AX2OOO SPECIAL EVENT CALLSIGN
APACHES ON THE WARPATH?
WE JUMPED THE GUN
PROGRESS ON SPECIAL OLYMPIC CALL SIGNS
From July 1996 Westlakes Newsletter
AX2OOO, the Special Event Callsign to commemorate the year 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, is to be for the use of our club and its members for a six month period prior to the Games opening ceremony and one month after the closing ceremony.
You are probably wondering how this Special Callsign came to be allocated to a radio club and not say, the WIA? A little background will help.
The morning after it was announced that Sydney was selected to be the host city for the 2000 Olympics, Westlakes wrote to SMA Headquarters in Canberra asking for AX2OOO to be issued to and for the use of the club. Our letter must have raised a few eyebrows at SMA and the initial reply was that such a callsign was not appropriate, the matter was too early to decide upon and Special Callsigns, if issued, would probably be through the WIA.
Not easily deterred, Westlakes wrote back with a list of callsigns inviting the SMA to chose one which it considered was "appropriate". Another knock back came from the SMA and we were advised to work through the WIA if we wanted a Special Olympic Games Callsign.
"No way", we replied. The SMA issues such callsigns, and we were applying direct. We also asked what other body, group, club,
organization, or individual had asked earlier than Westlakes for AX2OOO? The answer of course; no one had - no one had even
thought about it and that includes the WIA and the SMA!
A year passed and the matter stood still - no progress, a stand-off. Then recently, the WIA approached SMA regarding the whole matter of issuing Special Event Callsigns. The Institute pointed out that in Australia, gaining a Special Call was harder and made more difficult than in other countries. The example of the FCC in the USA issuing Special Callsigns for the Atlanta Olympics was clear evidence.
Due to the good efforts of our WIA representatives, the SMA agreed to work toward a simpler and less "red tape" procedure for special event callsign issue. That agreed, guess whose original letter requesting AX2OOO was produced by the SMA?
So that's the story. You will hear more about how Westlakes was issued with AX2OOO, which by the way is "OOO" (letters), not "000" (numbers). Also, all VK stations will be allowed to use the "AX" prefix during the time of the Sydney Olympics.
In the meantime, Westlakes will plan a roster system to gain best use of AX2OOO, production of QSL cards and how to stop several club members from grinning for the next four years. And finally, did you hear the one about the early bird and the worm? Well, it turns out that the bird is a crow and his name is
WARC!
What is probably the best Special Event Callsign ever to be issued in Australia has been given exclusively to Westlakes Amateur Radio Club by the Spectrum Management Agency.
Greg VK2CW
From August 1996 Westlakes Newsletter
However, more recent comments made over the VK2 Divisional News have cast doubt that the callsign may come to our club. These are disturbing as Westlakes has already made a considerable financial investment in the acquisition of radio equipment and preparation of 100,000 Special Event full-colour photographic QSL cards. These decisions were made following the specific advice from Federal WIA.
It is also quaint to hear that the rumours suggest that AX2OOO may go to the WIA rather than Westlakes as it is the WIA which has advised us we had the callsign in the first place! As a precaution, the club has taken legal advice and has been assured of its position. Things such as costs so far incurred, hurt, embarrassment, loss-of -face in the amateur community, suffering, forgone publicity and goodwill at Olympic time - lawyers have a way of listing these things.
Are there Indians in the SMA, the issuers of the callsign? Surely not. Westlakes was first to apply.
Or were we? It has been claimed that a request to have AX2OOO allocated was made the year before it was announced that the Olympics were to be held in Sydney. If that is
true, whoever was the applicant must have a crystal ball!
To approach the SMA, our solicitor has suggested we use words like discrimination, the Minister, and the Commonwealth Ombudsman . But it won't come to that, surely? The latest news is that a compromise may be offered. After all, there are four years to work something out.
You know, I liked it much better when the Indians had bows and arrows and we had all the guns.
Greg VK2CW
There is nothing worse than an "Indian Giver". Readers will remember that in last month's newsletter was the item about Westlakes being allocated the Special Event
callsign, AX2OOO, for the Sydney Olympics in the Year 2000.
The news was also carried in the VK2 Divisional Broadcast and appears, exactly as we reported, in this month's Amateur Radio magazine. It all looks very official and at this stage, Westlakes has no reason to doubt that AX2OOO is to come its way.
WIA News
Released 15 August, 1996
From the Federal Media Liaison Officer
Roger Harrison VK2ZRH
The Spectrum Management Agency (SMA) has actually reserved their decision on the WIA's request for use of the call sign for six months before the Olympics opening ceremony to one month after the closing ceremony while they have discussions between the relevant bodies within the Agency. This error was not picked up when last month's WIA News was reviewed before being released.
In addition, to clarify the matter of who has been issued the AX2OOO call sign, it has been issued to the Federal WIA. However, the WIA is delegating the activation of this special event call sign to the initial applicant, the Westlakes Amateur Radio Club, who are to administer all aspects of the rostering of its activation, and QSLing etc. This confusion arose because not all of the relevant correspondence through the WIA Federal Office had been made available to everyone on the SMA Liaison Team. Steps have been taken to avoid such administrative oversights in the future.
The WIA has also requested the issue of another special event call sign from the SMA for the 2000 Olympics - AX2SYD, to operate over the same period requested for AX2OOO. The WIA has put to the SMA that these two call signs would be appropriate to commemorate the Olympics, which were awarded to the City of Sydney for the year 2000.
The two call signs would serve to highlight internationally the predominant associations with the next Olympics. Having two call signs would not devalue the worth of either, and would provide additional opportunities for local operators and clubs to activate a special event Olympics call sign. It is anticipated that demand would be very high. Having two special event call signs would also multiply the opportunities for the creation and promotion of awards associated with the special event Olympic stations. Operation of the Olympic call signs for one month after the Olympics' closing ceremony would cover the associated Paralympics, too.
The Federal WIA told the SMA that administration of the use of AX2SYD, should it be issued, would be delegated to the NSW Division, anticipating that it would be used within the greater Sydney metropolitan area, while AX2OOO might be used more widely.
For the just-concluded US Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, there were four special event Olympics call signs in use. There was one "official" Olympics commemorative station, W4O, with W400O (W-four hundred-Oh), W96O and W26O being authorized alternative call signs.
WIA News
Released 12 September, 1996
From the Federal Media Liaison Officer
Roger Harrison VK2ZRH
This means that the AX prefix and the special event call signs will be available for use from 15 June through 2 November, inclusive, in the year 2000.
At the WIA-SMA meeting on 28 June last, the WIA proposed that, in addition to a special event call sign for the Olympics to signify its international significance, that either NSW amateurs be allowed to use the VI prefix as the Olympics, being held in the State capital of Sydney, was a significant event for NSW, or alternatively that all Australian amateurs be able to use the AX prefix because the Olympics was an international event. The SMA, in their recent response to the Institute, said that they considered the use of the VI prefix would devalue the importance of the event for the whole of Australia.
Following the June WIA-SMA meeting, the WIA submitted a request for a further special event Olympics call sign, AX2SYD. (See WIA News, page 6, September issue of Amateur Radio). The SMA has advised that, unfortunately, VK2SYD is taken, but they have reserved VK2SOG as an alternative. The SMA also said that, that if this is not acceptable, the WIA should advise preferences and check availability for reservation until after the Olympic games. The Institute is considering the matter and will reply in due course.
Apparently, the first actual application for an Olympics special event call sign was made by the Westlakes Amateur Radio Club in NSW, who wrote the SMA the morning after it was announced in September 1993, that Sydney was selected as the host city for the 2000 Olympics. They sought VI2000AUS, or something similar. The same day, the WIA Federal President, Neil Penfold VK6NE, faxed the WIA Federal Secretary and asked him to request that the SMA reserve AX2000 or AX2OOO. The Federal Secretary eventually contacted the SMA on 5 October 1993, requesting AX2000 for the period of the Olympics and the use of the AX prefix by all Australian amateurs. Also on 24 September 1993, NSW Division Special Projects Officer, Stephen Pall VK2PS, discussed the possibilities of a variety of call signs with the Sydney Area Office of the SMA. No application was subsequently made by the NSW Division, having learned of the WIA Federal application for AX2000.
In November 1994, the SMA advised the International Telecommunications Union Radio communications Bureau of the WIA's application for the AX2000 (AX-two thousand) call sign. The Bureau replied the following month, advising that call signs formed from two characters followed by four digits may be used for identification of ship stations in the maritime mobile service. They also said that the international Radio Regulations stipulated that all transmissions with misleading identification are prohibited. So that's the reason why AX2000 could not be issued.
While there was considerable correspondence between the SMA, the WIA and Westlakes ARC over Olympics special event call signs during the ensuing years, the rest, as they say, is history.
Correspondence to the WIA should be addressed to your state WIA Division Office. Replies via Packet Radio or Internet are not accepted.
As it turned out, the WIA (NSW Division) applied for and was allocated the callsign AX2000 in the year 1999. So much for first in best dressed.
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© Westlakes Amateur Radio Club Ltd. 1996, York St, Teralba, 2284, NSW, Australia