
SENTRY 05 (E-3, 960th ACCS)
TOPCAT 41 (KC-135, 108th ARW)
VENUS 41


Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

My Start in the Radio Hobby

When I first saw Brian Cave, AB4BC's blog I really enjoyed his post on how he got started in the radio hobby. It planted the seed in my head to write something similar and now I've finally gotten around to it. It seemed there was always a radio of some sort around in my childhood.

Ever since I had my first AM/FM broadcast radio, I've always gone to sleep listening to music on the radio. I don't know how it started, or why I started doing it but it is a habit that I have continued to this day. I actually wake up if the electricity goes out and the radio goes off! Besides listening to the radio while falling asleep, I also like to turn the knob and see what all is out there to listen to.

Growing up, I remember my father having a scanner around the house to listen to Fire Department and Ambulance communications. The first scanner I can remember was one of the cool old Regency crystal units with the big red LEDs to indicate which channel was active. At that point, we lived in New Orleans, a city where there was always something going on. It was great fun to listen to such a busy fire department and to watch the red lights flash in trail as the radio scanned through the few channels it had (16 at the most, maybe less, I just don't remember now). I recall my father going through some crystal controlled scanners with progressively more channels (and smaller LEDs...), an early non-crystal scanner (still with the LEDs...), and finally a Radio Shack Pro-2006.

I grew up in a military family. Both my father's and mother's families lived here in Georgia and my father was stationed in California, Maryland, and Louisiana before he retired. Several "cross country" trips were made during that time, and I always remember my father having a CB radio in the car or truck. For some reason, I was always attracted to the CB radio. As a child, I had my own toy radio, made out a shoe box, some spare knobs, and an old microphone. It was nothing fancy, but I loved it and always had fun with it. Having forgotten many toys, it really is one of the toys that I have always remembered.

Having grown up around both the military and radios, it was probably inevitable that the two interests would at some point converge. Around the time I first got on the internet, I also discovered just what the Pro-2006 was capable of. It didn't take long to find email groups such as MilCom and Flacom and to meet those who mentored me into moving beyond public safety monitoring and into the hobby of military monitoring. I am very thankful to Larry Van Horn, Al Stern, Paul Cobb, Bob Langley, and Bill Collins, among others who will remain nameless because of their lines of work. I apologize profusely if I have left anyone out.

Around the time I graduated from college, I became interested in amateur radio through a friend and his father: Ralph Quinn, KF4HII and Ralph Quinn, KE4TQG, now W4REQ. Once I became an amateur radio operator, I became interested in emergency communications and event communications. Through event communications I learned net procedures and radio techniques that were a necessity when I did volunteer communications during the 1997 Indy Lights Savannah Grand Prix and during Hurricane Floyd in 1999. During the Savannah Grand Prix, I worked in the communications center from the day the site opened to the last day of competition, helping coordinate everything from administration to security to track workers to "port-a-suck" trucks for the port-a-johns. During Hurricane Floyd I was a communications volunteer in the Chatham County Emergency Management Agency's Emergency Operations Center with Amateur Radio Emergency Services (ARES). Other amateur radio operators besides the Quinns that I have learned much from have been David Carter, KC4WSD, Ed Woodson, NC5S, Stacy Aaron WA4IDS, and Kurt Hoffman, N4CVF. I learned and still learn something a little bit different from each, from operational techniques to electronics and technology.

All of this became of great importance in 2001 when I quit my job in retail pharmacy and entered the field of communications. I have no doubt that my scanning and monitoring experiences as well as my amateur radio and event communications experience have made me better at my job. As opposed to a technically minded radio hobbyist, I have always considered myself more of an operationally minded radio hobbyist. All of the operating techniques that I learned and absorbed through the radio hobby come into play every day that I go to work.

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

WTOC Flies With JSTARS

WTOC flew with the 116th Air Control Wing yesterday and ran a nice story on their 11 O'Clock News. There is a story and some video at: http://www.wtoc.com/Global/story.asp?S=6528258

I heard PEACH 05, one of the JSTARS aircraft, up yesterday afternoon with CRTC Ops on 237.000. There was also some encrypted activity on JSTARS discretes and some work with ADVANCE (a Joint Terminal Attack Controller) with JSTARS simulating some A-10s on a JSTARS discrete. I strongly suspect that activity was the mission that WTOC flew on.

237.000 - CRTC Ops, 116th ACW PEACHTREE OPS
355.250 - JSTARS Discrete
388.225 - JSTARS Discrete

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Hurricane Monitoring - 2007

This article originally appeared in the May 2007 edition of Key Klix, the Amateur Radio Club of Savannah's newsletter.

With Hurricane Season upon us, it is a good time to gather monitoring information on monitoring communications related to the response to a storm. The purpose of this month’s article is to provide some basic hurricane monitoring information for both Savannah area amateur radio and government response to a hurricane. Many thanks to David Delamater, K4DJD, Steve Jonas, K4SDJ, and Doug Rowland, KF4EFP for providing amateur radio frequency information for this article.

Amateur Radio Monitoring

In the event of a hurricane, Amateur Radio would of course play a large part in the response to the storm. Georgia Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) would activate to support state and local emergency management. Other organizations would activate to respond to the hurricane in other capacities.

ARES, when activated will use several 2-meter repeaters for local area, point-to-point traffic. HF frequencies would be used for more long distant communications including communications with statewide ARES and emergency management stations.

146.970 - Chatham County ARES Ops Primary
146.880 - Chatham ARES Ops Secondary
147.105 - Georgia ARES Southeast District Ops
146.745 - Effingham County Repeater (97.4 PL)
146.520 - National Calling Frequency

3.975 LSB - Georgia ARES Primary HF
7.277 LSB - Georgia ARES Secondary HF
5.3305 LSB - Georgia ARES Section Emergency Net

The American Red Cross will also make use of local repeaters during their hurricane response operations. Secondary Red Cross Repeaters will be assigned usage depending upon the nature and size of the response.

146.850 - American Red Cross Primary
146.700 - American Red Cross Secondary
147.210 - American Red Cross Secondary
147.330 - American Red Cross Secondary

Other organizations that might activate to assist in response and relief efforts are the Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network and Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief teams.

7.265 LSB - SATERN (Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network)
14.265 USB - SATERN (Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network)

151.625 - Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief (VHF Itinerant)
147.550 - Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief
147.555 - Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief
3.865 LSB - Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief
7.238 LSB - Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief
7.251 LSB - South CARS Net
7.262 LSB - Southern Baptist Convention Net

A good way to keep track of and to gather information on a hurricane is the venerable Hurricane Watch Net, which has been around since 1965. This net will activate whenever there is a hurricane within 300 miles of a populated land mass or when activation is requested by the National Hurricane Center. The purpose of the net is to gather information from the storm for the National Hurricane Center and to pass on National Weather Service advisories on the storm. Information on hurricanes can also be heard on the Maritime Mobile Network. They also collect information for the National Weather Service and pass weather service advisories.

14.325 USB - Hurricane Watch Net
14.300 USB - Maritime Mobile Network


Government Monitoring

Local public safety agencies would be in the front lines of hurricane response. A listing of agency frequencies and Chatham-Effingham Trunked Repeater System (TRS) talkgroups would be too long to list here, but there are emergency management, mutual aid, and common frequencies and talkgroups that would be good to include in scanner programming. These would be used by a wide variety of agencies during any multi-agency response. A full listing of agency talkgroups for the Chatham-Effingham TRS can be found on the Radio Reference website (see list of links below).

Conventional Frequencies
123.025 - Airborne Operations, Air-to-Ground
123.100 - Airborne Operations, Air-to-Air
154.280 - Fire Mutual Aid
155.340 - HEAR (Hospitals, EMS)
155.475 - Law Enforcement National Emergency
853.6375 - Chatham County 800 Conventional
866.0125 - I-Call
866.5125 - I-Tac 1
867.0125 - I-Tac 2
867.5125 - I-Tac 3
868.0125 - I-Tac 4

Chatham-Effingham TRS Talkgroups
6224 - Chatham County Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) 1
6256 - Chatham County Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) 2
6288 - Chatham County Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) 3
6320 - Chatham County Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) 4
6352 - Chatham County Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) 5

33456 - Police Common
37072 - Fire Common
2416 - Medical Common
50320 - Savannah City Common
50352 - Chatham County Countywide Common
1648 - Chatham County Common
4240 - Chatham County Westside Common
4272 - Chatham County Eastside Common

Both Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah International Airport and the military units based there would be involved in relief operations in the event of a hurricane striking the coastal Georgia area. B-169 Aviation of the Georgia Army National Guard at Hunter AAF would likely support local operations while the 165th Airlift Wing at Savannah IAP would be able to help provide an air bridge for the Savannah area. The United States Coast Guard would also assist in the response to a hurricane with both aircraft from Air Station Savannah and surface assets from Sector Charleston and it’s subordinate unit Station Tybee (and beyond).

133.550 AM - Hunter AAF Control Tower
279.575 AM - Hunter AAF Control Tower
126.200 AM - Hunter AAF Base Ops
38.150 FM - B-169 AVN “Hurricane Ops”
139.400 AM - B-169 AVN “Guard Operations”
242.400 AM - B-169 AVN Air-to-Air

119.100 AM - Savannah IAP Control Tower
257.800 AM - Savannah IAP Control Tower
225.750 AM - 165 Airlift Wing, Georgia Air National Guard Command Post
237.000 AM - Air National Guard CRTC Command Post

156.800 - Marine VHF Ch. 16, Calling/Distress
157.050 - Marine VHF Ch. 21, Sector Charleston Primary Operating
345.000 AM - USCG Air Station Savannah Ops

Charleston Air Force Base is involved in relief operations not only nationwide but worldwide. Aircraft inbound to Charleston AFB from the south can easily be heard from the Savannah area.

134.100 AM - Charleston AFB Command Post
349.400 AM - Charleston AFB Command Post

Another agency that would support hurricane response efforts would the United States Air Force auxiliary, the Civil Air Patrol. The Civil Air Patrol is in the midst of frequency changes, so it would be prudent to keep both their old and new frequencies in mind. The CAP also uses repeater output frequencies as simplex frequencies.

148.150 - Civil Air Patrol Primary Repeater Output
148.125 - Civil Air Patrol Repeater, Coastal Georgia Area

148.175 - New Civil Air Patrol Repeaters
148.775 - New Civil Air Patrol Repeaters


There are many lists on the Internet that list HF frequencies for the “Hurricane Hunter” aircraft. For the most part, these lists are obsolete; the “Hurricane Hunters” now use satellite communications, including military SATCOM, instead of HF for their primary means of communications with ground stations.



Reference Links
Georgia ARES:
http://www.gaares.org/

SATERN (Salvation Army):
http://www.satern.org/

Hurricane Watch Net:
http://www.hwn.org/

Maritime Mobile Service Network:
http://www.mmsn.org/

Radio Reference:
http://www.radioreference.com/



Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Weekly MilCom Recap; 07-13 May 2007

FREQUENCIES

Hunter AAF
133.550 - Tower
279.575 - Tower
307.125 - GCA
126.200 - Base Ops
309.000 - PMSV (Weather)
32.350 - 3-3 AVN Ops
38.150 - B-169 AVN Ops
345.000 - USCG Air Station Savannah
406.1625 - Tower/Base Ops
406.7625 - POL
415.1625 - Trans Alert

Savannah IAP/CRTC
119.100 - Tower
257.800 - Tower
120.400 - Approach/Departure
380.025 - Approach/Departure
125.300 - Approach/Departure
387.100 - Approach/Departure
118.400 - Approach/Departure
307.225 - Approach/Departure
225.750 - 165th AW CP
237.000 - CRTC Ops
149.1625 - CRTC Ground Net

Fort Stewart/Wright AAF
127.350 - Marne Radio
279.625 - Marne Radio
126.250 - Wright AAF Tower
269.275 - Wright AAF Tower

MCAS Beaufort
118.450 - Approach/Departure
301.200 - Approach/Departure
119.050 - Tower
340.200 - Tower
361.800 - VMFA-115 Base
339.500 - VMFA-115 Tac 1
320.200 - VMFA-115 Tac 2
253.100 - VMFA-122 Base
283.400 - VMFA-122 Tac 1
354.325 - VMFA-122 Tac 2
313.800 - VMFA-251 Base
290.000 - VMFA-251 Tac 1
327.475 - VMFA-251 Tac 2
228.200 - VMFA-312 Base
301.950 - VMFA-312 Tac 1
320.300 - VMFA-312 Tac 2
354.400 - VFA-86 Base
308.925 - VFA-86 Tac 1
363.825 - VFA-86 Tac 2

Shaw AFB
381.350 - Shaw AFB Command Post
138.950 - Shaw AFB SOF
252.100 - Shaw AFB SOF
311.200 - 55th FS Ops
141.900 - 55th FS V8
138.300 - 55th FS V9
139.750 - 55th FS V10
273.700 - 77th FS Ops
143.800 - 77th FS V8
140.375 - 77th FS V10
141.675 - 77th FS V11
320.525 - 79th FS Ops
138.150 - 79th FS V8
141.600 - 79th FS V9
142.125 - 79th FS V11
138.200 - 79th FS air-to-air

McEntire ANGB
298.300 - 169th FW Ops
140.125 - 169th FW V17

Ranges/MOAs
228.400 - Townsend Range Control
343.750 - Bulldog MOA
354.300 - BEEFEATER ECM Range

SEALORD
120.950 - North Primary
284.500 - North Primary
267.500 - North Primary
349.800 - W-157 Discrete
376.900 - W-157 Discrete
385.300 - W-157 Discrete

DOUBLESHOT
127.725 - Primary
279.725 - Primary
258.400 - Discrete

Miscellaneous
364.200 - NORAD AICC
225.800 - NORAD/AWACS Discrete
283.800 - Unknown, Shaw AFB Exercise
288.200 - NORAD/AWACS Discrete
335.950 - NORAD/AWACS Discrete
134.100 - Charleston AFB CP
349.400 - Charleston AFB CP
344.600 - Charleston AFB Metro
372.200 - Charleston AFB Dispatch
311.000 - ACC Command Post

Air Traffic Control
269.550 - Jax Center Columbia Low
277.400 - Jax Center Brunswick Low
281.550 - Jax Center unknown
282.200 - Jax Center Jekyll Low
282.300 - Jax Center Alma High
285.650 - Jax Center Statesboro High
290.400 - Jax Center Waycross Low
322.500 - Jax Center Savannah Low
363.200 - Jax Center Allendale Low
379.100 - Jax Center Charleston Low
323.000 - Atlanta Center Macon


CALLSIGNS

Hunter AAF
ARMY 05184 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15235 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15277 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15280 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15283 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
SUNNY - RC-12N, 224 MI Bn
GUARD 249 - CH-47D, B-169 AVN
GUARD 262 - CH-47D, B-169 AVN
HURRICANE - CH-47D, B-169 AVN
COAST GUARD 6553 - HH-65C, Savannah
COAST GUARD 6542 - HH-65C, Savannah
COAST GUARD 6553 - HH-65C, Savannah
COAST GUARD 6575 - HH-65C, Savannah
ARMY 90103
GUARD 26605 - UH-60L, 1-171 AVN
GUARD 27012 - UH-60L, 1-171 AVN
MUSIC 87 - C-130, 118 AW
REACH 7041 - C-5
REACH 0810 - Civilian

Savannah IAP/CRTC
EVAC 60413
NAVY CW 894 - C-130, VR-54
GULF TEST - Gulfstream Test flights

MCAS Beaufort
BLADE 2# - F/A-18A+, VMFA-115
NIKEL 3#, 4# - F/A-18C, VMFA-122
TBOLT 5# - F/A-18C, VMFA-251
CHECK 6# - F/A-18A+, VMFA-312
WINDER ## - F/A-18C, VFA-86
RESCUE 1708 - HC-130, USCG Clearwater

Shaw AFB
DICE - F-16CJ, 55th FS
KILLER - F-16CJ, 55th FS
SHOOTER - F-16CJ, 55th FS
BENGAL - F-16CJ, 79th FS
BULL - F-16CJ, 79th FS
HELLCAT - F-16CJ, 79t FS
KING - F-16CJ, 79th FS
SLASH - F-16CJ, 79th FS
TIGER - F-16CJ, 79th FS

McEntire ANGB
MACE - F-16CJ, 169th FW

Miscellaneous
ASCOT 5817 - C-130, RAF
CHALICE - E-3 AWACS, 963 ACCS
DRAGNET - E-3 AWACS, 966 ACCS
MAPLE - F-16CJ, VT ANG
OUTBREAK - unknown, sending EAM on 311.000
REACH 809E
SANDY - A-10, unknown transient
SHARK - A-10, 23rd Wing
TEAL 71 - WC-130J Hurricane Hunter
TUFF - B-52, 2nd BW


Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

BC-396 Tidbits

I've been pretty busy with work and haven't had very many days off lately. A result is that I've been tardy in getting anything else posted about the BC-396. I've really been enjoying the radio. It stands head and shoulders above any other portable scanner I've used prior.

The stock antenna actually performs quite well as a local public safety scanning antenna and does quite well on 800mhz. The acquisition of a Diamond SRH-77CA antenna has improved reception in the military bands and provided increased range on in the VHF and UHF land mobile antennas. The stock antenna still works best as a "carry antenna" because the SRH-77 is 15.5 inches long. The BC-396 with the SRH-77 is pictured below:



I also stumbled across a good way of using the BC-396 in the car. I have a Bracketron brand IPod bracket in the car that I've used for a 30GB IPod for awhile now. Here is a photo of that particular bracket

One afternoon while getting in the car to go to work, I happened to notice that the 396 was about the same width as my IPod in it's clear acrylic case. Afraid that the 396 would be too deep for the bracket, I tried putting the 396 in the bracket to see if it would stay. It stayed safely in the bracket even when going over railroad tracks, speedbumps, etc. The benefit of using this bracket is that you can position the radio closer to you line of sight, preventing you from having to look down at the radio on a seat or in a cupholder. Here is a photo of the 396 in the bracket to give you an idea of how it can position the radio (depending upon where the bracket is mounted of course):

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

South Georgia Fires Update, 9 May 2007

From the Georgia Forestry Commission Fire Situation Report:


Georgia Forestry Commission
Wildfire Situation Report
May 9, 2007 - 12:00 A.M. EDT


Charlton and Ware Counties
Sweat Farm Road-Big Turnaround Fire

Location: South of Waycross, Georgia (GA) -Ware and Charlton Counties
Acres: Total Acreage for Sweat Farm Road-Big Turnaround Fire: 107,365 acres (Sweat Farm Road: 53,899 acres; Big Turnaround: 53,466 acres).
Containment: Sweat Farm Road:80% contained; Big Turnaround:45% contained
Committed Resources: Sweat Farm Road-Big Turnaround Fire: 921 Personnel, 139 Engines, 98 Dozer/Tractor Plows,and 11 Aircraft.
Incident History: Start Date: April 16, 2007 Cause: Downed power line
Suppression Action: The fire is managed by 2 separate Incident Management Teams (IMT). The Texas Lone Star IMT assumed command of the Sweat Farm Road Fire on Tuesday, May 8, 2007 and the Southern Area IMT is managing the Big Turnaround Fire. A combination of federal, state, and local agencies, along with private industry, are engaged in suppression efforts. Plan of action for the Sweat Farm Road Fire includes mop-up, patrol, and structural protection. Plan of action for the Big Turnaround Fire includes the continuation of building control lines and improving the line along the swamp edge break and perimeter road.
Public Notice: Charlton County Elected Officials have issued a mandatory evacuation notice for the Davis Community as of 5:00 pm Tuesday, May 8, 2007 due to the Big Turnaround Fire pushing southward. Currently, the Big Turnaround Fire is burning 5 miles north of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge (Okefenokee NWR) Headquarters. The Okefenokee NWR is closed as of 7:00 A.M. on Tuesday, May 8, 2007. This includes the visitor center and the refuge headquarters.
Portions of U.S. Hwy 1 remained closed. State Route 177 is closed south of U.S. Highway 1.



Ware County
Bugaboo Scrub Fire

Location: 16 miles west of Folkston, GA.
Acres: 40,139
Containment: Unavailable
Incident History: Start Date: May 5, 2007 Cause: Lightning Strike
Committed Resources: Unavailable
Suppression Action: The Southern Area Incident Management Team (IMT) is managing this fire. Plan of action includes structural protection and building control lines along the perimeter of the fire.

Public Notice: The fire has crossed over Florida (FL) State Route (SR) 2 and is headed toward the Osceola National Forest. The fire ran over 9 miles on Monday, May 7, 2007. SR 94 and SR 185 in Georgia and SR 2 in Florida are closed.



Brantley and Ware Counties
Kneeknocker-Race Track-Ft. Mudge-Brown Town-Easter Day Fires

Location: Brantley and Ware Counties
Acres: 3,233
Containment: 95%
Committed Resources: 37 Personnel, 5 Engines, and 8 Dozer/Tractor Plows.
Suppression Action: A Georgia Forestry Commission (GFC) Type III Incident Management Team (IMT) is managing the fires. Resources continue to mop-up and hold containment lines on Kneeknocker, Ft. Mudge, and the Race Track fires. Resources are assisting with extended mop-up operations in Wayne County. The IMT is providing initial attack resources for surrounding counties and the Sweat Farm Road Fire. The IMT is also providing overhead and operational support to the Roundabout Fire in Atkinson County.




Atkinson County
Roundabout Swamp Fire

Location: 4 miles west of Pearson, GA, and adjacent to Kirkland, GA.
Acres: 5,857
Containment: 70%
Committed Resources: 226 Personnel, 5 Engines, and 21 Dozer/Tractor Plows.
Incident History: Start Date: April 27, 2007 Cause: Under investigation
Suppression Action: A Georgia Forestry Commission (GFC) Type III Incident Management Team (IMT) is managing the fire. Plan of action is to contain the fire within the existing control lines and to continue to install fire breaks ahead of the fire. Hand crews are continuing with mop-up operations. Resources continue to build and improve control lines to provide access for engines in mop-up operations and to keep the fire from coming out of Roundabout Swamp.

Subtropical Storm Andrea Forms Off of the East Coast

000
WTNT31 KNHC 091443
TCPAT1
BULLETIN
SUBTROPICAL STORM ANDREA ADVISORY NUMBER 1
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL012007
1100 AM EDT WED MAY 09 2007

...EARLY-SEASON SUBTROPICAL STORM FORMS OFF THE SOUTHEAST U.S. COAST...

SATELLITE IMAGERY AND AIRCRAFT DATA INDICATE THAT THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OFF THE SOUTHEAST U.S. COAST HAS ACQUIRED SUBTROPICAL CHARACTERISTICS.

AT 11 AM EDT...1500 UTC...A TROPICAL STORM WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED ALONG THE SOUTHEAST COAST OF THE UNITED STATES FROM ALTAMAHA SOUND GEORGIA SOUTHWARD TO FLAGLER BEACH FLORIDA. A TROPICAL STORM WATCH MEANS THAT TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE WITHIN THE WATCH AREA...GENERALLY WITHIN THE NEXT 36 HOURS.

FOR STORM INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA...INCLUDING POSSIBLE INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS...PLEASE MONITOR PRODUCTS ISSUED BY YOUR LOCAL WEATHER OFFICE.

AT 1100 AM EDT...1500Z...THE CENTER OF SUBTROPICAL STORM ANDREA WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 30.8 NORTH...LONGITUDE 79.3 WEST OR ABOUT 140 MILES...225 KM...SOUTHEAST OF SAVANNAH GEORGIA AND ABOUT 150 MILES ...240 KM...NORTHEAST OF DAYTONA BEACH FLORIDA.

ANDREA IS MOVING GENERALLY TOWARD THE WEST NEAR 3 MPH. A CONTINUED SLOW MOTION AND A GRADUAL TURN TOWARD THE SOUTHWEST ARE EXPECTED DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS. ALONG THIS TRACK...THE CENTER OF ANDREA IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN OFFSHORE OF THE U.S. COAST THROUGH AT LEAST THURSDAY MORNING.

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 45 MPH...75 KM/HR...WITH HIGHER GUSTS. LITTLE CHANGE IN STRENGTH IS FORECAST DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS.

WINDS OF 40 MPH EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 115 MILES...185 KM...MAINLY TO THE EAST OF THE CENTER.

THE LATEST MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE REPORTED BY AN AIR FORCE RESERVE RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT WAS 1003 MB...29.62 INCHES.

SINCE THE HEAVIEST RAINS ASSOCIATED WITH ANDREA ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN OFFSHORE DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS... ANDREA IS NOT EXPECTED TO PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL OVER ANY LAND AREAS THROUGH AT LEAST THURSDAY MORNING.

REPEATING THE 1100 AM EDT POSITION...30.8 N...79.3 W. MOVEMENT TOWARD...WEST NEAR 3 MPH. MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS...45 MPH. MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE...1003 MB.

AN INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY WILL BE ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER AT 200 PM EDT FOLLOWED BY THE NEXT COMPLETE ADVISORY AT 500 PM EDT.

$$
FORECASTER KNABB

NWS Hazardous Weather Outlook and Wind Advisory

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
750 PM EDT MON MAY 7 2007

GAZ116-118-137-138-140-090000-
INLAND BRYAN-INLAND CHATHAM-LONG-INLAND LIBERTY-INLAND MCINTOSH-
750 PM EDT MON MAY 7 2007

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 AM EDT WEDNESDAY...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST GEORGIA.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.
PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS.

WIND ADVISORY

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY.
PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS.

WIND ADVISORY

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

$$


URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
505 PM EDT MON MAY 7 2007

GAZ116-118-137-138-140-080600-
/O.NEW.KCHS.WI.Y.0005.070507T2105Z-070509T0900Z/
INLAND BRYAN-INLAND CHATHAM-LONG-INLAND LIBERTY-INLAND MCINTOSH-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...PEMBROKE...SAVANNAH...LUDOWICI...
HINESVILLE...TOWNSEND
505 PM EDT MON MAY 7 2007

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 AM EDT WEDNESDAY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON HAS ISSUED A WIND ADVISORY...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 AM EDT WEDNESDAY.

POWERFUL ATLANTIC LOW PRESSURE WILL PRODUCE STRONG WINDS TONIGHT THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING. NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS WILL AVERAGE 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH LATE TONIGHT THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING AS THIS POTENT STORM SYSTEM APPROACHES THE COAST.

WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT...ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION ESPECIALLY ON BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES. ALSO...WINDS TONIGHT THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING MAY BECOME STRONG ENOUGH TO BRING DOWN TREES...TREE LIMBS
AND POWER LINES.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO ALL HAZARDS...TV...OR YOUR LOCAL NEWS SOURCE FOR THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON THE INTERNET AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/CHS.

A WIND ADVISORY MEANS THAT WINDS OF 35 MPH ARE EXPECTED. WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT...ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION ESPECIALLY ON BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES.

Weekly MilCom Recap; 30 April - 06 May 2007

FREQUENCIES

Hunter AAF
133.550 - Tower
279.575 - Tower
307.125 - GCA
126.200 - Base Ops
309.000 - PMSV (Weather)
32.350 - 3-3 AVN Ops
38.150 - B-169 AVN Ops
345.000 - USCG Air Station Savannah

Savannah IAP/CRTC
119.100 - Tower
257.800 - Tower
120.400 - Approach/Departure
380.025 - Approach/Departure
125.300 - Approach/Departure
387.100 - Approach/Departure
118.400 - Approach/Departure
307.225 - Approach/Departure
225.750 - 165th AW CP
237.000 - CRTC Ops
149.1625 - CRTC Ground Net

Fort Stewart/Wright AAF
127.350 - Marne Radio
279.625 - Marne Radio
126.250 - Wright AAF Tower
269.275 - Wright AAF Tower

MCAS Beaufort
118.450 - Approach/Departure
301.200 - Approach/Departure
119.050 - Tower
340.200 - Tower
361.800 - VMFA-115 Base
339.500 - VMFA-115 Tac 1
253.100 - VMFA-122 Base
283.400 - VMFA-122 Tac 1
354.325 - VMFA-122 Tac 2
313.800 - VMFA-251 Base
290.000 - VMFA-251 Tac 1
327.475 - VMFA-251 Tac 2
228.200 - VMFA-312 Base
301.950 - VMFA-312 Tac 1
320.300 - VMFA-312 Tac 2
354.400 - VFA-86 Base
308.925 - VFA-86 Tac 1
363.825 - VFA-86 Tac 2
299.300 - VMFT-401 air-to-air
348.825 - VMFT-401 air-to-air

Shaw AFB
311.200 - 55th FS Ops
141.900 - 55th FS V8
273.700 - 77th FS Ops
143.800 - 77th FS V8
140.375 - 77th FS V10
141.675 - 77th FS V11
320.525 - 79th FS Ops

McEntire ANGB
140.125 - 169th FW V17
141.925 - 169th FW V18
141.825 - 169th FW V19

Ranges/MOAs
228.400 - Townsend Range Control
252.900 - Townsend Range Control
343.750 - Bulldog MOA

SEALORD
120.950 - North Primary
284.500 - North Primary
267.500 - North Primary
349.800 - W-157 Discrete
376.900 - W-157 Discrete
385.300 - W-157 Discrete
350.675 - N. TACTS Range
355.325 - N. TACTS Range
320.500 - BRISTOL Discrete

DOUBLESHOT
127.725 - Primary
279.725 - Primary
258.400 - Discrete

JSTARS
228.050 - JSTARS Discrete
388.225 - JSTARS Discrete

Miscellaneous
135.850 - FAA Flight Check air-to-ground
228.225 - 23rd Wing "ANGEL OPS"
311.000 - Robins AFB CP
311.000 - "LIGHTNING OPS," 6th ARW, MacDill AFB
349.400 - Charleston AFB CP "PALMETTO OPS"
289.700 - Aerial Refueling (W-161/177)
348.900 - AR-600

Air Traffic Control
277.400 - Jax Center Brunswick Low
281.550 - Jax Center unknown
282.200 - Jax Center Jekyll Low
282.300 - Jax Center Alma High
285.650 - Jax Center Statesboro High
322.500 - Jax Center Savannah Low

323.000 - Atlanta Center Macon


CALLSIGNS

Hunter AAF
ARMY 65005 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 65010 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 65023 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 05184 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15240 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15246 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15281 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
ARMY 15283 - AH-64D, 3-3 AVN
SUNNY - RC-12N, 224 MI Bn
HURRICANE - CH-47D, B-169 AVN
COAST GUARD 6553 - HH-65C, Savannah
COAST GUARD 6561 - HH-65C, Savannah
COAST GUARD 6575 - HH-65C, Savannah
PAT 1323
REACH 0178
BERRY 540
WORLD 8023

Savannah IAP/CRTC
PEACH - E-8C, 116th ACW
ROGUE - C-130?
GULF TEST - Gulfstream Test Flight
FLIGHT CHECK 83 - FAA

MCAS Beaufort
BLADE 2# - F/A-18A+, VMFA-115
NIKEL 3#, 4# - F/A-18C, VMFA-122
TBOLT 5# - F/A-18C, VMFA-251
CHECK 6# - F/A-18A+, VMFA-312
WINDER ## - F/A-18C, VFA-86
SNIPER ## - F-5, VMFT-401

Shaw AFB
RAZOR - F-16CJ, 55th FS
LUCID - F-16CJ, 77th FS
MUSTANG - F-16CJ, 77th FS
SLOT - F-16CJ, 77th FS

McEntire ANGB
MACE - F-16CJ, 169th FW
VIPER - F-16CJ, 169th FW
DEMON - F-16CJ, 169th FW

Miscellaneous
BOLT - KC-135, 6th ARW
BOBBY 34 - KC-135
COAST GUARD 2120 - HU-25
COAST GUARD 1109 - MH-68
DEECEE - KC-135, 459th ARW
FURY 1# - B-2, 509th BW
GATOR - F/A-18A, VMFA-142
KING 21 - HC-130, 71st RQS
LIFTR - C-17, Charleston
OPEN SKIES 44F - OC-135
ROMAN - F/A-18, VFA-106
STRIKESTAR - E-8C, 116th ACCS backend
TIGER 51 - B-1B?, 28th BW?

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Air Quality Awareness Week, Friday: What Can You Do to Help Make the Air Cleaner?

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
500 AM EDT FRI MAY 4 2007

...THIS IS AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...

THIS WEEK MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE OZONE SEASON FOR MANY AREAS IN THE UNITED STATES.

TODAY WE HIGHLIGHT WHAT YOU CAN DO TO MAKE THE AIR CLEANER...

THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY AND STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS WORK CONSTANTLY TO MAKE THE AIR CLEANER ACROSS THE COUNTRY THROUGH AIR QUALITY STANDARDS AND RULES TO REDUCE POLLUTION FROM POWER PLANTS... INDUSTRIES... CARS... DIESEL TRUCKS... BUSES AND CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT. BUT YOU HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY TOO. ANY TIME YOU USE ENERGY... WHETHER IT IS GASOLINE... DIESEL... ELECTRICITY OR WOOD... YOU CONTRIBUTE TO AIR POLLUTION IN YOUR COMMUNITY AND COMMUNITIES DOWNWIND.

SAVING ENERGY REDUCES POLLUTION...AND IT CAN SAVE MONEY. USE THE FOLLOWING GUIDELINES TO HELP KEEP AIR CLEANER IN YOUR COMMUNITY.

YOU CAN HELP REDUCE POLLUTION IN YOUR COMMUNITY BY FOLLOWING THESE GUIDELINES. THESE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT WHEN OZONE IS EXPECTED TO BE UNHEALTHY...

- CHOOSE A CLEANER COMMUTE...SHARE A RIDE TO WORK OR USE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION. COMBINE ERRANDS AND REDUCE TRIPS.
- DELAY USING GASOLINE POWERED LAWN AND GARDEN EQUIPMENT UNTIL LATER IN THE DAY OR UNTIL DAYS WHEN THE AIR QUALITY IS BETTER.
- LIMIT ENGINE IDLING.
- GET REGULAR ENGINE TUNE UPS AND CAR MAINTENANCE CHECKS... ESPECIALLY THE SPARK PLUGS.

YOU CAN HELP PREVENT OR REDUCE UNHEALTHY LEVELS OF PARTICLE POLLUTION WITH THESE ACTIONS...

- REDUCE OR ELIMINATE FIREPLACE AND WOOD STOVE USE.
- AVOID USING GAS-POWERED LAWN AND GARDEN EQUIPMENT.
- AVOID BURNING LEAVES...TRASH AND OTHER MATERIALS.
- REPLACE YOUR CAR/S AIR FILTER AND OIL REGULARLY.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...VISIT US ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT HTTP://WWW.AIRQUALITY.NOAA.GOV.

$$

Air Quality Awareness Week, Thursday: What Are Air Quality Forecasts

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
500 AM EDT THU MAY 3 2007

...THIS IS AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...

THIS WEEK MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE OZONE SEASON FOR MANY AREAS IN THE UNITED STATES.

TODAY WE HIGHLIGHT THE TOOLS AVAILABLE TO HELP YOU GET AIR QUALITY INFORMATION.

OVER THE PAST DECADE...MORE STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES HAVE BEGUN AIR QUALITY FORECASTING FOR THEIR COMMUNITIES. TODAY ABOUT 300 CITIES NATIONWIDE ARE ISSUING AIR QUALITY FORECASTS BASED ON PREDICTED CONCENTRATIONS OF KNOWN POLLUTANTS SUCH AS OZONE AND PARTICLE POLLUTION.

FOR THOSE LOCALITIES FORECASTING AIR QUALITY... NEW NOAA FORECAST GUIDANCE IS IMPROVING FORECASTERS ABILITY TO PREDICT THE ONSET... SEVERITY... AND DURATION OF POOR AIR QUALITY. IN ADDITION.. NOAA PROVIDES COMPREHENSIVE AIR QUALITY PREDICTIONS ON WWW.WEATHER.GOV/AQ WITH HOUR BY HOUR INFORMATION FOR CITIES... SUBURBS...AND RURAL COMMUNITIES OVER THE EASTERN UNITED STATES. SIMILAR INFORMATION IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR WESTERN CONTERMINOUS UNITED STATES AS EXPERIMENTAL PRODUCTS ON WWW.WEATHER.GOV/AQ-EXPR.

FOR UP TO DATE AIR QUALITY INFORMATION... THE EPA ENVIROFLASH TOOL PROVIDES AIR QUALITY FORECASTS AND ACTION DAY NOTIFICATIONS FOR PARTICIPATING COMMUNITIES VIA EMAIL OR PAGER NOTIFICATION. ENVIROFLASH PROVIDES INSTANT INFORMATION THAT CAN BE CUSTOMIZED FOR EACH USERS NEEDS.

TOMORROW WE WILL LEARN ABOUT WHAT YOU CAN DO TO MAKE THE AIR CLEANER.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...VISIT US ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT HTTP://WWW.AIRQUALITY.NOAA.GOV.

$$

More on 164.625, Ware/Atkinson Fires

164.625 is part of either a multicast or linked conventional repeater system. 164.575 and 167.125 are both carrying the same traffic as 164.625, but they have longer squelch tails than 164.625. 164.625 uses a PL of 103.5.

The units on the system are using "directional" ID's along with IDing the repeater(s) as "Command Channel 2" (i.e. North Repeater, East Repeater). North Repeater, East Repeater, etc. probably refer to the individual repeaters within the system.

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Ware/Atkinson County Fires Command Net

164.625 has been active with communications related to the fires in Ware and Atkinson Counties. Incident Command System related callsigns as well as BIG TURNAROUND ICP, divisions, and firefighting units have been heard. It is a repeater output and has been alternately identified as "Command Channel 2" and "North Repeater."

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

More Information on the 116th ACW Deployment to the Savannah CRTC

Finding information on the 116th ACW's temporary deployment was much easier than I expected. According to this USAF news article, both the 116th ACW and the 19th ARG are TDY at the Savannah CRTC and MacDill AFB respectively. Some of the 116th ACW's E-8s have also gone to Nellis AFB for exercises.


Mission continues despite flightline closure

by Amanda Creel
78th ABW/PA

4/27/2007 - Robins AFB, Ga. -- The Robins flightline will be shut down for 14 days, May 4-18, for repairs, but Team Robins members are working to ensure the mission impact is minimal.

"We look at the runway as a weapon system and any weapon system requires maintenance and this is our preventive maintenance," said 1st Lt. Anthony Hayes, airfield operations flight operations officer.

He added no one wants to close the flightline, but in order to continue the mission; the preventive maintenance must be completed.

It will be a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week operation in order to complete the repairs in the two-week time frame and with minimal impact on Robins' mission, he said.

One of the biggest challenges was finding a time to repair the flightline that would work for all the units affected by the closure.

"We came up with these dates because they would minimize the impact to all involved," he said. "Mainly it will inconvenience the 116th (Air Control Wing) and the 19th (Air Refueling Group), which will be going TDY with their aircraft during the entire closure," Lieutenant Hayes said.

He added the 402nd Maintenance Wing will also be affected by the closure because it will be unable to bring aircraft in and out for depot maintenance during the closure.

"I know runway closures are a fact of life. We have to do them and we have to maintain our infrastructure. We have been working for at least three months to try and position ourselves where it will impact our customers the least in terms of accelerating aircraft to get them out in advance so we don't have any ready to go and trapped here by the runway closure," said Brig. Gen. Andy Busch, commander of the 402nd MXW.

The 116th Air Control Wing will be moving to the Savannah Combat Readiness Training Center, where they will continue with their local and school course requirements and others will deploy to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada for an exercise.

The 19th ARG will also be relocating during the closure. Lt. Col. Blaine Holt, acting group commander, said the closure offers an opportunity to exercise the group's abilities as a mobility command by showing their capability to achieve their mission from anywhere in the world.

"We have most of our jets or the majority of our fleet will go to our sister wing at MacDill Air Force Base, (Fla). A contingency of our maintainers and crew members will be taking care of our aircraft and flying missions from there," said Colonel Holt.

He added the people left behind during the closure will spend their time catching up with maintenance, training and issues with their impending deactivation in May 2008.

The repairs will help eliminate some of the risks of foreign-object damage by repairing the concrete slabs on the flightline.

"The degradation of the slab can cause FOD, which can damage the aircraft when landing," said Lieutenant Hayes.

The project will cost about $1.5 million and will consist of the replacement of 40 concrete slabs and 90,000 linear feet of joint seals, which go in between the slabs to keep water out, Lieutenant Hayes said.

Slabs identified for replacement failed due to transverse, which are diagonal or longitudinal cracks. Lieutenant Hayes said. These types of cracks occur when the slab cracks all the way through either diagonally or down the middle. Temporary repairs are made to the slabs when it cracks in half or when corners are broken off, Lieutenant Hayes said.

"We have had to come in and make temporary repairs. We have come in and cut out corners and replace them with quick-dry concrete," he said.

He said the majority of the slabs being replaced are located on the north end of the flightline, because in 2004 similar repairs were made to about 100 slabs, most of which were located on the south end.

"It's an expected thing when you have two-miles of concrete - at times you are going to have to do construction. It's a fact of life in the world of concrete; it wears out," said Chief Master Sgt. Billy Messer, 116th ACW airfield manager. "We just have to plan accordingly, so we don't totally lose out on all the requirements the air crews need for flying."

The project will also include the beginning of the asphalting of the Bravo and Charlie taxiways. The asphalt work on the taxiways will continue after the flightline reopens until June 2.

JSTARS at the Savannah CRTC

It is possible that the 116th Air Control Wing from Robins AFB, or part of it at least, is temporarily deployed to the Savannah Combat Readiness Training Center. At least two of the unit's E-8C JSTARS aircraft are on the ramp at the CRTC. PEACHTREE OPS is also active on the CRTC Ops frequency 237.000. An aircraft talking to PEACHTREE this morning referred to them as "PEACHTREE DEPLOYED."

I'll post more on this as I gather more information.

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Air Quality Awareness Week, Wednesday: Keeping Your Heart and Lungs Safe

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
500 AM EDT WED MAY 2 2007

... THIS IS AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK

THIS WEEK MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE OZONE SEASON FOR MANY AREAS IN THE UNITED STATES.

TODAY WE HIGHLIGHTTHE HEALTH IMPACTS OF POOR AIR QUALITY.

YOU ARE EXPOSED TO AIRBORNE CONTAMINATION EVERY TIME YOU BREATHE POLLUTED AIR. BUT WHEN YOU EXERCISE... WORK IN THE YARD OR DO OTHER STRENUOUS ACTIVITIES THAT MAKE YOU BREATHE HARDER AND FASTER... YOU INHALE EVEN MORE POLLUTED AIR INTO YOUR LUNGS.

EXPOSURE TO HIGH LEVELS OF OZONE AND PARTICLE POLLUTION IS LINKED WITH A NUMBER OF SIGNIFICANT HEALTH PROBLEMS. CHILDREN...PEOPLE WITH LUNG DISEASE...OLDER ADULTS AND PEOPLE WITH HEART DISEASE TEND TO BE MORE VULNERABLE. WHEN POLLUTION REACHES HIGH ENOUGH LEVELS THE AIR CAN BE UNHEALTHY FOR EVERYONE...ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE ACTIVE OUTDOORS. YOU CAN HELP PROTECT YOURSELF SIMPLY BY CHANGING THE TIME OR INTENSITY OF YOUR ACTIVITIES.

USE THE AIR QUALITY INDEX AND DAILY AIR QUALITY FORECASTS TO HELP YOU DETERMINE WHEN YOU NEED TO MAKE CHANGES. THE AQI IS A COLOR CODED SCALE THAT TELLS YOU WHO NEEDS TO TAKE STEPS TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO OZONE OR PARTICLE POLLUTION. LOCAL AIR QUALITY FORECASTS ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.AIRNOW.GOV.

USE AIR QUALITY FORECAST GUIDANCE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/AQ TO FIND MAP PROJECTIONS OF WHEN AND WHERE THE AIR YOU BREATHE IS EXPECTED TO HAVE HIGH AMOUNTS OF POLLUTANTS.

TOMORROW WE WILL LEARN ABOUT TOOLS TO HELP YOU GET AIR QUALITY INFORMATION.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...VISIT US ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT HTTP://WWW.AIRQUALITY.NOAA.GOV.

$$

Air Quality Awareness Week, Tuesday: What Causes Poor Air Quality

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
500 AM EDT TUE MAY 1 2007

...THIS IS AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...

THIS WEEK MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE OZONE SEASON FOR MANY AREAS IN THE UNITED STATES.

TODAY WE HIGHLIGHT THE CAUSES OF POOR AIR QUALITY.

YOUR AIR QUALITY CAN VARY DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH AIR POLLUTION IS PRODUCED IN YOUR COMMUNITY, HOW MUCH POLLUTION IS CARRIED INTO YOUR COMMUNITY BY THE WIND AND BY WEATHER CONDITIONS.

OZONE FORMS WHEN TWO GROUPS OF KEY POLLUTANTS...NITROGEN OXIDES AND VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS...COOK IN THE SUN. FOR EXAMPLE... PARTICLE POLLUTION CAN BE DIRECTLY EMITTED IN SMOKE FROM A WOODSTOVE...BUT A LOT OF PARTICLES FORM WHEN GASES REACT IN THE AIR. NITROGEN OXIDES AND SULFUR DIOXIDES CONTRIBUTE TO PARTICLE FORMATION.

THESE OZONE AND PARTICLE FORMING POLLUTANTS COME FROM A WIDE VARIETY OF SOURCES INCLUDING CARS... TRUCKS... BUSES... POWER PLANTS AND INDUSTRIES. NATURAL SOURCES SUCH AS WILDFIRES AND DUSTSTORMS CONTRIBUTE TO PARTICLE POLLUTION. TREES AND OTHER VEGETATION ALSO EMIT ORGANIC COMPOUNDS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO PARTICLE AND OZONE
POLLUTION.

WEATHER PLAYS A BIG ROLE IN THE LEVELS OF OZONE AND PARTICLE POLLUTION IN YOUR COMMUNITY. SUNLIGHT AND HEAT PROMOTE OZONE FORMATION. LIGHT WINDS AND TEMPERATURE INVERSIONS CAN KEEP POLLUTION CONCENTRATED NEAR THE GROUND. DEPENDING ON ITS
DIRECTION... THE WIND CAN BRING IN MORE POLLUTION SOMETIMES FROM HUNDREDS OF MILES AWAY. GEOGRAPHY CAN AFFECT POLLUTION LEVELS TOO. MOUNTAIN RANGES CAN PREVENT POLLUTION FROM DISPERSING.

TOMORROW WE WILL LEARN ABOUT THE HEALTH IMPACTS OF POOR AIR QUALITY.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...VISIT US ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT HTTP://WWW.AIRQUALITY.NOAA.GOV.

$$

Drought in Savannah

I've mentioned the drought in several posts about the fires in Waycross. I found this public information statement from the National Weather Service today, telling us that this past April was the 3rd driest April in Savannah since 1870.

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
351
PM EDT MON APR 30 2007

...THIRD DRIEST APRIL ON RECORD IN SAVANNAH...

RAINFALL FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL AT THE SAVANNAH AIRPORT WAS ONLY 0.33 INCHES. THIS MAKES IT THE THIRD DRIEST APRIL...SINCE RECORDS HAVE BEEN KEPT. RECORDS HAVE BEEN KEPT AT THE SAVANNAH AIRPORT SINCE 1870.

THE DRIEST APRIL EVER IN SAVANNAH OCCURRED IN 1892...WHEN ONLY 0.16 INCHES OF RAINFALL WAS RECORDED. THE SECOND DRIEST MONTH OF APRIL OCCURRED IN 1942...WHEN 0.28 INCHES OF RAINFALL OCCURRED.

SO FAR THIS YEAR ONLY 6.93 INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN AT THE SAVANNAH AIRPORT...WHICH IS 6.90 INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 13.83 INCHES FOR THE YEAR TO DATE.

BY COMPARISON...THE MOST RAINFALL EVER AT SAVANNAH DURING THE MONTH OF APRIL OCCURRED IN 1991...WHEN 10.57 INCHES OF RAIN WAS RECORDED.

THE FORECAST FROM THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER IS FOR CONTINUED BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL FOR THE TWO WEEK PERIOD ENDING ON MAY 13.

THE MOST RECENT THREE MONTH OUTLOOK OF PRECIPITATION...ALSO ISSUED BY THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER AND COVERING THE MONTHS OF MAY...JUNE AND JULY...IS FOR NEAR NORMAL RAINFALL. THE NORMAL RAINFALL FOR SAVANNAH FOR THESE THREE MONTHS IS 15.14 INCHES.

DUE TO THE LACK OF RAINFALL...THE LATEST UNITED STATES DROUGHT MONITOR NOW SHOWS MODERATE TO SEVERE DROUGHT CONDITIONS ACROSS MUCH OF SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND COASTAL PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN SOUTH CAROLINA.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT...
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/CHS.

YOU CAN ALSO VISIT THE DROUGHT MONITOR WEBSITE AT...
WWW.DROUGHT.UNL.EDU/DM/MONITOR.HTML.

$$

Air Quality Awareness Week, Monday: Ozone and Partical Pollution

This week is the National Weather service Air Quality Awareness Week. The NWS will issue a Public Information Statement each day this week. I'll be posting the NWS statements here daily.

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
500 AM EDT MON APR 30 2007

...THIS IS AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...

THIS WEEK MARKS THE BEGINNING OF OZONE SEASON FOR MANY AREAS IN THE UNITED STATES.

EACH DAY OF AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK WILL FEATURE A UNIQUE TOPIC RELEVANT TO EDUCATION AND PREPAREDNESS.

TODAY WE HIGHLIGHT TWO TYPES OF AIR POLLUTION...OZONE AND PARTICLE POLLUTION. THESE ARE TWO COMMON POLLUTANTS FOUND IN MANY PARTS OF THE COUNTRY.

OZONE IS A COLORLESS ODORLESS GAS. IT IS THE SAME GAS THAT IS FOUND IN THE OZONE LAYER HIGH IN THE EARTH/S STRATOSPHERE WHERE IT PROTECTS US FROM THE SUN/S ULTRAVIOLET ENERGY. BUT AT GROUND LEVEL WHERE WE LIVE...OZONE POLLUTION IS UNHEALTHY TO BREATHE.

PARTICLE POLLUTION...OR AIRBORNE PARTICLE POLLUTION...CONSISTS OF MICROSCOPIC PARTICLES IN THE AIR. DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU LIVE...IT CAN BE A PROBLEM IN THE WINTER AND/OR SUMMER. LIKE OZONE... PARTICLE POLLUTION IS NOT HEALTHY TO BREATHE. THE PARTICLES ALSO CONTRIBUTE TO HAZE WHICH BLURS THE VIEW IN MANY CITIES AND
NATIONAL PARKS.

TOMORROW WE WILL LEARN HOW THESE POLLUTANTS FORM AND CREATE POOR AIR QUALITY CONDITIONS.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...VISIT US ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT HTTP://WWW.AIRQUALITY.NOAA.GOV.

$$

South Georgia Fires Update

From the Georgia Forestry Commission Wildfire Situation Report, April 30 at 9:30 PM:

Charlton and Ware Counties:
The fires burning in Charlton and Ware counties cover approximately 80,000 acres, and are 64 percent contained. Monday evening, firefighters were tackling a particularly pesky and hard-to-reach fire in the green swamp area near Race Pond Road in Ware County. An earlier evacuation order has been lifted and about 50 residents of Ware County’s Laura Walker Lake area have returned to their homes.

In Charlton County, firefighters seem to be catching a small break as winds have been moving the fire into the swamp, and only the Race Pond area is under a mandatory evacuation order, including Carter Community Road, Kingfisher Landing, Dowling Road, and U.S. 1 from mile marker 16 to the Charlton County line.

The Uptonville and Mattox areas, including Old U.S. 1, Grace Chapel Road and Old Spanish Creek Road are under a fire advisory.


Atkinson County:
Firefighters reported progress on the Roundabout Swamp Fire in Atkinson County, but late reports say the blaze has spread outside of the swamp again.

U. S. 82 (GA 520) is closed between the Mill community in Ware County and Pearson in Atkinson County. Traffic is being detoured westbound down Manor Millwood Road to Carswell Ave. (Highway 122). Assistance has been requested from DOT and Georgia State Patrol.

The biggest problem continues to be the weather. Low humidity, winds, and no rain in the forecast hamper firefighting efforts. Some firefighting crews from the Savannah area returned last week and at least one group from Southside Fire department went down to the fires.

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net