In the last two columns we’ve talked about planning, and we’ve talked a bit about technology. What we now need to look at is bringing them together to create and develop an effective plan for your auxiliary communication support group. “Winging it” or the popular “knee jerk reaction” is not a substitute for planning. As I’ve probably said before, the Five Ps; “Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance,” should be the hallmark of your group.
Before we get to the planning part, let me restate something from a previous column. It bears repeating. The first of the five reasons, as described in Part 97, that we have the amateur radio privileges we enjoy is that we are supposedly an “in being” emergency communication service. Let me also add that next year brings another World Radio-communication Conference, where they decide on who gets what slices of the very limited resource called the radio frequency spectrum. The hams have gained some and lost more over time since regulation first started in the early 1900s. Then we have those pesky HOA issues, where resident hams say they need antennas to provide emergency communication when disasters strike. That’s a great idea, but do these same hams participate in public service events, exercises or activities like Field Day, so they might be ready? The phrase, “use it or lose it” is very applicable
