[amsat-bb] Re: Echo totally unuesable on an Arrow

["Keith Baker, KB1SF / VA3KSF" <kb1sf@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Greetings again, All!

Cliff wrote:

> And your right also Keith, AMSAT has again worked > long and hard to
produce a FM white elephant.  >Probably is was inevitable that this had to
be done one >more time to convince modern "hams" the uselessness of >single
channel satellites!
>
>Cliff K7RR

Well, I guess there's nobody to blame but ME, Cliff, as I was one of those
BOD members present around the table when we signed the contract with
SpaceQuest to build Echo in the first place.

In fact, now that I think back on it, I recall that when AO-27's FM
transponders were first turned on for "free" Ham use, nearly all of us (me
included) were working through it "flat out" with our high power Oscar-13
stations and high gain antennas in order to be heard.  The "Arrow Antenna"
approach had yet to become popular (if it was even invented yet!), so maybe
I'm now trying to compare apples with oranges.

However, it's good to know that I'm not the only one having difficulties
working thru the new satellite with a low-power setup.  And yes, maybe just
putting the antenna away for awhile until all the contention dies down is
the best solution for us QRPers.  It certainly will lead to less
frustration. Hi!

And perhaps I'm just now waxing nostalgic about the "good old days" that
were (AO-10 and AO-13) and what might have been (Phase 3-D) had things gone
as we all would have hoped.  I know I poured a lot of myself into the latter
project...probably too much....and am no doubt STILL harboring a lot of
bitterness about the end result.  I guess that's what happens when one gets
"too close" to a project, particularly a project in the space biz!

Anyway, does anyone now know if our German friends have a firm launch
vehicle and/or launch date for their P3-E satellite?


Thanks and 73,


Keith Baker
VA3KSF / KB1SF
Immediate Past President
AMSAT-NA
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