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Amateur Radio Club offers free licensing classes in September

| 13 Aug 2013 | 12:52
    A ìgraduateî from the Orange County Amateur Radio Club ìHam Radio Classes,î Sean Flynn, 13, of the Town of Newburgh, is on the air with call sign KD2BFI. He recently visited the antique radio exhibit at the American Radio Relay League Headquarters in Newington, Conn.
    A ìgraduateî from the Orange County Amateur Radio Club ìHam Radio Classes,î Sean Flynn, 13, of the Town of Newburgh, is on the air with call sign KD2BFI. He recently visited the antique radio exhibit at the American Radio Relay League Headquarters in Newington, Conn.

GOSHEN — The Orange County Amateur Radio Club will be offering instructional classes starting Saturday, Sept. 28, to enable citizens of any age to obtain their first ham radio license.

This entry-level license, authorized by the FCC, is called the “Technician Class,” and permits two-way radio communication on all amateur frequency bands in the VHF and UHF range. There is no age limitation, no Morse Code requirement, and no prior experience necessary to take these classes.

Licensed hams use radio at all levels of technology - networks, repeaters, AM, FM, TV, on-air contests, international contacts, space and satellite communication, experimentation, emergency preparedness and even just “rag-chewing.”

The instruction is offered free by the club. The question and answer license manual should be purchased by the student prior to attending class ($20.95 plus shipping) at www.w5yi.org or by calling toll-free 1-800-669-9594.

Essential information
Classes and license exam will be held at the Orange County Emergency Communications Center located at 110 Wells Farm Road in Goshen. Classes are on five Saturday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon on the following dates:

Sept. 28
Oct. 5
Oct. 12
Oct. 19
Oct. 26

Examination is scheduled for the morning of Nov. 9, administered by certified volunteer examiners. There is a $15 mandated FCC fee charged to take the exam.

Interested students may register by visiting www.ocarc-ny.org, then click on “Tech Licensing Classes;” use the link there to register online, or call 845-391-3620 to leave a message with your contact information.

More general amateur radio information is at: www.hello-radio.org.